Following a presentation by its architect Frédéric Ségur to 550 tree care professionals at Barcham Trees’ Big Barn Conference in mid June 2015, the Greater Lyon Authority’s Tree Charter is now available in English and can be downloaded at the Trees and Design Action Group (TDAG) website www.tdag.org.uk
The Charter was designed as a partnership-building tool to enhance the long-term management of trees across France’s third largest city. It offers a set of common principles, together with a powerful rationale for action, and a set of ideas for implementation for wide ranging audiences.
Currently more than 100 local and national stakeholders, including Greater Lyon’s 59 boroughs, utility companies, the French equivalent of the UK’s Landscape Institute, plus some tree nurseries, have signed the Charter, committing themselves to adhere to its principles and to develop their own action plan for implementation.
TDAG believes that both the approach and its recommendations featured in the document are highly relevant and directly applicable to the strategic management of trees in towns and cities in the UK.
Barcham’s Keith Sacre visited Lyon in early 2014, and was impressed by the work being done by Frédéric Ségur. “Both the number of trees and the number of species being planted in the city are being increased considerably”, he commented.
