iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Here's some fun 🇨🇦🇳🇿 stereotypes. I landed in Vancouver and while waiting in line for my rental car, two departing travelers gave me their can of bear spray. Back in Auckland this morning and have seen Bret McKenzie and Lianne Dalziel at the airport.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

This week, work has me at KU Leuven, a 600 year old Belgian university. My walk into the office this morning alongside hundreds of cycling students was pretty wonderful.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

In Belgium for work and got to see this improbable survivor. Dutch Elm disease wiped out nearly all mature Dutch Elm trees, but this Belgian cultivar has survived 136 years in Hasselt.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

As a mid-career academic, I'm more 4/5 than I care to admit, sitting at my desk writing grant applications and reviewing grad student manuscripts, looking out the window wishing I was more a 1-3.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

2/2 An example is reduced interest rates for developments that retain rather than remove trees. This would require banks to come to the table. Another is increased development rights (i.e., adding another level) in return for retaining trees on site, the build up not out planning approach.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

1/2 Followup. This new study looks at which incentives might deliver increased housing AND urban forest canopy. We surveyed developers and councils who told us that cost-neutral incentives are those with the most potential to achieve these competing goals. #urbanforestry #urbanism

kwnsfk27.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me

ScienceDirect.com | Science, health and medical journals, full text articles and books.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

Love that data viz. What'd you use to create it?

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Trees in Christchurch's parks and reserves have a replacement value of $386M. They store 90K tonnes C, sequestering 4K tonnes C each year. They intercept 165M litres of rainfall every year, reducing the burden on stormwater infrastructure. doi.org/10.26021/16387 #ecosystemservices #urbanforest

doi.org

Environmental and Economic Benefits of Trees in Christchurch’s Parks and Reserves: Results of i-Tree Eco Modelling

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Christchurch's urban forest canopy made headlines last week. Council planners and policymakers have a challenge on their hands to enable critically important housing outcomes, while ensuring trees don't disappear from more densely populated residential areas www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/3609...

thepress.co.nz

Christchurch’s tree canopy shrinking on residential land, council ‘hamstrung’

Big chunks of the city’s canopy are being lost from private homes and gardens – and there’s only so much the council can do.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

prisencolinensinainciusol, alright!

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

I guess I'm thinking of it from the perspective of a new PhD student who might need an introduction to a subject. I'd find it a useful starting point (kind of like reading a Wikipedia page). But thats where it ends. The next steps have to be knowledge development by actively engaging the literature.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

I think there's value in this from the perspective of a quick overview of a subject. But yeah, fully agree that the purpose of producing a lit review is actively engaging in the detail and nuance of primary research (and developing your own ideas), not passively regurgitating a cursory AI synthesis.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Was gifted this beautifully made book, Urban Gardener. Love the little details like coloured dividers for each season.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

Incredible work by PhD student David Pedley (University of Canterbury, #ucnz) and our co-author Dr. Mirjam Schindler (Victoria University of Wellington)

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

This is one of those rare studies. It pushes speculation aside and actually gets developer perspectives on how they deal with trees during development. I'm confident this will help planners manage the tension b/w the need for housing and trees in our cities authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...

authors.elsevier.com

ScienceDirect.com | Science, health and medical journals, full text articles and books.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

That's really poor in their part...just wow.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Exactly... This one caught me off guard.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

The theses at my university get deposited into an online repository. So the editor would have found it there...though I'm guessing that its probably just thoughtless use of Turnitin. Makes me think about embargoing theses for 12 months before making them publicly available through the repository.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

One of my former students just had a manuscript desk rejected by the editor because it was too similar to a chapter in his (the former student) thesis. First time I've seen this. Anyone else had this experience? #academicsky

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

Is 3-30-300 likely to be enshrined in the planning bill? Would be great to see urban greening given such a backing.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

Fantastic Jonathan, congrats on the well deserved achievement.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

It doesn't always go this well...today I had 2 manuscripts rejected. Chin up.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

Here's the scientific article if you're interested doi.org/10.1016/j.uf...

