Join us for our next monthly speaker series — Trees Forever — on Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30pm! We'll be joined by Emily Ehley, the Southern Illinois Field Coordinator for the Trees Forever program, which is supported by the National Forest Service and Illinois Department of Natural Resources. This spring, Trees Forever is launching a carbon crediting program for communities in downstate Illinois. The program helps to incentivize communities to plant more trees by providing revenue from the sale of carbon credits in return for planting and maintaining the trees over a 25-year period. 

Emily Ehley holds a BA in Environmental Education from Warren Wilson College and is a Certified Interpretive Guide and Master Naturalist. She also has plans to become a Certified Arborist. During the Speaker Series event, Emily will discuss the significance of trees in cities and communities. She'll share an overview of recommended tree species and where to plant them, as well as the relationships between trees and wildlife such as birds and pollinators. Attendees will leave the event with a newfound awareness of our arboreal neighbors. 

This event will be held in-person at the Old Bakery Beer Company at 400 Landmarks Boulevard in Alton, Illinois. Attendees are invited to have dinner and meet the speaker at 5:00pm. The speaking program will begin at 6:30pm in the event room adjacent to Old Bakery Beer Company's dining room. There is also a virtual option to tune into the speaking program via Zoom at 6:30pm for folks who are unable to attend in-person. Register here to RSVP to join us (either virtually or in-person) for our April 12 Speaker Series to learn more from Emily about Trees Forever!