Media Release: Vancouver Public Space Network launches “Great Trees” initiative to promote Vancouver’s urban forest

Talk about numerological alignment!  At about 4:22 this afternoon we sent out the following media advisory about the Great Tree project.

We’ve included it here in case anyone wants to have a look.

– Great Tree team

MEDIA RELEASE

Vancouver Public Space Network launches “Great Trees” initiative to promote Vancouver’s urban forest

Thursday, April 22, 2010

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Public Space Network (VPSN) is marking Earth Day 2010 with the launch of a new initiative to raise awareness about Vancouver’s urban forest.

“Vancouver’s Great Trees” is part contest, part community-based research project – designed to inventory and map the city’s arboreal landscape.  As part of the initiative, Vancouverites are invited to submit a photo of their favourite tree, along with a short statement about what makes it “great.”  These photos will be collected on a blog and an interactive Google map, and each week, one entry will be randomly selected to win a prize.  The competition runs through summer 2010.

The Great Tree contest takes root!

It’s official!  The Great Tree contest has now launched!  Our project – which is part contest, part community-based research initiative – is live and ready to roll.

Over the next few months we hope to collect as many Great Tree stories and photos as we can.  Our aim is to document not only the many fantastic trees that can be found around Vancouver, but also something of the connections that people – residents and visitors alike – have with these trees.

To that end, we’re looking for as much help as we can get to promote the initiative around town.  We’re hoping that people will lend a hand and spread the word about the initiative through their own networks, clubs, family gatherings, school classrooms and workplaces. The more entries the better!

Of course, we hope the contest side will be a bit of an incentive – and that’s why we’ll be selecting one random entrant each week (starting the first week of May) to win a prize.  They’re small prizes, granted, but they’re good… and appropriate to the subject.

So grab your camera* and your notebook and snag a picture of your favourite tree.  Take a moment to tell us why it’s so great.  Put your tree on the map and help us promote Vancouver’s great urban forest!

* If you don’t have access to a camera don’t worry – we’ll do our best to help you get a photo!