Karen is a recently retired nonprofit Executive Director, with a 31-year career at the Clark Fork Coalition.  She is a founding member of the Climate Smart Missoula board, which officially gained 501 c 3 status in 2019.

How would you like to introduce yourself to folks, when it comes to serving on the Climate Smart Missoula board?
I served from 2007 to 2024 as the Executive Director of the Missoula-based Clark Fork Coalition, a river conservation group working to protect and restore the historically hard-working Clark Fork watershed. Early in my stint as E.D., my organization became concerned about an emerging new threat – namely, the fundamental shift in Montana’s climate and its intensifying impacts on the health of the watershed. Our response included launching a stream restoration program, doubling-down on state water policy reform, and sparking dialogue in Missoula about what climate change means for our hometown rivers and the communities they sustain. We were pleased that the conversation not only struck a chord in the community, but that it expanded far beyond water, and helped bring about the solutions-oriented work of Climate Smart Missoula. It’s been deeply satisfying to be a part of this vital effort since the start!

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board? 
Given my career in the world of water, I bring perspectives on how climate change impacts community water supplies and waterways, which is one of the most profound and tangible ways western Montanans experience a warming West. As a former nonprofit E.D., I also have skills in calibrating organizations for innovation and impact through strategic planning, governance, and outreach. I have a “swing for the fences” mindset and am wired to be proactive and positive.

What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited? 
It’s deeply satisfying to serve on the board of Climate Smart Missoula. The work of the organization is important, meaningful, and based on giving back, and the team is energetic and action-oriented, with moonshot aspirations. Between the mission, the people, and the collaborative approaches, Climate Smart Missoula has created a space that is exciting and rewarding to be a part of.

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work at Climate Smart Missoula?
My hope is that we keep thinking beyond yesterday’s toolbox and work together to infuse climate resilience and climate equity into everything we do as a community.

For the last 15 years, Pat taught at the Wild Rockies Field Institute and University of Montana in the Philosophy Department, the Davidson Honors College and the Restoration Ecology Program.  He is now retired and has served on the Climate Smart Missoula board since 2023.
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Why did you decide to serve on the Climate Smart Missoula board?
I decided to serve on the board because of my desire to do something effective and pragmatic locally regarding the climate crisis. I have taught many classes on the climate crisis over the last 15 years. However, that sometime seems too theoretical and lacks the feeling of local, real-world effects.

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board?
I bring to the board a broad understanding of the climate crisis and what large-scale global and individual changes are needed. However, Climate Smart Missoula offers the possibility of doing something at the community level for the city that I love. I, also, have an extensive background in the development and management of environmental organizations.
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What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited?
I find Electrify Missoula, the Footprint Fund, Trees for Missoula - and the tours of Missoula demonstration projects - to be the most interesting.

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work at Climate Smart Missoula?
My hope is that we can gain even more momentum toward achieving our goals of electrification, having renewable power available to the entire community, and a healthy and greatly expanded urban forest.​

Christine served as the science director for the Clark Fork Coalition for 16 years. She is now retired and has served on our board since 2020.

How would you like to introduce yourself to folks, when it comes to serving on the Climate Smart Missoula board?
My interest in and concern with the warming of our planet began in the mid 1990’s when I took, and later taught, a class in global climate change at the University of Montana while working on my Ph.D.  It really opened my eyes.

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board?
I bring a scientific understanding of climate change. Although my time at the Clark Fork Coalition focused mainly on cleanup of water pollution and the removal of Milltown Dam, I also co-authored a primer on local effects of climate change called Low Flows, Hot Trout. We presented heat-related trends in western Montana along with perspectives from affected stakeholders. Also, through partnership contracts with the Lolo National Forest, I designed and coordinated a new year-round continuous stream temperature monitoring network and co-authored a Forest-wide climate vulnerability assessment.

Why did you decide to serve?
I was involved in a few of [now Executive Director] Amy Cilimburg’s community visioning sessions (pre-Climate Smart Missoula) and when Climate Smart Missoula became an official nonprofit, I knew I wanted to be involved. Climate change is overwhelming, yet there are real and positive steps toward mitigation and adaptation that can be accomplished locally.  I appreciate the local perspective of Climate Smart Missoula.   

