Douglas Meney is the Director of Horticulture with the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC), a position he has held since 2014. Mr Meney serves as the principle Horticultural advisor to the Deputy Secretary for Overseas Operations and to the Superintendents of 26 permanent American military cemeteries and 32 federal memorial, monuments and markers, located within 17 foreign countries.

These military cemeteries and memorials, most of which commemorate the service and sacrifice of Americans who served in World War I and World War II, are among the most beautiful and meticulously maintained shrines in the world.

Mr Meney, who was born and raised in Scotland is a trained and qualified horticulturalist who has worked within the Horticultural industry for 40 years, 33 of which have been dedicated to military cemetery maintenance in the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom and France. He holds an Foundation Degree in Horticulture form West of Scotland Agricultural College and a BA (Hons) in Leadership and Management form Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Amanda Benner is a Principal Program Manager for Vegetation Management at PECO, an Exelon Company, and lives in Philadelphia. Prior to joining the electric utility, she held non-profit leadership positions at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, and was Executive Director at a community organization, UC Green. Her career includes positions in operations and project management at marketing and communications firms. Amanda has an MBA from the University of Maryland, is an ISA certified arborist, and holds the Tree Risk Assessment Qualification.

Dan Herms is Vice President of Research and Development for The Davey Tree Expert Company. Prior to joining Davey, Herms served on the faculty in the Department of Entomology at The Ohio State University from 1997-2017, serving as Department Chair from 2012-2016. His research and outreach programs focus on the ecology and management of trees in forests, urban forests, and ornamental landscapes, including interactions with insects, soils, and climate.

He received his B.S. in Landscape Horticulture from Ohio State University in 1982, his M.S. in Horticulture and Entomology from Ohio State University in 1984, and his PhD in 1991 from Michigan State University in Entomology with a specialization in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Major recognitions for this work include the L.C. Chadwick Award for Arboriculture Research and the Richard W. Harris Author’s Citation Award from the International Society of Arboriculture, and election as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Entomological Society of America.

Anthony Aiello is Associate Director of Conservation, Plant Breeding, and Collections at Longwood Gardens, where he participates in tree conservation, plant exploration and evaluation, and collections development. Previously he served for 22 years as the Gayle E. Maloney Director of Horticulture and Curator at the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania, where he managed the Morris Arboretum’s historic gardens and living collections. These positions have allowed him to travel throughout the U.S., Europe, China, and Japan to find novel plants suitable for growing in the Delaware Valley. He has a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a concentration in Botany from Cornell University and a Master of Science in Horticulture from Purdue University and for many years chaired the North America-China Plant Exploration Consortium (NACPEC) and participated in the American Public Gardens Association taxonomy and plant collections committees.

Tony’s interests include temperate trees and shrubs – in particular oaks, maples, hollies, witch-hazels, and flowering cherries, as well as economic botany and the history of horticulture. He has written extensively about his travels, as well as his historic and plant interests.

Zhaohua (Cindy) Cheng is a Ph.D. candidate in urban forestry at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She has over five years of experience in community and youth engagement, climate change adaptation, student advising and engagement, and project management. Her Ph.D. research focuses on exploring urban forest-based solutions for climate resilience and urban livability.

Edward S. Barnard was for 17 years senior staff editor and managing editor of Reader’s Digest General Books, where he oversaw the production of several dozen books that sold over 1 million copies each. From 1963 to 1967 he was project editor of a 15-volume ecology series, Our Living World of Nature, published jointly by McGraw-Hill and World Book Encyclopedia. He edited the volume on Mars in DK’s Eyewitness series and four volumes in Scholastic’s National Audubon First Field Guide series. Among his writing credits are articles for National Wildlife, International Wildlife, and Audubon, 5 children’s books on animals for Reader’s Digest, and New York City Trees for Columbia University Press. Recently he co-produced with Ken Chaya Central Park Entire, the most detailed map of Central Park available. He is keenly interested in old growth trees and has volunteered as a tree ring technician at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory’s Tree Ring Research Laboratory. One of his recent books is Central Park Trees and Landscapes, a Guide to New York City's Masterpiece published by Columbia University Press in 2016. He also co-authored with Paul Meyer and Catriona Briger a field guide titled Philadelphia Trees published by ColumbiaUniversity Press in 2017. Currently he is producing an updated edition of Philadelphia Trees for the University of Pennsylvania Press for publication in 2023. He is also co-writing and producing a book titled Philadelphia Nature, A Field Guide to Wild Places and Wildlife in the City & the Surrounding Delaware Valley with Anne Bekker for publication by Temple University Press in 2024.

Ned moved from Manhattan to Chestnut Hill in 2010 with his wife Pauline Gray.

Erica Smith Fishman has spent her career connecting people with plants. As the Community Forestry Manager at Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, she is the project lead for the Philly Tree Plan. Erica also supervises the amazing TreePhilly team who provide Philadelphia residents with the resources they need to plant and care for trees in their own backyard. She is an ISA certified arborist and the recipient of the Arbor Day Foundation's 2018 Trailblazer Award. Erica received a B.S. in biology from Haverford College and an M.S. in environmental horticulture from the University of California, Davis.

