TREE PLANTING CEREMONY

Arbor Day 2021

A tree planting ceremony hosted by the Department of Facilities Planning and Operations, the School of Earth, Environmental and Marine Sciences (SEEMS), and the Office for Sustainability celebrated Arbor Day in November, as with the past six years at UTRGV. Due to continuing COVID-19 regulations, the ceremonies were recorded and shared in a virtual Arbor Day event.

Moderating the session, Ms. Marianella Franklin, Chief Sustainability Officer, shared the history and purpose of Arbor Day. Furthermore, she did not fail to recognize -as she does every year- the team of 29 individuals behind the maintenance of approximately 600 acres of university grounds. Leading these 29 individuals is Executive Director of Campus Facilities and Operations, Mr. Abraham Hernandez, who added in the welcome remarks, encouraging everyone to plant trees.

Pictured above: The 2021 Arbor day celebration marks the 8th consecutive year of receiving Tree Campus USA designation for UTRGV.

After the introduction, the tree-planting ceremonies in the Edinburg and Brownsville campuses showed. The Edinburg ceremony carried a special note in light of the circumstances of the tree donation. Dr. James Jupp from the Department of Teaching and Learning spoke on behalf of his group on their desire to plant a tree to honor their late friend and colleague, Dr. Dotti Shelton, a faculty member who lost her battle with cancer.

Dr. Christopher Gabler from SEEMS led the tree-planting ceremony in Brownsville. Attendants included students from the Animal Behavior course taught by Dr. Karl Berg from the Biology department. Dr. Gabler invited the group to appreciate the uniqueness of the Brownsville campus and the role that trees have in it. He also pointed to the importance of ecotourism in South Texas, another reason why celebrating Arbor Day is significant for the region.

For UTRGV to receive its first Tree Campus Higher Education designation, data gathered in a tree inventory conducted by the students of a community forestry course was used. The course taught by sustainability faculty champion Dr. Alexis Racelis from SEEMS was highlighted during the event, as it continues to support knowledge of campus forestry.

Other projects presented also led by sustainability faculty champions were the UTRGV Native Plant nursery and the Nature Conservancy near Brownsville, both contributing towards the conservation and restoration of local plant species.

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS RIO GRANDE VALLEY HAS BEEN PLANTING TREES SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 1927. THE PURPOSEFUL OBSERVANCE OF ARBOR DAY ON CAMPUS WAS ESTABLISHED WITH THE FOUNDING OF THE OFFICE FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN 2009.