What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited?
I love all the work that Climate Smart Missoula does, and I love the energy and commitment that staff bring. If I have to pick a favorite program it is the Footprint Fund (missoulafootprintfund.org).  This is a carbon offset program for businesses or individuals with offset donations, realized as local energy-saving improvements in affordable housing that would not otherwise occur. You can estimate your carbon footprint with an online calculator and donate accordingly, or simply donate to the Fund, knowing that your donation will be used in the greater Missoula area. The Human Resource Council helps us find deserving projects. It’s such a great intersection of environmental justice and carbon mitigation. I also love that Climate Smart Missoula donates fans, HEPA filters, and air purifiers to help folks cope with our increasingly smoky summers. 

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work at Climate Smart Missoula?
My hope is that more and more Missoulians will recognize the good work that Climate Smart Missoula is doing toward climate mitigation and adaptation, and that more people in Montana and beyond recognize the potential for similar work in their communities. I think the adage to “think globally and act locally” applies. 

Paul is the Vice President of Sustainability at Clearwater Credit Union and has served on the Climate Smart Missoula board since we gained nonprofit status in 2019.
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How would you like to introduce yourself to folks, when it comes to serving on the Climate Smart Missoula board?
I’m a long-time climate nerd and lover of wild places, excited to do work I care about in a place I love. 

Why did you decide to serve?
A strong community is important to me personally, and responding to climate change is important to me professionally. Climate Smart Missoula sits right at the intersection of the two. 

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board?
Climate Smart Missoula’s staff and board are an extraordinary group of people with a really diverse set of skills and perspectives. To the extent that I can offer something additional, I think it is my background in climate science and bent for quantitative analysis. 
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What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited?
I enjoy the chance to have a direct impact on the community I live in, on an issue I care deeply about. Climate change mitigation and adaptation, affordable housing, and strong communities all overlap, and I’m excited to work on programs that touch all three, like Climate Smart Missoula’s Footprint Fund. 

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work at Climate Smart Missoula?
My hope is that the work Climate Smart Missoula is doing will have a direct, material benefit on the lives of people in our community, and that we can demonstrate how to do this to others around the country. 

Why did you decide to serve? 
My children, and those generations yet to come, are the most compelling reasons to work on solutions for the climate crisis.

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board?
As an Indigenous woman, I am proud to offer perspectives from that lens, and also as a person born and raised in my beloved hometown of Missoula.  

What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited?
I appreciate the coalition of people that Climate Smart Missoula brings together.  I feel more hopeful when I reflect on the meaningful relationships in my life and hope that our organization has also been able to act as a catalyst and bridge for bringing together people from all walks of our community and region.

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work at Climate Smart Missoula?
That we continue to collaborate with, and support, each other during difficult times ahead.

Beth is the Chief Environmental Stewardship Officer for Providence and was a founding member of the Climate Smart Missoula board, which officially gained 501 c 3 status in 2019 (though she was involved with our work well before that!). Her job keeps her extremely busy, but she made time to answer a few questions about her service:

How would you like to introduce yourself to folks, when it comes to serving on the Climate Smart Missoula board?
I have been concerned about the natural world since childhood. In my career as a nurse, I learned about the many ways pollution harms health, and how planetary health, including the functions of Earth’s systems, is crucial for human health and that of other species. I’ve been chipping away at trying to improve this for 3 decades.

Why did you decide to serve?
When Climate Smart Missoula was forming, it was clear that it was a vibrant, evidence-based, action-oriented approach to knitting together community partners to help ensure a healthy Missoula in the face of climate change.  I wanted to be a part of that.

What skills / perspectives are you proud to bring to the board?
Content knowledge, organizational experience, leadership skills, strong work ethic.

What is your favorite part about serving? And / or what program at Climate Smart Missoula gets you most excited?
I like supporting the fabulous staff, and helping make sure the organizational pieces are in order. I like all of the programs – the staff respond to what is needed in the community, often setting the tone and pace for Missoula’s progress. I’m excited about the effectiveness of Climate Smart Missoula.

What is your hope for our community, related to your goals and our work?
That as a community, we continue to anticipate solutions that address health and safety related to climate change, and insight on equity and justice. Climate Smart Missoula has demonstrated its commitment to this progress again and again. We will need to keep going in this direction for decades to come as the impacts of climate change proceed. I hope that Missoula continues to be a creative, vibrant community of solutions, support, and safety in the face of climate change.

