The Plant a Trillion Trees Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Marshall Green is a fourth-generation owner and the dedicated nursery manager at Primex Garden Center in Glenside, Pennsylvania. After growing up around Primex, Marshall attended New England Culinary Institute and pursued a career as a chef in Philadelphia. In 2014 Marshall came home to Primex where he settled in as the woody plants buyer and nursery manager. As the woody plants buyer, Marshall is well attuned to current plant trends and is always looking for the next ‘it’ plant. You can easily spot him in the nursery, typically donning a wide-brimmed straw hat, eager to help and share his extensive knowledge.

Patricia Gallagher is Professor Emerita of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at Drexel University. She earned bachelor’s degrees in civil engineering and geological sciences from Rutgers University, a master’s in civil engineering from Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Virginia Tech. Her research expertise centers on geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering and sustainability.

At Drexel, Trish taught courses in civil and environmental engineering, geology, and sustainability.  Her course in sustainability, titled “Incorporating Sustainability Principles in Design” was inspired by her desire to teach design from a holistic, regenerative perspective that restores ecological balance and health in communities and ecosystems. The course explores how the concept of sustainability is fundamental to the planning, design, construction, operation, and renewal of resilient and sustainable infrastructure.

Trish believes we need to work in our own communities to restore functional ecosystems in urban and suburban areas. She began volunteering with the Abington Township Shade Tree Commission (STC) in 2019, became an acting commissioner in 2021 and was officially appointed to the STC in 2022. Currently, she co-chairs the STC. Trish is happiest in nature and spends her free time hiking and backpacking around the globe.

Since 2011 John Kennedy has been volunteering with the Abington Township Shade Tree Commission (STC) as an appointed commissioner and currently serves as co-chair. He has been an active Pennsylvania Horticultural Society Tree Tender since 2008. John regularly takes on a leadership role in formulating and delivering STC programs.  His volunteer emphasis has been on park and public space tree planting with the Tree Vitalize - PHS Tree Tenders bare root tree program.  Leading community volunteers to plant over 300 trees in parks and other public spaces in Abington Township.

 John’s commitment to the treescapes around us has inspired him to educate others on the importance of trees in our environment. Conducting hands-on training through demonstration and coaching on how to plant, prune, and care for trees.

 While employed full-time in the food service profession, John returned to school in 2006 as a part-time student to study horticulture. In 2015, he completed his degree at Temple University’s School of Environmental Design in Ambler, Pennsylvania.

He also holds a Certificate in Horticultural Therapy.  

Dr. Christine Carmichael is the award-winning founder and principal of Fair Forests Consulting, LLC, which she began in July 2019. She is also the best-selling author of Racist Roots: How Racism Has Affected Trees and People in Our Cities—and What We Can Do About It.

She holds a Ph.D. in Forestry with a specialization in Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change and holds a Graduate Certificate in Community Engagement from Michigan State University. Dr. Carmichael has published research explaining why 25% of Detroit residents eligible to receive a free street tree between 2011-2014 chose to decline this offer. Since its inception, Fair Forests Consulting, LLC has partnered with several U.S. cities and urban forestry organizations to develop strategies to achieve environmental justice goals through urban tree planting, stewardship, and community engagement. 

Anthony (Tony) Aiello is Associate Director of Conservation, Plant Breeding, and Collections at Longwood Gardens, where he participates in tree conservation, plant exploration and evaluation, and collections development.  Previously he served for 22 years as the Gayle E. Maloney Director of Horticulture and Curator at the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania, where he managed the Morris Arboretum’s historic gardens and living collections. These positions have allowed him to travel throughout the U.S., Europe, China, and Japan to find novel plants suitable for growing in the Delaware Valley.  He has a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a concentration in Botany from Cornell University and a Master of Science in Horticulture from Purdue University. For many years Tony chaired the North America-China Plant Exploration Consortium (NACPEC) and participated in the American Public Gardens Association taxonomy and plant collections committees.

Tony’s interests include temperate trees and shrubs – in particular oaks, maples, hollies, witch-hazels, and flowering cherries, as well as economic botany and the history of horticulture. He has written extensively about his travels, as well as his historic and plant interests.

Zhaohua (Cindy) Cheng is a Ph.D. candidate in urban forestry at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She has over five years of experience in community and youth engagement, climate change adaptation, student advising and engagement, and project management. Her Ph.D. research focuses on exploring urban forest-based solutions for climate resilience and urban livability.

