Karen Firehock Research

Connected Communities: Green Infrastructure Planning

9/07 to present (ongoing)
Karen Firehock with Alisa Hefner
Faculty and a team of graduate students are developing a green infrastructure planning assessment and conservation strategy for several regions in Virginia in partnership with the Green Infrastructure Center. The project includes several components: a regional map of green infrastructure assets for five regions in Virginia and pilot models for the Valley, Piedmont and Coastal areas as well as a diversity of land uses from urban to peri-urban to rural. Outcomes include green infrastructure planning methods, a survey of Southern Region states and development of a green infrastructure assessment and planning methods guidebook. The project began in fall 2007 and concludes in 2010. Graduate students can participate through a class or within an independent study. Research is funded by the Virginia Department of Forestry Urban and Community Forestry Program and foundations such as the Oak Hill Fund.
www.gicinc.org