By Abby Huseth, Shanti Devins, Susan Teitelman, and Amy Cilimburg

On July 10, the Held v. Montana case, the first constitutional climate case ever to go to trial, went before the Montana Supreme Court. Hundreds of Montanans packed the Helena courtroom and viewed the live stream at watch parties across the state. The formal language and process of court proceedings could not dim this extraordinary moment in history: the highest court in our state was a platform for how the climate crisis is impacting all of us, through the stories of 16 amazing Montana youth.

Though the case has yet to be decided, it’s already making an impact. The Held youth have brought to a larger stage the reality that climate change is not a future problem -- we’re experiencing its effects now. Stepping outside on a mid-July day like today here in Missoula, that seems more obvious than ever. A relentless heat wave combined with smoke from a fire burning just miles away makes for a visceral experience of climate change. On days when we feel trapped under this hot, gray dome, it can feel oppressive. How can we stay sane, get perspective and keep acting with hope?

Here are some ways our team is responding this summer, and ideas for what to do if you’re feeling the effects of the heat and smoke, too.

Abby
I’m a parent of two boys aged six and three. I was pregnant during the awful smoke season of 2017, when we didn’t know as much about how to stay healthy. Every summer since, the first whiff of wildfire smoke brings me back to that place of anxiety I felt for weeks on end in 2017. It’s hard not to think, what kind of a parent am I if I can’t protect my children from the very air they breathe?

It helps to remember that multiple things can be true at the same time. I can feel the weight of climate impacts AND keep taking action on solutions. I can recognize and process emotions like fear and grief AND be grateful for those doing good work all around us. Kids are a good model for holding these multiple realities: just this morning my oldest asked me if the air quality was “in the orange”, because he knows his outside play time at school will be limited if so. Moments later, he informed me that his latest Magna-tile creation was an electric RV that had a fan to blow the smoke away AND solar panels to charge. (My proud heart was bursting.) This summer, I’m working to hold these multiple truths at once: this is hard, AND it won’t last forever.  My experience is unique, AND it helps to talk about it with others and realize I’m not alone. I feel sadness about the world my kids are inheriting, AND a deep sense of hope as all generations band together to build a livable present and future.

Shanti
Last summer, I remember this moment while watching the Held v Montana district court trial. The expert on the stand was testifying to how detrimental our climate could be for today’s youth if we didn’t act now, and the ways youth would be impacted because of the warming that’s already occurred. I burst out crying. I had taken a pregnancy test the morning before and it was positive. I was overjoyed to be carrying this little life – we wanted a baby badly - but hearing that testimony was more than I could bear in that moment. My career was centered on the climate crisis, but becoming a parent amplified everything. Suddenly it seemed almost unbearable, but at the same time, I’d never felt so proud and committed to my work.

Our team of dedicated women is small, but mighty. And our efforts are supported and expanded by so many others in our community leaning in, working toward a better future for us all. BECAUSE IT IS STILL POSSIBLE. We have amazing solutions available right now, like getting off methane gas (aka “natural” gas) in our homes and switching to efficient, electric appliances. We can take advantage of tax incentives for rooftop solar, weatherization or adding a mini-split heating / cooling system. We can show up to planning meetings to advocate for climate smart solutions and tell our representatives this issue is a top priority. There is so much we can do to improve our immediate health and comfort and the future for our children. We just have to do it. Please join us and get involved today.

Susan
Here in Missoula, this is the 12th day above 90 degrees, with no respite in sight. The air is filled with wildfire smoke and the Norway Maple in my front yard is thirsty for a drink. To stay cool, I’m running a window air conditioning unit in my living room. It’s admittedly not the most energy efficient solution, but a necessary measure to protect my physical and mental health during these hot summer days.
 
In my work over the past year, I’ve learned about the upward trends of extreme heat in Montana, the negative health impacts of wildfire smoke, and the dire effects of heat and drought on our urban tree canopy. But I’ve also learned that humans and animals, cities and natural ecosystems, are incredibly resilient. We have in our hands, and are helping to shape, solutions to the impacts of climate change.
 