Joe Hansen is an ISA Certified Arborist Municipal Specialist, Tree Risk Assessment Qualified (TRAQ) and holds numerous certifications through the Tree Care Industry Association including Certified Tree Care Safety Professional (CTSP) and is an Approved Instructor for the TCIA’s Tree Care Academy.  In his role as Urban Forester for the City of Park Ridge, Illinois, Joe is responsible for maintaining the urban forest through use of the City’s Urban Forest Management Plan, conducts parkway tree inspections, building plan reviews, assists with managing contracts and enforces the Tree Preservation Ordinance.  In addition he serves as Chair of the Public Works Safety Committee.

Outside of his duties with Park Ridge, Joe was recently elected the Municipal Director for the Illinois Arborist Association and he is also a Task Specialist for the Urban Forest Strike Team in Illinois.  The strike team conducts rapid tree assessments after storms to assist communities in need in hopes to preserve trees while assessing their risk.  He also produces a podcast called The Municipal Arborist where he and guests discuss urban forestry and industry related topics which also provides ISA CEU’s to listeners. He likes to share his experiences through training and public speaking engagements.

Steve Blaes holds degrees in sustainable horticulture and environmental science and has over 20 years of experience in the green industry. He has earned multiple green industry credentials, including the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional certification, the Landscape Contractors Association CLT in Ornamental Maintenance, and is an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist with their Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ) among others. Steve has worked on a plethora of projects ranging from residential to institutional campuses in both rural and urban communities across the country. His scientific area of inquiry primarily focuses on supporting professional landscape best management practices that positively impact riparian ecologies endemic to the piedmont and coastal plain regions. He is currently working as a design and sales consultant in Maryland's Baltimore Metro area while supporting his passion projects in the Chesapeake Bay Bioregion.

Jake Handley was born in San Luis Obispo, California, and grew up in Eustis Florida where he received a bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of Central Florida. After graduating from college he worked in the zip line industry for 5 years as a guide, trainer, and course builder. He started his transition into the tree world in 2017 working for Asheville Arborists where he is currently employed. He became a certified arborist in 2019 and has written “The Times They Are a-Changin” for the Arborist magazine an article on climate change. Jake currently resides in Black Mountain, North Carolina.

Dana Dentice is a Trees Program Manager and an ISA-certified arborist at PHS. She leads the Tree Tenders program (with now nearly 6000 graduates) to empower citizens to protect and expand tree canopy in communities across the Philadelphia region. Dana collaborates with organizations and volunteers on planting 1500-2000 trees annually and engages them in follow-up stewardship programs, such as pruning clubs and the PHS Tree Checkers tree monitoring program. She enjoys sharing her expertise in arboriculture and community organizing at Tree Tenders trainings. Dana previously served as a forestry assistant for the cities of Fitchburg and Madison, Wisconsin where she conducted public tree inventories and led open space planning. She holds a B.S. in Natural Resources and an M.S. in Urban & Regional Planning from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Jeffrey Ling is an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist, registered consulting arborist, and senior consulting arborist in the state of Indiana. He is Secretary-Treasurer of the American Society of Consulting Arborists and currently serves as its co-liaison to the Council of Tree Landscape Appraisers. In Jeffrey’s hometown of New Haven, Indiana he serves as a member of the Tree Commission.

For 31 years, Jeff co-owned TreeMasters, Inc. a comprehensive arbor-care company. He specialized in Plant Health Care and Woody Plant Pathology. Jeff also served as a Testifying Expert in courts throughout the Great Lakes and the East Coast.

Jeff’s current consulting firm, ARBORWISE, LTD., was founded in 1994. It focuses on horticulture issues, urban forestry concerns, and tree preservation projects.

Jan Johnsen is a principal of the award-winning Johnsen Landscapes & Pools in New York, and an admired garden designer and author. She was the 2019 recipient of the prestigious ‘Award of Distinction' from the Association of Professional Landscape Designers. Her firm’s website is www.johnsenlandscapes.com

Trained in landscape architecture and professional horticulture, Jan has worked in Japan, Hawaii, and Kenya, among other places. She is an inspiring and popular speaker and loves to show how you can “co-create with nature” in your backyard.

She taught at Columbia University for many years and still teaches at the New York Botanical Garden where she was named “Instructor of the Year”. Jan wrote ‘All About Trees’ and has followed that up with several other books. Her 2021 book, Floratopia – 110 Flower Garden Ideas for Your Yard, Patio or Balcony, (Countryman Press, an imprint of W.W. Norton) joins Gardentopia, Heaven is a Garden and The Spirit of Stone.

Dr. David Bengston is an Environmental Futurist and Social Scientist with the Strategic Foresight Group of the Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, and is located in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is also an adjunct faculty member at the University of Minnesota where he teaches a seminar on environmental futures. Dr. Bengston has published more than 160 research publications, including papers in the Journal of Futures Research, World Futures Review, Futures, and The Futurist. He was the Chair of the North American Forest Commission’s Foresight Working Group and is a member of the World Futures Studies Federation and the Association of Professional Futurists.