Edward (Ned) Sibley Barnard was for 17 years senior staff editor and managing editor of Reader’s Digest General Books, where he oversaw the production of several dozen books that sold over one million copies each. From 1963 to 1967 he was project editor of a 15-volume ecology series, Our Living World of Nature, published jointly by McGraw-Hill and World Book Encyclopedia. He edited the volume on Mars in DK’s Eyewitness series and four volumes in Scholastic’s National Audubon First Field Guide series. Among his writing credits are articles for National Wildlife, International Wildlife, and Audubon, 5 children’s books on animals for Reader’s Digest, and New York City Trees for Columbia University Press. Recently he co-produced with Ken Chaya Central Park Entire, the most detailed map of Central Park available. He is keenly interested in old-growth trees and has volunteered as a tree ring technician at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory’s Tree Ring Research Laboratory. One of his recent books is Central Park Trees and Landscapes, a Guide to New York City's Masterpiece published by Columbia University Press in 2016. He also co-authored with Paul Meyer and Catriona Briger a field guide titled Philadelphia Trees published by Columbia University Press in 2017. Currently, he is producing an updated edition of Philadelphia Trees for the University of Pennsylvania Press for publication in 2023. He is also co-writing and producing a book titled Philadelphia Nature, A Field Guide to Wild Places and Wildlife in the City & the Surrounding Delaware Valley with Anne Bekker for publication by Temple University Press in 2024.

Ned moved from Manhattan to Chestnut Hill in 2010 with his wife Pauline Gray.

Erica Smith Fichman has spent her career connecting people with plants.  As the Community Forestry Manager at Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, she is the project lead for the Philly Tree Plan.  Erica also supervises the amazing TreePhilly team which provides Philadelphia residents with the resources they need to plant and care for trees in their own backyard.   She is an ISA-certified arborist and the recipient of the Arbor Day Foundation's 2018 Trailblazer Award.  Erica received a B.S. in biology from Haverford College and an M.S. in environmental horticulture from the University of California, Davis.

Joe Hansen is an ISA Certified Arborist Municipal Specialist, Tree Risk Assessment Qualified (TRAQ), and holds numerous certifications through the Tree Care Industry Association including Certified Tree Care Safety Professional (CTSP), and is an Approved Instructor for the TCIA’s Tree Care Academy.  In his role as Urban Forester for the City of Park Ridge, Illinois, Joe is responsible for maintaining the urban forest through the use of the City’s Urban Forest Management Plan, conducts parkway tree inspections, and building plan reviews, assists with managing contracts, and enforces the Tree Preservation Ordinance.  In addition, he serves as Chair of the Public Works Safety Committee.

Outside of his duties with Park Ridge, Joe was recently elected the Municipal Director for the Illinois Arborist Association and he is also a Task Specialist for the Urban Forest Strike Team in Illinois.  The strike team conducts rapid tree assessments after storms to assist communities in need in hopes to preserve trees while assessing their risk.  He also produces a podcast called The Municipal Arborist where he and guests discuss urban forestry and industry-related topics which also provides ISA CEUs to listeners. He likes to share his experiences through training and public speaking engagements.

Steve Blaes holds degrees in sustainable horticulture and environmental science and has over 20 years of experience in the green industry. He has earned multiple green industry credentials, including the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional certification, the Landscape Contractors Association CLT in Ornamental Maintenance, and is an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist with their Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ) among others. Steve has worked on a plethora of projects ranging from residential to institutional campuses in both rural and urban communities across the country. His scientific area of inquiry primarily focuses on supporting professional landscape best management practices that positively impact riparian ecologies endemic to the piedmont and coastal plain regions. He is currently working as a design and sales consultant in Maryland's Baltimore Metro area while supporting his passion projects in the Chesapeake Bay Bioregion.

Jake Handley was born in San Luis Obispo, California, and grew up in Eustis Florida where he received a bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of Central Florida.  After graduating from college he worked in the zip line industry for 5 years as a guide, trainer, and course builder.  He started his transition into the tree world in 2017 working for Asheville Arborists where he is currently employed. He became a certified arborist in 2019 and has written “The Times They Are a-Changin” for the Arborist magazine an article on climate change. Jake currently resides in Black Mountain, North Carolina.