In my corner of the local climate world, my colleagues and I have created an Extreme Heat Toolkit to help the Missoula community prepare for increasing heat events; we’ve told hundreds about the resources at MontanaWildfireSmoke.org and have distributed dozens of HEPA air purifiers so folks can clean their indoor air; and we’re working to grow our community’s tree canopy - which will ease the Urban Heat Island effect - through our Trees for Missoula program (hint: water your trees please!). So, while some days I still feel overwhelmed by the climate crisis, the larger part of me is filled with perseverance and purpose. Every day I get to go to work with a rad group of climate comrades who are working to build a resilient Missoula.

Amy
I’ve a confession to make. On a cool fall day, I love hiking in post-fire forests. In a past life, I worked on field studies to understand fire ecology, especially the birds that flock to burned forests. It’s lovely – the new growth, the cool beetles, the morels of spring.  At the same time, come July my mood shifts, and I fear the extreme heat, the fires, and the gloom of smoke. The more we learn about the dangers of breathing dirty air, the more concerned I am for the health of all of us (please read about the baby monkeys). This is the 9th year I’ve spent my summer watching the forecasts and angling for cleaner, cooler indoor air for everyone (check out Be Ready for Wildfire Smoke). It all feels scary and hard to hold. Yet that is what we are asked to do right now –– nod to the past (fire is a natural part of our landscapes), show up for today (let’s help those most vulnerable have a shot at a healthy life), and know that the future is not yet written.

Right now, I hold a jumble of conflicting feelings in my head and heart. Furiously clicking on the fire/smoke map for updates, on the weather app for a better (cooler!) long-range forecast. Today I was thinking that living under a heat dome is sort of a metaphor for these times. And the truth is, our collective actions can actually whittle down the edges of the dome, shrinking it, and they can poke holes in the dome, holes that ripple and grow. And we have to take such actions now, this year and next. Because later just might be too late.
 
Our hot takes during this hot summer: it is about connection and action and taking a deep breath whenever the air allows. Talk about your feelings and give Grounding a listen. As author and activist Bill McKibbin often advises: yes, take action around the contours of your life, and yet the most important thing an individual can do is be less of an individual -- join together with others in movements large enough to make a difference. Stay safe this summer and join us in building an impactful movement.

by Amy Cilimburg, Sarah Coefield, and Kerri Mueller

After a lovely, slow start to summer, it’s suddenly taking a turn— extreme heat advisories are in effect this week and some even had their first smell of wildfire smoke last weekend. As temperatures rise and fire danger increases, so too does the likelihood of smoke filling our valleys. That means it’s time to get smoke ready!

While wildfire smoke and heat often go hand in hand, this week, it’s just hot. Given the current heat advisory, please do what you can to stay healthy during these coming hot days: stay hydrated, adjust your activity levels, cool your home at night as best you can, and check in on your friends and neighbors. Heat can be deadly, and we need to work together to keep everyone safe.

Now on to fires and smoke—welcome to our fourth annual Wildfire Smoke Ready Week July 8-13. Every year, we dedicate a week to promoting preparedness in the face of increasing wildfire smoke. Human caused climate change is bringing longer and more intense fire seasons, yet there are ways we can prepare and stay healthy. In addition to being on the airwaves and on social media (#wildfiresmokeready), you can find us on:
-          July 10 at Out to lunch at Caras Park
-          July 12 at the Missoula Public Library (2-4 pm)
-          July 13 at both Farmers Markets

Why do we care so much about smoke? For those of us who’ve lived through past fire seasons, we know what it’s like. The air physically feels different. The smoky air is laden with fine particulate matter and volatile organic chemicals.

These components can cause a multitude of health effects, ranging from less severe (irritated eyes and nose, headaches, coughing) to more severe (reduced lung function, worsened asthma attacks and COPD symptoms, increased likelihood of heart attack and stroke, increased susceptibility to infectious disease, and increased hospitalizations and deaths.)

The most harmful ingredient in smoke is fine particulate matter 2.5 microns in diameter and smaller, known as PM2.5. These tiny particles can travel deep into your respiratory tract and even pass into the bloodstream, initiating a systemic inflammatory response. Not good!

While smoke is bad for everyone, children, teenagers, older adults, pregnant people, people with heart and lung disease, and people who can’t avoid exposures, such as outdoor workers and people living outside, are at greater risk of health impacts. That’s a lot of people.

For those who can go indoors when smoke rolls in, that’s a great first step to protect your health. Unfortunately, smoke still makes its way inside our homes and businesses. It enters via doors, windows, cracks, vents, and commercial HVAC systems. The longer a smoke event drags on, the more likely smoke will move indoors.

