We work with other cabinet departments, state agencies and local governments to develop innovative approaches to community forestry. In Seattle and a dozen other cities, we've formed the Urban Resources Partnership, which brings people and their governments together to solve environmental problems and improve quality of life. The most heartening feature of the URP program is that it draws its strength from local ingenuity and enthusiasm. It is this kind of bottom-up energy that ultimately makes urban forestry efforts work. All the programs and legislation will be for naught unless people are engaged.
Volunteers are the very heart and soul of community forestry.
Federal support is critical, but our role is as catalyst, supporting the initiative that emanates from the grass roots. When neighbors come together to re-green their streets and common areas, it strengthens the community fabric and enhances civic values and activism. I want to close with this thought. I'm sure many of you are familiar with Shel Silverstein's classic children's book The Giving Tree . In it, a young boy befriends a tree, who gives of herself everything the boy needs to be happy throughout the stages of his life.