Theodore Eisenman

Bio

Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning, University of Pennsylvania
M.L.A. Cornell University
M.P.S. in Natural Resource Management, Cornell University
B.S. in Journalism, University of Maryland

My principal scholarly interest concerns the historical, scientific, cultural, and design bases of urban greening, which I define as a social practice of organized or semi-organized efforts to introduce, conserve, or maintain outdoor vegetation in urban areas. This research encompasses urban tree planting initiatives (TPIs), urban ecosystem services and disservices, human health and wellbeing links with urban flora, design and planning norms, equity, and governance. It also includes emerging areas of interest: 1.) urban greening in a globalizing world, encompassing international comparative analysis of landscape design and governance norms; and 2.) travelscapes, the spaces people move through on a daily basis that are a prominent way we experience landscapes.

I believe that design is a powerful tool for enhancing human and ecological potentials, and this informs my approach to landscape architecture and urban planning education and scholarship. Prior to starting at UMass, I was an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in the Humanities Institute at The New York Botanical Garden, and my work is animated by the environmental humanities and themes related to the Anthropocene. I have been a regular contributor to Landscape Architecture Magazine on ecological design topics, and my career spans research and practice with a range of federal, municipal, and nonprofit organizations. Raised in Sweden and the U.S. and having traveled extensively including work as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Senegal, I am broadly interested in international and cross-cultural perspectives on landscape planning and design.

• SUSTCOMM 314: Writing in Community Development & Landscape Architecture
• HONORS 391AH: The Anthropocene – An Introduction and Contemplative Inquiry
• LANDARCH 494LI: Landscape Planning & the Cultural Landscape
• LANDARCH 502: Introduction to Landscape Design II
• SUSTCOMM 533: Urban Greening Theory & Practice
• LANDARCH/REGIONPL 635: Research Issues

• "Reflecting on Urban Greening at a Historic Inflection Point with Theodore Eisenman," Nature Cities (April 30, 2025)
• "Beyond the Golden Shovel: Recommendations for a Successful Urban Tree Planting Initiative" (May 2024)
• "Traits of a Bloom: A Nationwide Survey of U.S. Urban Tree Planting Initiatives (TPIs)" (June 2021)

• "What City Trees Need Now," Landscape Architecture Magazine (February 2025)
• "UMass Amherst Researchers Map Chicopee's Urban Forest," Inside UMass (August 30, 2024)
• "Pioneering an Innovative Approach to Urban Greening," SBS UMass YouTube (October 10, 2019)