The good news is the fine particles in smoke can be readily filtered from indoor air!

Here’s how we can all take measures to protect ours and our loved one’s health when smoke rolls in (all this and more is updated regularly on montanawildfiresmoke.org):

1. Stay alert for changing conditions. Check local air quality monitors online at fire.airnow.gov and check often! Look outside; if you can’t see five miles, the air quality is unhealthy.
2. Reduce outdoor activity levels. The more physically active you are, the more air you breathe in, and the more smoke you’ll breathe into your lungs. Slow your roll a bit to cut some of your exposure and be creative with ways to stay active inside clean indoor spaces.
3. Clean your indoor air! There are several ways to clean your air and they all come down to filtration. Also, be sure to keep your indoors cool. Heat is immediately dangerous. If you don’t have air conditioning, that may mean opening your windows at night and letting smoky air inside. Once your home has cooled, close doors and windows and filter the indoor air.
4. Use HEPA portable air cleaners (PACs). Have at least one PAC and keep it in the room where you spend the most time. Make sure the PAC is sized appropriately for the room it’s in and does not generate ozone. If it’s in a large room, you’ll need a pretty beefy PAC or more than one. Close doors and windows to that room and run the PAC on the highest setting you find tolerable. Be sure to replace the filter when it gets dirty. You may need to change the filter more often than recommended during a smoke event.
5. Make your own air cleaner with a box fan and furnace filters. Got a newer box fan lying around and some duct tape? Use it to clean your indoor air! Get a high efficiency HVAC filter (ideally MERV 13). Attach the filter on the back of the box fan, and you’re set. A basic DIY fan/filter is good for a room that’s about 150 ft2. Check our website for more tips on how to build your own air cleaner. Only use fans manufactured since 2012 (newer models have important safety features) and note these devices are noisier than HEPA PACs.
6. For whole house filtration, upgrade the HVAC filter in your central air handler. Select the highest efficiency filter your home HVAC system can handle (ideally MERV 13, but MERV 11/12 will still help). Keep the fan running for continuous cleaning. Note that some central air systems may not be able to use high efficiency filters. If this is the case, use HEPA PACs or DIY fan/filters to clean your indoor air.
7. For commercial HVAC systems, it isn’t as simple as upgrading the filter (although that’s an important first step!). Commercial HVAC systems have a lot of moving parts and functions that can let smoke indoors. Operators should follow ASHRAE’s “Planning Framework for Protecting Commercial Building Occupants During Smoke Events” found on our website here.
8. Consider using an N95 or KN95 respirator mask. Note that these are hard to size for children, and facial hair can prevent a good seal. Do not use a respirator if you have trouble breathing through it.
9. What about Pets? They too, are impacted by smoke pollution. Bring them inside and curtail their exercise when air quality is poor.
10. Be fire safe! Do your part to avoid human-caused fires. Make sure campfires are cool to the touch before leaving them, make sure you aren’t dragging chains on the road, and don’t flick cigarette butts into dry grass. Find more information at www.mcfpa.org!
11. Take care of your mental health. Smoke can be gloomy and overwhelming. Please reach out to someone close to you or a mental health professional to share your feelings and for help.
12. Take climate action. We know that the antidote to climate fear and frustration is to find ways to get involved: No one can do everything, but everyone can do something as we, collectively, make the energy transition, electrify our homes, shift our transportation system, add our voices for smart policies and new opportunities, and so much more. Check out Climate Smart Missoula’s Get Involved webpage.
    

Above all, don’t despair. Yes, fire season is on its way and smoke is an unfortunate part of most summers, but snow will fly and skies will clear. In the meantime, we know how to keep ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities healthy. And we can take action to stay healthy and do our part to reduce fossil fuel pollution!

Breathe safe!

Amy Cilimburg is the executive director at Climate Smart Missoula. Sarah Coefield and Kerri Mueller are Air Quality Specialists with Missoula Public Health. 

by Abby Huseth

Today, on the Summer Solstice, I'm aware of how special early summer in Missoula is. The deep green hillsides; the crisp, cool mornings; the scent of lilacs lingering; the bitterroots unfurling on the North Hills and carpets of balsamroot like pure joy in plant form: I cherish these signs of the season, partly because they don’t last long.

