EnvCast | The Future of Trees: Diversifying Species, Managing Landscapes, and Sustainable Timber

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Environment Top 5: Trees

This episode is a Trees special, focused on arboriculture as a sector, crowded landscape, climate change and species and pests, sustainable timber and certifications from two Chartered Environmentalists themselves.

We cover:
Arboriculture as a sector
Forestry in a crowded landscape
Climate change in terms of species selection and diseases
Why Grown in Britain and Plant Healthy certifications matter
Key Takeaways

This special episode of EnvCast features two Chartered Environmentalists, John Parker and Dougal Driver.

Speaker bios:

John Parker:
John Parker has been Chief Executive Officer of the Arboricultural Association since July 2021, and previously held the role of Technical Director at the Association from August 2019. John is UK & Ireland President of the International Society of Arboriculture and an Executive Committee member of the European Arboricultural Council.
He has a degree in Arboriculture & Urban Forestry and is a Chartered Environmentalist and Chartered Forester. John is a Fellow of the Arboricultural Association, the Institute of Chartered Forestry, the Royal Society of Biology and the Linnaean Society. He frequently presents at national and international conferences and has delivered a TED Talk entitled Why trees are better than people (available on YouTube).

Since spring 2020 John has chaired the Arboricultural Association webinar series, covering a wide range of topics to a global audience. In 2018 he was awarded the title of Young European Urban Forester of the Year, in 2022 he was named one of the 25 Most Influential People in Horticulture by Pro Landscaper Magazine and in 2024 he appeared on the ENDS Power List of the 100 most influential environmental professionals in the UK. From 2020 until 2022 he was a Trustee of the Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum, the national UK tree collection. John is interested in public engagement, green equity and promoting the benefits of trees, with particular consideration for their social and cultural value. He is the founder of the Stonehouse Community Arboretum and a Trustee of the Doverow Hill Trust.

Dougal Driver:
Dougal is a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) registered via the Institute of Chartered Foresters (ICF) and Chair of the Society for the Environment Board. He is also SocEnv’s Board champion for World Environment Day.

Dougal is a founder and CEO of Grown in Britain, a not for profit organisation that sets standards for our trees, woods and forests and delivers research to improve local supply chains for forest products. He is also Chairman of the Forestry Commission’s SE Forestry and Woodlands Advisory Committee and a passionate advocate for the promotion of technical qualifications in the UK.

His career includes positions as Head of Profession for the Defence Estate, Regional Director for the Government Office South East and a Rural Director at Defra. Whilst at Defra, he undertook a career highlight in creating the South Downs National Park.

Professional registration:

Registered status as a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv), Registered Environmental Practitioner (REnvP) or Registered Environmental Technician (REnvTech) are available. To find out more about our registrations visit: https://socenv.org.uk/professional-re…

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