Now recruiting! Apply by Sept. 5, 2025
Urban Tree Stewardship interns will gain hands-on experience in urban forestry and nursery management while working directly on campus climate adaptation. Interns will learn propagation, planting, pruning and monitoring of climate-adapted tree species to help steward the campus canopy for future resilience.
Applicants must be available Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the fall quarter. No prior experience required, and 1st to 3rd year students are especially encouraged to apply.
Urban Tree Stewardship
This urban forestry-oriented program focuses on improving the longevity and resilience of our campus tree canopy. Interns will propagate trees in the nursery, plant and care for young trees in the campus landscape, and implement maintenance and monitoring plans designed to assess the sustainability and climate tolerance of trial tree species in an urban environment.
Students will also have the opportunity to learn about research and urban forest management strategies from campus and industry professionals. Weekly activities will facilitate experience developing technical tree care skills, field observations and project management skills. Beyond this, interns will grow collectively as leaders in leading public plantings, educational events, and other community engagement activities that build decision-making, communication, and collaboration skills.
We welcome anyone interested in stewarding and improving our urban canopy and learning more about our campus-wide climate adaptation goals to apply. This program is also a great fit for those interested in learning more about careers in arboriculture, nursery management, urban planning, data collection, research analysis and tree conservation.
Internship details
Quarters: Fall, Winter, and Spring
Schedule: 4 hr/week per unit commitment for three quarters
Units: 1 per quarter (more available if desired)
Staff Mentor
Emily Griswold
Director of GATEways Horticulture
and Teaching Gardens
- Email: ebgriswold@ucdavis.edu
- Phone: (530) 754-8038
Students at work
Exploring our urban canopy
This self-guided tour, created by Urban Tree Stewardship interns, features informative content highlighting 21 significant trees in the central campus canopy.
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