I’ve been holding onto this early summer feeling - the momentary sense that all is right with the world - even as I know that all is not right with the world. One look at recent headlines reminds me that our planet is running a fever. Deadly 120-plus degree records in India, heat domes in Mexico and Texas, sweltering heat worsening the already dire conditions in Gaza - these are some of the acute symptoms, but the chronic symptoms are widespread too.

Over the past year, the average person has experienced an entire extra month of hotter temps because of climate change. And the complex interactions between global heating caused by the climate crisis and natural El Niño and La Niña cycles mean the rest of the summer is likely to bring even more wild and extreme weather.

Right now in beautiful western Montana, it feels a bit like the calm before the storm. Here at Climate Smart Missoula, this summer we’re taking advantage of our local calm to accelerate efforts to help our community prepare for climate extremes, as well as take action to cut the carbon pollution that’s causing these extremes in the first place. To continue the medical analogy, we know we need to treat the physical symptoms (like hotter temperatures and more wildfire smoke) as well as the underlying causes (existing inequalities and our dependence on fossil fuels).

For us, that means collaborating with partners to host our annual Wildfire Smoke Ready Week (July 8-13), sharing resources to help everyone and especially those most vulnerable stay healthy when smoke arrives in our valley. To volunteer or learn more, contact Amy.

It means working with local government partners to release Missoula’s first ever Heat Action Plan and equip social service agencies, health providers, and the public with locally-oriented strategies to deal with extreme heat.

And it also means knocking on doors and learning from folks in neighborhoods that currently have fewer trees, so that regular community members are empowered to be stewards of a healthy urban forest and share more equitably in all its climate and health benefits. To help or learn more, reach out to Susan and Trees for Missoula.

As far as addressing the root causes of climate chaos, summer is also a great time for planning and action. Sitting here at my desk, I’m typing on a computer entirely powered by the sun thanks to the solar panels on our roof, and our new super-quiet heat pump (also solar-powered!) is keeping our small office pleasantly cool.

As summers get hotter and smokier, it’s clear we’ll need more options for Missoulians to find cool, clean indoor air, without making climate pollution worse. Through our collaborative Electrify Missoula campaign, we’re helping residents and businesses make a plan to get off fossil fuels and improve indoor air quality and comfort by electrifying their appliances. We’re also excited to begin planning, with Missoula County, the creation of a new “one stop shop” for electrification resources so that more of our community can make this transition.

And yes, we’ll need more (eventually all!) of that electricity to be powered by renewable sources. Now’s a great time to call a local solar installer and explore that option for your home or business. We’re also grateful to our City and County for their persistence with the Green Power Program, which will bring Missoula another step closer to our goal of 100% clean electricity by 2030. And here at Climate Smart Missoula we’re continuing to expand our Footprint Fund which supports energy efficiency and clean energy projects for our low-income neighbors, and which you can support today!

These are just some of the local climate solutions that can help our community weather the weather and become healthier over the long term. We hope you’ll join us and put climate action on your list this summer. Connect with us by stopping by our open house today, signing up for our e-newsletter, or attending upcoming events (including a Missoula watch party for the Montana Supreme Court hearing of the landmark Held v Montana youth climate case on July 10th!).

As we keep climate action on our agenda this summer, let’s not forget one more critical aspect of long-term wellbeing: mental and emotional health. Reading those headlines and considering the scale of the climate crisis and global challenges can feel overwhelming. Finding ways to take action right here in our own backyard can help!
Personally, I’m also planning to spend every moment I can enjoying the beauty of this special place I get to call home. And I’m resolving to hold onto that feeling of gratitude for all that is right with the world: it’s the best inspiration I’ve found to keep fighting for a livable future and healthy community.

by Susan Teitelman

April is Earth Month, which gives us special reason to reflect on the significance of the abundant nature that surrounds us. Even though I’m lucky enough to do work protecting and advocating for the natural world as part of my day job, I still get excited every year to have an entire month devoted to engaging with community members around trees, flowers, rivers, and landscapes that surround us. 

Over the decade I’ve lived in Missoula, I’ve had the good fortune to become immersed in our forests, mountains, and meadows to study our local and regional flora. Through my botanical education, I’ve found that plants serve as connectors: they are tools to understand broader ideas and disciplines like history, culture, geography, climate science. 

