Open Voices News Roundup: July 9

Planting Trees Is Like Not Eating A Marshmallow
Look at any renderings of landscape architecture and you are sure to see beautiful trees on every drawing. That happens for a reason: Whether they realize it or not, people want to see trees on their streetscapes. They can’t help it: Trees make people feel good.
But we plan for trees the same way we plan for inanimate objects like benches — plunk it down, it’ll be fine — and that approach doesn’t work as well for living things that need nourishment and room to grow.

International summit to turn spotlight on Big Apple’s unparalleled parkland
“Urban planners, elected officials and environmentalists from around the world are coming next week to take note of what’s going on in New York City. They’re coming to check out the parks, wetlands and waterfront, the featured attractions of an international urban parks conference slated for July 14-17. The conference, “Greater and Greener,” will tout the city’s recent expansion and revitalization of parkland across the five boroughs, an undertaking that eclipses anything accomplished along these lines since the New Deal era.”
Open Voices will be at “Greater and Greener,” too, and will be reporting on lots of the goings-on – stay tuned!

VIDEO: Why Trees?
“This video, “Why Trees?” from Alabama Cooperative Extension (Alabama A & M and Auburn Universities) features the incredible freehand drawings of Art Director Bruce DuPree as it persuades us to fully recognize for the many, many, many benefits of trees.”

Nature: Now Showing on TV
“This is how we mainly experience nature now — it comes to us, not the other way around — on a small, flat, glowing screen. You don’t exercise as you meander, uncertain what delight or danger may greet you, while feeling dwarfed by forces older and larger than yourself. It’s a radically different way of being — with nature, but not in nature — and it’s bound to change us.”

Natural Playground Inspires Kids to be More Active
“You may remember playgrounds from your younger days with monkey bars and tornado slides.A new wave of playgrounds feature natural elements to make play more active and more fun.”