Five Research Grants Awarded from TREE Fund’s Fall 2025 Application Cycle
After a record number of applications received, Tree Research and Education Endowment Fund (TREE Fund) is proud to announce five recipients of research grants from the Fall 2025 Grant Application Cycle.
Altogether, over $79,700 in research grant money is being awarded for five research projects. 130 applications were received from researchers from all over the globe, highlighting the importance of the need for funding for these studies. All applications were reviewed and voted on by members of TREE Fund’s Research and Education Committee, which comprises a mix of researchers and industry professionals in order to best decide which projects will be most helpful in the future of the arboriculture and tree care industry.
After a final approval vote of the TREE Fund Board of Trustees, one grant each is being awarded from the following grant programs: John Z. Duling Grant Program, Jack Kimmel International Grant Program, Safe Arborist Techniques Fund Program, Tree and Soil Research Fund Grant Program, and Bob Skiera Memorial Fund Building Bridges Initiative and John P. White Grant Program.
The John Z. Duling Grant, which provides start up or seed funding to support innovative research and technology transfer projects, has been awarded to Brett Fredericksen Jr. of Southern Illinois University- Edwardsville for the project, “Environmental Indicators and Intervention Treatment for Horned Oak Gall Outbreaks on the Common Street Tree Quercus palustris.”
The Jack Kimmel International Grant, which provides funding for arboriculture research by applicants working primarily outside the USA, in partnership with Canadian TREE Fund, has been awarded to Mohammad A. Rahman of the University of Melbourne, Australia for the project, “Traitbased Assessment of Urban Tree Health and Climate Resilience.”
The Safe Arborist Techniques Fund Grant, which supports original research that creates a safer work environment for people working in the tree care industry and the general public they serve, has been awarded to Leonardo Bianchini of University of Tuscia, Department of Agriculture and Forestry Services (Italy) for the project, “Tree Risk During Rigging Operations: Identifying Biomechanical Risk Factors for Arborist Safety – TRIAS.”
The Tree and Soil Research Fund Grant, which supports projects with research of interest to the landscape architecture community with special focus in the area of trees and soils that support them, has been awarded to Andrew Milward of Toronto Metropolitan University for the project, “Mitigating Roadsalt Impacts on Urban Trees: Strategic Companion Planting with Native Halophytes.”
The Bob Skiera Memorial Fund Building Bridges Initiative and John P. White Grant Program, that supports projects which will help arborists and urban foresters communicate the value of trees and urban forests on a global basis through technology transfer and engagement with developers, builders, civil engineers, city planners, elected officials, and other policymakers, has been awarded to Luz Piedad Romero Duque of Fundación Jardín Botánico “Joaquín Antonio Uribe” de Medellín (Colombia), for the project, “Beyond the Canopy: Cocreating a Healthier City with Urban Trees.”
“Not only are we very proud to have received another record number of applications for our research grant programs last cycle, we are astounded by the quality of the international research projects that were approved for grants,” said Paul Putman, President and CEO of TREE Fund. “All of this together just continues to show how important it is to be funding this research that can help benefit the knowledge of arborists, tree care companies, and urban foresters all over the world.”
TREE Fund currently has eight research grants, two education grants, and six student scholarships available for application each year. Applications cycles are in the fall and spring of each year. Information on how to apply for these programs can be found at www.treefund.org.