Ultimately, plants connect us to place. Engaging with western Montana’s plants and ecosystems has deepened my sense of place and engendered the responsibility to be a steward of our environment – and especially our local plant life.

Now, through my work at Climate Smart Missoula and our organization’s newly acquired Trees for Missoula program, I have been thinking a lot about our urban forest in particular - the importance of trees for climate resilience, and the overarching benefits that trees offer our community.

Conventional wisdom and lived experienced has taught us that trees are “good.” And it turns out there is also a growing body of scientific research that substantiates this claim. Our urban forests offer us:

• Climate benefits - trees aid in carbon sequestration, ease the urban heat island effect, protect against extreme weather, reduce stormwater runoff and energy use
• Ecological benefits - trees improve air quality, provide habitat for birds, bugs, and wildlife
• Social and health benefits - trees improve physical and mental health, reduce stress, provide spaces to recreate, and improve the aesthetics of our community
• Economic benefits - trees attract shoppers to commercial districts, increase property values, and decrease utility bills
  

Missoula is no exception when it comes to deriving benefits from trees: our urban forest plays a significant role in keeping our community cool, healthy, safe, and climate resilient. Unfortunately, much of our urban tree canopy is struggling and too many of our trees are in poor condition. Several factors contribute to this, including damage from insects and wildlife, pathogen invasions, and human errors in planting and pruning. Lack of watering is another main concern, as trees must be sufficiently hydrated to survive in Missoula’s semi-arid climate. 

Crucially, tree wells – the traditional way trees are planted in urban and suburban settings – limit trees from reaching their full growth potential. Lack of species and age diversity is another concern. The infamous Norway Maple, imported and popularized by Francis Worden in the 1870s, accounts for a fifth of our total street tree population! These trees are now degrading due to old age as well as drought and development. Let’s replace them with the right species, planted right.

Though the challenges to our urban forest may appear dire, there are so many ways we, as a community, can change its trajectory. On an institutional level, we must include climate resilient, species-diverse, and native trees in our future urban forestry management plans. Incorporating trees that are heat and drought-tolerant and pest-resistant will go a long way toward building a healthy and long-lived urban forest. 

We can also advocate for the infrastructure our trees need to thrive. A key piece of infrastructure is suspended pavement – a technology that provides the necessary underground space for tree roots to grow and thrive – that can be installed instead of traditional tree wells. This allows trees to grow larger, provide more shade, and ease the urban heat island effect. Can we make this standard practice in Missoula?

In other parts of the country, urban areas are getting creative with their green infrastructure, combining landscaping with restoration projects or adding incentives for green roofs. Enhancing local landscaping requirements or options to incorporate trees, native plants, or greenspace is vital as we consider the best ways to be resilient to the impacts of climate change. Projects like Montana’s first suspended pavement system at the downtown art park and Missoula County Extension’s Rocky Mountain Gardens, which will feature native trees and food forests, are inspiring examples of the innovative nature-based climate solutions we need more of in our community.

Here at Climate Smart Missoula, via our Trees for Missoula program, we’re pursuing new projects to expand our community outreach and engagement efforts and advocate for tree equity in Missoula’s underserved neighborhoods. With the help of our community partners, our goal is to ensure that all Missoula residents can benefit from tree-lined streets and access parks and green space.

We all have a role to play in growing and maintaining a healthy urban forest. You can do your part to build climate resiliency by planting (and mulching and watering) a tree or by planting a food or native plant garden – or both. Containers on a balcony count too! If you’re thinking of planting your own tree, the Approved Street Tree list published by Missoula’s Urban Forestry Department offers a wealth of information about species, planting, and maintenance. 

There are many opportunities to learn about trees and engage with like-minded community members year-round, and especially during Earth Month. Climate Smart Missoula is co-sponsoring several upcoming events with our community partners, and we hope you’ll join us: 

• Run for the Trees, April 20 – 10k, 5k and 1 mile fun run options – all participants receive a tree seedling!
• Trees for Climate Resiliency, April 25 - part 2 of our Spring Shift Series (RSVPs appreciated!)
• Urban trees tour with Providence St. Patrick Hospital, May 2
  

Bookmark our calendar for climate and tree-related events this Earth Month and all year long. To learn more about urban trees and climate resiliency and to get involved with our programs, visit Trees for Missoula.