Dr. Bengston has worked as a consultant to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Development Programme, and the International Union of Forestry Research Organization’s (IUFRO) Special Programme for Developing Countries. He was the Coordinator of the IUFRO Ecological Economics in Forestry Working Group and was an OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development) Research Fellow at Seoul National University in South Korea in 2004. In the summer of 2022, he will be a visiting Fulbright scholar at the University of Eastern Finland.

Nate Shampine, CERP, is Mt. Cuba Center’s Natural Lands Manager responsible for implementing land conservation practices and developing healthy and functional ecosystems. He is a graduate of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and is a Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner through the Society for Ecological Restoration. He is an adjunct professor at Temple University where he teaches Landscape Restoration to undergraduate and graduate students. He is also a certified wildland firefighter and recently traveled to Arizona and California to assist with wildfire efforts.

Brian “BK” Koehler has been the director of the Park Maintenance Institute since early 2020. BK holds degrees in Business Administration (BS), Parks and Recreation Administration (BS), and Experiential Education (MS). He is an experienced facilitator and event professional with an extensive background in teambuilding, ropes course / climbing tower construction, and outdoor adventure leadership.

Before joining the Park Maintenance Institute, BK was based in Hong Kong through 2015 as an experiential educator, producer, and entrepreneur. Upon his stateside return, BK stepped into operations and facility management of the Student Union and Recreation Center at Central Washington University.

BK is a native Pennsylvanian, but self-proclaimed “global citizen.” He is motivated by a thirst for experience, and driven by a desire to engage leaders that impact society. He believes in the power of positive energy, an innovative mindset, and servant leadership. In his free time, BK enjoys gardening and playing disc golf.

Linda Langelo is a Colorado State University Extension, Horticulture Agent. The five counties under her care are in Northeast Colorado. In 2020, a 100-year event called a derecho devastated the small towns of Akron and Haxtun. To help in the recovery of these towns, she sought to partner with the Colorado Forest Service Regional Education Coordinator, Donna Davis, and was able to secure funding from Colorado Tree Coalition (CTC) to reforest these communities.

She received her Master’s Degree in Education Administration from Salisbury State University in Salisbury, Maryland. Graduated from the Horticulture Program at Longwood Gardens after graduating from Cabrini College with a degree in English Communications, with a minor in Biology and Botany. She was a member of the Tri-Beta Honor Society. In July 2021, she was the recipient of the Lois Woodward Paul Memorial Award.

During her 40 years in horticulture, she has both implemented arboretums and overseen them. As Assistant Director of Horticulture at Salisbury State University, she helped implement a campus-wide arboretum still going strong today. She went on to be Director at Adkins Arboretum early in its implementation increasing its exposure in the local and surrounding communities and as a member of the American Public Garden Association.

Currently, she writes a monthly column called the Relentless Gardener and has a Facebook Page titled Garden the Plains, and has a book awaiting publisher’s approval called “Plants Are Speaking. Are You Listening?”

Melissa Custic manages the Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI). The CRTI is a collaboration of regional partners working together to improve the health, diversity, and equity of trees in the seven-county Chicago Region. Melissa works closely with colleagues of partner institutions to increase canopy cover, reduce the presence of invasive species, and works to increase the preservation of oak ecosystems in the Chicago Region. She has developed several resources and training programs aimed at improving tree selection, planting, and care, as well as targeting invasive woody removal and replacement. Melissa’s professional interests include urban forestry, urban ecology, environmental justice, tree care, climate change, and soil ecology. Melissa is also an ISA-certified arborist.

Amber Grant is a Ph.D. Candidate (ABD) in the Environmental Applied Science and Management program at X* University (formerly known as Ryerson University). Her doctoral research focuses on examining environmental justice in urban forest management and decision-making in the United States. Most recently, Amber has been working in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to investigate how environmental justice is being pursued and implemented in community tree-planting programs and practice. Amber has also worked with Dr. Andrew Millward and his Urban Forest Research and Ecological Disturbance Group for the last seven years conducting interdisciplinary research regarding urban forest function, ecological change, and human interactions with urban nature.

William Fuchs is the Head Gardener at Andalusia Historic House, Gardens, and Arboretum. William has worked in several positions at Andalusia over the last 22 years including 14 years as the Head Gardener. William came to Andalusia as an intern in 1998 while finishing his Bachelor of Science degree in Horticulture at Temple University, Ambler campus. Before attending Temple, William received his Associate Applied Science degree in Ornamental Horticulture from Cumberland Community College. William’s interest in horticulture and gardening has been lifelong, working in various positions in the industry for over 30 years including the 7 years William managed his own design, install, and maintenance landscape company. William grew up on a small farm where a variety of crops were raised for farmer’s market stands as a side business. William is glad to be a part of this incredible community that helps promote a better place to live by planting beautiful trees and gardens.