Rachel Comte
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Rachel Comte is an urban planner and an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist, trained facilitator and communications expert. She is a leading authority on urban forestry master plans with multiple years experience developing plans for cities across the United States. Rachel is passionate about making cities better, healthier places for people to live, and a substantial vibrant tree canopy is an essential part of this work.
Prior to founding Urban Canopy Works, LLC, Rachel served as the lead for urban forest master plans for Davey Resource Group. She also managed in-depth urban tree canopy analysis projects for many cities, and served as the project manager for a large multi-year tree planting contract for the City of Philadelphia. She also serves as a consulting urban forester for multiple municipalities in the Cincinnati metro region. |
Prior to her urban forest management experience, Rachel has served in diverse roles throughout her career. She has over 20 years’ combined experience in project management, strategic marketing, consulting, landscape design, green infrastructure, and planning and urban forestry and has worked in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. Starting in project management and marketing in Washington DC for a business lobby, she later held positions in the private sector in online marketing and communications, and served at the White House as a Special Projects Officer. Rachel transitioned into environmental planning after completing a graduate degree in urban environmental planning while working for a regional planning commission. Rachel also worked for a non-profit to clean and plant abandoned urban lots to end blight and encourage redevelopment. Rachel has conducted research in natural resource issues like economic impacts of restoring urban waterways, impact of fracking on communities, trends in land conservation, and trees’ impact on stormwater mitigation.
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AWARDS & CERTIFICATIONS
ISA Board Certified Master Arborist #OH-6296B Tree Risk Assessment Qualified (TRAQ) John Aston Warder Award Recipient, Taking Root APA OH Best Practice Award (Columbus Urban Forest Master Plan) Volunteer of the Year Award, Newport Business Association Outstanding Council Service Award, Northern KY Urban & Community Forestry Council EDUCATION & TRAINING
MA, Urban Planning, University of Cincinnati Horticulture & Design Certificate, Cincinnati State BA, International Business & Politics, Indiana University International Affairs Program, American University of Rome PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
International Society of Arboriculture, KY Chapter TriState Trails, Board Member American Planning Association, KY Chapter Communications Tree Revitalize, Founder & Past Chair Green Umbrella, member |
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Rachel has served as tue primary lead in many projects:
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