Connected Treescapes
Treescapes, funded by the UKRI, will focus on the role that trees and woodlands play in and around the UK’s towns and cities. It is in the settings that the social and cultural benefits of trees and woodlands can be greatest, yet where they also face considerable environmental pressures. Our research will take a historical perspective, combining information on changes in trees and woodlands over the last three centuries with new information on their current and future importance for biodiversity and health and wellbeing under different climate change scenarios. We will combine a UK-level analysis with a focus on five initiatives cutting across urban and rural areas – the Mersey Forest, the National Forest, The National Forest of Wales, The Irish Border woodlands, and the Central Scotland Green Network.
Professor Piran White and Dr Julia Touza (Department of Environment and Geography) are the principal investigators on this project. Dr Peter Coventry (Department of Health Sciences) is a co-investigator.