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

This was really cool to see, @arborkoeser.bsky.social covered my recent research in his blog 'Rooted in Tree Research'. It's well-written and funny #scicom. If you've ever wondered what happens to a root when you cut through it with a spade, check it out blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/gcrec/2025/1...

blogs.ifas.ufl.edu

A Cut Below: How Pruning Techniques and Timing Impact Damage and Regrowth (Tree Journal Club 9) - Gulf Coast Research and Education Center

Tree Root Pruning Research Findings

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

The kids climb was popular with my little ones.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

Spent the afternoon at the #itcc #isa tree climbing competition in Hagley park. Incredible vibe and athleticism from the world's best arborists in town ahead of the international society of arboriculture conference.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 17/10/2025

Is it silly to think that New Zealand's science funding changes may yield too much influence to one person? newsroom.co.nz/2025/10/16/f...

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 14/09/2025

Wow, what a setup. I'm guessing the tower is for much more than line of sight flying. What other instrumentation have you got on the tower?

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

Great work! That author list is like a bluesky starter pack!

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Today #ucnz is hosting careers advisors from across the country and my research group is telling them all about how we use remote sensing to measure and monitor forests. We use drones equipped with laser scanners, multispectral sensors, and thermal sensors to understand forest dynamics.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 03/09/2025

My university, #ucnz, is putting on a series of really interesting talks at this annual Raising the Bar event. Grab a coffee, pint, wine, or cocktail at your local and hear 20 leading academics talk about AI, penguins, space tourism, and more. www.rtbevent.com/rtbchch2025

rtbevent.com

Christchurch 2025 — Raising the bar

20 Talks. 10 Bars. 1 Night.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Had a really nice chat with Mihingarangi Forbes this morning on RNZ about NZ's urban forests and the importance of trees and greenspaces for wellbeing. www.rnz.co.nz/national/pro...

rnz.co.nz

Filling streets with trees

Communities worldwide are planting trees. In New Zealand. Hāwera has 7.5% tree canopy, Picton has nearly 59%. The average across all NZ towns and cities is 19%.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/08/2025

Prof. Coops organises quickfire and long form research talks, tech tips, coding sessions, mental health workshops, career retrospective panels, a quiz night, and a movie night for his graduate students and guests. All that plus ample time in the lake, good food and drinks, and lots of laughter.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/08/2025

I was so lucky to spend a week with the @irssubc.bsky.social on their annual research retreat on Vancouver Island. They're such a fun, smart, and inspiring group.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

Holy Li-Cor Batman! What's the collective noun for a group of Li-Cor 6800?

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

One of the best parts of my job...getting to congratulate my PhD students on submitting their thesis after years of hard work. Congrats to Joe Zhao (not on bsky) on his amazing work using deep learning for tree crown delineation and species detection in cities.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

Congrats, one of my PhD students is doing similar work in New Zealand. Would be keen to set up a chat between to exchange tips.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

The Seafair story goes in the canon. I died when you said "I notice we haven't got an update on how your daughter's doing in a while". John wrapping up the story with "I grab two roast beef sandwiches off of a platter" also almost did me in. Classic RoTL guided storytelling.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

For the local Christchurch folks, our tree cover target is 20% by 2070...an increase from the current 13.5%. It's a well thought out target that is achievable, but will need consistent resource allocation for new planting and maintenance/protection of existing trees.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

with some cities aiming to increase cover by less than 1% and others hoping to roughly triple their canopy. Many of the surveyed cities may never reach their tree canopy targets. We propose a more considered approach to setting appropriate and achievable canopy cover targets.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

Many cities have tree cover targets, used to support an increase in canopy and the benefits trees provide. But how are those targets set? Are they rational, aspirational, delusional? Our study of 57 cities worldwide found evidence off all three... authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S... #urbanforests

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/07/2025

5...it's not as simple as development leads to tree loss, so development = bad. 6. This study provides important insights for cities with the simultaneous goals of increasing housing through intensification and also increasing urban tree canopy for the benefits it provides.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/07/2025

3...when considered relative to the additional housing created, infill was the worst form of intensification, with tree loss per new residential unit being higher than other forms of intensification 4. the majority of city-wide canopy loss occurs on properties that are not redeveloped 5. So...

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 26/07/2025

As promised, here's the first trees and cities manuscript. authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S.... Here's what we learned: 1. Residential intensification contributes to loss of tree canopy. 2. Residential infill leads to less tree cover loss than other forms of intensification. 3. But...

Different forms of intensification result in varying degrees of tree loss.

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Justin Morgenroth @jamorgenroth.bsky.social · 25/07/2025

Two manuscripts accepted for publication today. Surprised? You bet. Hope you people like science about trees and cities.

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