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The Trees and Design Action Group (TDAG), brings together individuals, professionals, academics and organisations from wide ranging disciplines in both the public and private sectors to improve knowledge and good practice to support the role of urban trees through better collaboration in the planning, design, construction and management and maintenance of our urban places.
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News

Bringing Biodiversity Value to TDAG’s Tree Species Selection for Green Infrastructure: A Guide for Specifiers
We are very grateful to Barratt Redrow for providing significant funding towards adding biodiversity information to our tree species guide. This will be led by Andrew Hirons, Henrik Sjöman and the team at Urban Plant Lab. The programme is planned to run until October/November 2025.
TDAG Newsletter – November 2024
​This includes TDAG events and activities; events organised by others and an extensive list of new publications and research. Please let us know if you have any events or information to share and we will include them in our next newsletter. Contact details are below.
tdagnewsletternov2024.pdf
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TDAG Seminar Series 2025
​We will be planning these in December. So far we have received the following suggestions
Firstly, do we need an overall theme for the year? One that has been suggested is about resilience – Resilient treescapes for resilient environments or Resilience for today and tomorrow: start with the trees.

Specific topics suggested so far include: biosecurity, current tree research, trees and planning, challenges for lighting in relation to trees and landscape, the role of tree nurseries – growing and planting methods, what to look for in good tree stock; biophilic design; health and wellbeing.
 
Any other suggestions? Please send them to [email protected]
Our new guide – First Steps in Urban Tree Canopy Cover

​This is the first guide in a two part series taking a strategic approach for urban forest planning. It is free to download here. The second part is underway and will outline in more detail canopy cover assessment at site scale.
Urban water and how to manage it

Recent heavy rain events have been a stark reminder about the need for better management of our water. TDAG’s guide First Steps in Urban Water: Managing Water as a Resource outlines the key issues and actions. 

Our urban water seminar held on 15th November 2023 is available on our YouTube channel.

Our guidance on tree strategies –  Trees, Planning and Development: A Guide for Delivery – Section Two: Planning the urban forest: how to develop a strategy that delivers
This is published alongside an update of Section One and outlines how such a strategy can be developed for local authorities and for all owners of trees and woodlands.
 
Accompanying this, Appendix: Urban forest sustainability performance Indicators for the UK is an aid to monitory progress once a strategic plan has been agreed.
 
Briefing Note 01: Legislation, policy and guidance on trees and development throughout the UK adds further support. 

​With the evidence-based understanding that urban trees can delivery multiple social, environmental and economic benefits particularly in the context of our two critical challenges of climate change and biodiversity decline, ensuring that existing urban trees are retained and that new trees are a requirement for all new developments, TDAG is calling for all local authorities to have adopted tree strategies.

Available from Our Guides.
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​European partner

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Contact us

All matters
Sue James [email protected]

Seminars
Emma Ferranti [email protected]

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​Please note: TDAG does not have the resources to comment on individual tree cases or other local issues.