Summary Assignment
A revised version of my English 100 Summary Assignment, written to condense Amy Flemings Article “The importance of urban forests: why money really does grow on trees.”
Writer for The Guardian, Amy Flemings advocates for modern canopies by describing their significant health benefits in her article: “The importance of urban forests: why money really does grow on trees.” Through Flemings’s research, she has come to recognize the significant issue that a lack of emphasis on maintaining and rebuilding urban forests leads to in youth: “each generation will pass on less experience of the natural environment” (5). Flemings described the danger of children growing up without understanding the true value of trees, and how that will affect their future decisions. Flemings also spoke with Historian Jill Jones, who explains the positive economic impact of trees (3). Jones notes how trees “reduce heating energy by a further 20-50%” (qtd. in Flemings 2) and increase property value (2). Fleming further discusses the benefits of trees, remarking the positive impact on the planet as they clear airborne pollutants and cool cities (2). These are some examples of trees aid to society, ignoring the plethora of mental and physical health benefits (4). Allowing future generations to make urban forest-conscious decisions will improve the general quality of life. Jones states due to “disease, development and shrinking municipal budgets” (qtd. in Flemings 1). there is a lack of canopies. Thankfully, Flemings says that organizations like Big Trees Project and the United Nations conference on sustainable urban development make efforts to restore and re-integrate urban forests back into society (1).
Fleming, Amy. “The importance of urban forests: why money really does grow on trees.” The Guardian, 12 October, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/oct/12/ importance-urban-forests-money-grow-trees. Accessed September 24th 2021.