I wrote this Summary for English 100 on an article about “The Importance of Urban Forests” by Amy Fleming.

Summary:

In her article, “The Importance of Urban Forests: Why Money Really Does Grow on Trees,” The Guardian writer Amy Fleming argues that urban forests are an important aspect of any neighbourhood due to the various benefits that trees provide. Focusing on the mental and physical health benefits of trees, Fleming reports a reduction in “violent tendencies” and “mental fatigue” (4), as well as an increase in life expectancy because people in neighbourhoods with urban forests are at lower risk of catching diseases and giving birth to “underweight babies” (qtd. in Fleming 5). In addition to mental and physical health benefits, Fleming acknowledges that urban forests are important due to their economic value as well. For example, Fleming states that in New York, “[t]here were $28m worth of energy savings, $5m worth of air quality improvements and $36m of costs avoided in mitigating storm water flooding” (3). Fleming’s point is that in the long term, installing trees in the form of urban forests will help save more money than investing in short term solutions, as well as benefit the environment. For instance, Fleming writes that trees reduce temperatures by “2C and 8C,” “absorb 150 kg of carbon dioxide a year,” and reduce pollution (2). Overall, Fleming conveys that it is crucial to have urban forests in all communities due to their ability to improve the mental and physical health of people, their economic benefits, and environmental benefits.

Works Cited

Fleming, Amy. “The Importance of Urban Forests: Why Money Really Does Grow on Trees.” The Guardian, 12 Oct. 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/oct/12/importance-urban-forests-money-grow-trees. Accessed 27 Sep. 2021.