Tree City of the World status for Birmingham

Birmingham has been named as a Tree City of the World for the second year running, highlighting the city’s dedication towards planting and conserving trees.

The international programme, run by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) along with the Arbor Day Foundation, celebrates cities across all continents that are committed to growing and maintaining their urban trees and forests and recognise the importance of trees in building healthy, resilient and happy cities.

To achieve recognition, Birmingham met the five programme standards – establish responsibility, set the rules, know what you have, allocate the resources and celebrate achievements.

Waseem Zaffar, Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment, said: “The role that trees play in mitigating for and adapting to the effects of climate change is well known; because of this, trees are a priority in our Route to Zero Plan and emerging planning documents.

“Being recognised as a Tree City of the World for a second year in a row is a great achievement and shows that Birmingham is dedicated to the sustainable management of its Urban Forest for the benefit of its citizens and the environment”.

Tree Cities of the World aims to create more green spaces in urban areas by recognising the cities that do it well. Planting more trees is the quickest and easiest way to improve a city's tree canopy and invest in a brighter future.