Trees

The university recognizes trees as an essential asset for our campus and the community.

They provide habitat for diverse species, sequester carbon from the atmosphere, and have been shown to affect human behavior positively.

F&S is responsible for oversight of campus trees, with guidance from the Campus Tree Advisory Committee. Since 2015, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has been honored with Tree Campus Higher Education® recognition by the Arbor Day Foundation for its commitment to effective urban forest management.

The university achieved the title by maintaining a tree advisory committee, establishing a campus tree-care plan, dedicating annual stewardship for its campus tree program, performing an Arbor Day observance, and developing a student service-learning project. Oaks and Swamp Chestnut Oaks.

Tree Care Plan

The university’s tree care plan clarifies the campus commitment to maintaining trees. As of the end of 2024, 18,162 campus trees have been updated to the tree inventory, found on TreeKeeper, a program used to locate and annotate all trees on campus. See the ‘Links’ sidebar on this page.

The programs and policies previously in place have been updated to reflect the current industry standards and procedures for the Urbana campus. See the ‘Documents’ sidebar on this page.

Trees care and resilient landscape strategies are also a major component of F&S’s efforts to beautify and protect the campus grounds.