Tom Knowles, ISA, Community Forester, SC
Tom works closely with communities in South Carolina to build resiliency through conservation and restoration of urban forests. Through GIC’s Trees4SC! program, he aids in the establishment and revision of ordinances, assessment of urban canopy cover and related benefits, urban forest master planning and tree planting, and community engagement and training.
Prior to joining GIC’s urban forestry team, Tom grew up in New York state where he found his interest in the natural world and enjoyed camping and hiking in the Green and Catskill mountains of the northeast. His career began in the Colorado Front Range where he worked for the City Westminster Parks Division as the city forester and supervisor of the city’s public right of way team where he managed public trees, greenways and parks. Tom led groups in large scale tree planting projects throughout the city, planting thousands of trees on public land.
Tom relocated to South Carolina where he worked for the State of South Carolina as the Horticulture Manager for many historic properties; planting and maintaining trees throughout Columbia. He then transitioned to the University of South Carolina where he directed their tree and landscape crews for over 20 years. While there he completed a GIS-based tree inventory of more than 10,000 trees which make up the University’s campus forest. Tom also founded Taylor & Knowles Inc., Urban Forestry Consulting, for which he completed dozens of municipal tree inventories and urban forest management plans throughout the Carolinas and Colorado.
Tom holds a BS Degree from the WVU College of Forestry in Parks & Recreation Management and an AAS Degree from the State University of NY @ Cobleskill in Natural Resource Management and is a Municipal Forestry Institute graduate. He is a founding member and past president of TreesSC and has been an ISA Certified Arborist for over 25 years. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his wife, Amy, and family on the beaches and mountains of the Carolinas.