>

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Arboricultural Association.

Share this story

Topics

#ARBatwork #ArbMatters #EmbraceEquity #IWD2023 #PledgeLessPlastic #WomenInArb #WomenInTrees & 12 Faces of Arb 1987 storm 2 Rope 2018 2024 30 Under 30 3ATC 3ATC UK Open 50th annual AA AA award AA Awards Aboricultural Association Accident accreditation Addiction advice AFAG AFL aftercare AGM Agrilus Biguttatus aid air quality Alert Alex Kirkley All Party Parliamentary Group on Horticulture amenity Amenity Conference Anatomy Ancient Tree Forum Annual Awards Anthropology APF APF 2020 APF 2022 app APPGHG application Appointment apprentice apprenticeship Apprenticeships Approved Approved Contractor Approved Contractors ARB ARB Approved Contractor ARB Approved Contractors ARB at work ARB Magazine ARB Show arb training ARB Worker Zone ArbAC ARBatwork ArbCamp Arbor Day Arboretum Arboricultural Association Arboricultural Journal Arboricultural Student Arboriculture arborists Arbsafe Ash Ash Archive ash dieback Asian Hornet Assessments Assessors at atf ATO Australia Autumn Review award Awards Barcham Trees Bark Beetle Bartlett Bartlett Tree Experts bats Bats & Trees beetle Best Student Award beyond ism Bill Matthews biochar biodiversity Biodiversity Net Gain biomechanical biosecurity BNG Book Prize Book Shop Booking Books Bookshop boundaries branch Branches brand Brexit bs5837 BSI Budgeting Tool bursary business Call for Abrstacts Call for Abstracts Call for papers Campout Canker stain of plane Canopy Climbing Collective carbon career careers Cavanagh CAVAT CCS Cellular Confinement Cellular Confinement Systems CEnv CEO Ceratocystis Ceratocystis platani chainsaw chalara charity Charles charter Charter for Trees Chartered Environmentalist chelsea Chelsea Flower Show City & Guilds Claus Mattheck climate climate change climber climbing code Cofor Colleges committees competition competiton conference Conference India Confor conifers conservation Consultant consultation Continuous Professional Development Contractor Contractor Focus Contractors Cornwall Cornwall Branch Coronation Coronavirus Coroner Council Countryside Countryside Code Countryside Stewardship Course for beginners COVID-19 CPD cross industry news Crown & Canopy Cryphonectria parasitica Cumbria DART Date for your diary deadwood death debate Debt defra deployment Design Devon Director disease diversity DMM document donate dothistroma downloads draft Drought Dutch elm DWP EAC East Anglia ecology Economic Report economy Ecotricity education EFUF Election elections Electricity Elm yellows Emerald Ash Borer England England Tree Action Plan England Tree Strategy English Elm environment Environment Act 2021 environmental EPF Equality equipment Equipment Theft Europe European Arboricultural Council European Forum on Urban Forestry European standards European Wood Pastures EUSTAFOR Event exeter Exhibitors Fall from Height Fatal Fatality felling Fellow Fellow Members Fera Field Trip Finance Fine firewood First Aid FISA flood flooding for Forest Research forestry Forestry Commission forests freelancers FSC Fund4Trees funding fundraiser fungal fungi Future Flora Futurebuild gardening GDPR Geocells Gold Medal Gov.uk government grant grants Grapple Saws Green Brexit Green Infrastructure Green Infratructure Green Recovery Green Up Guarantee guidance Guidance Note Guidance Note 2 guide guides Hazard Tree Health heart-rot Heatwave Hedgerow hedges height Helliwell Help Henry Girling Henry Kuppen History HMRC HOMED Homeworking Honey Brothers honours Horse Chestnut HortAid horticulture horticulturists HortWeek housing HRH HRH Prince Charles HS2 HSE HTA ICF ICoP identification Immigration import industry Industry Code of Practice industry skills Infographic InfraGreen Initiatives Inspiration Insurance Intermediate Tree Inspection International Urban Forestry Congress International Women’s Day International Year of Plant Health invertebrates Investigating Tree Archaeology Conference IPAF Ips typographus Irma irrigation ISA iso ITCC i-Tree IUFC IWD21 Jo Hedger Job Job Centre Plus job opportunity Jobcentre Plus jobs judgement JustGiving Karabiner Keith Sacre Kent Kew Kit land-based Landsaping Landscape Institute Landscape Recovery Scheme Landscape Show landscaping Lantra law Leaf Minor Lectures legal legislation Letters Liability licence Local Authority Treescapes Fund London longevity LTOA Lynne Boddy Magazine Malawi Managegement Plan manifesto maple Mayor of London MBE Melbourne Member Benefit Member Survey Membership Mental Health mentor MEWPs Midlands Morphophysiology moth' motion Moulton College Myerscough NASA National Geographic National Hedgerow Week National Tree Safety Group National Tree Week NATO Natural England NatureScot Netherlands New Year’s Honours News NHS nominations Northern Northumberland Notice notification NTIS NTOA NTOC NTSG Nurseries oak 'oak Oak Processionary Moth Oak-boring Beetle obituary Observatree occupation of OHRG online opm Padua Papua parks parliament Perennial Pests & Diseases Pests and Diseases Petersfield petition Petzl photo Phytophthora Phytophthora pluvialis Pine Processionary Moth plan planning Planning Law Plant Health Plant Healthy planting Plantsman Plantsmans Choice Pledge Plumpton College policy poll Poster Power PPE practice Preston Twins Prince Charles Prince of Wales processionary Product Recall Professional Members prosecution Protect and Survive protected tree protection PUWER Qualifications Queen’s 70th Jubilee Questionnaire Quotatis ramorum RC Recruitment Red Diesel reference Reg Harris Registered Registered Consultant Registered Consultants Rehab Rememberance Day renewal REnvP Report Rescue research Research grant Resilience response results Retirement retrenchment review RFS rhs RHS Chelsea Flower Show Ride for Research Ride4Research rigging Rodney Helliwell rogue tree surgeons Royal Forestry Society RSFS Safe Working Practice Safety Safety Bulletin Safety Bulletins Safety Guides Safety Notice Saftey Salaries Sale school science Scotland Scotland Branch Scottish Branch SDG Accord security Seed Gathering Season Seminar seminars Share Sheffield Show Sierra Leone Site Guidance skills skills survey SocEnv Social Benefits of Trees soil soils South East South East Branch South West Speaker spotlight SRT SRWP staff Standards statement Stationary Rope Stationary Rope Technique statutory STIHL Stonehouse Storm strategy student Student Book Prize Student Conference Study Trip Sub-contractors Succession Successsion Supporter survey Sustainable Soils Alliance Sweet Chestnut sweet chestnut blight Sycamore Gap symposium T Level T Levels Tatarian maple TDAG Technical technical guide Technical Guides technical officer Technical Officers Technical Team Technician Members Technology Ted Green Telecommunications tender TG3 Thames & Chiltern The Arboricultural Association The Forestry and Woodlands Advisory Committees The Plantsman’s Choice The Queen’s Green Canopy The Woodland Trust Thinking Arbs Thinking Arbs Day Timbersports Tony Kirkham Tools top-handled chainsaws,Elcoat, TPBE4 TPO Trading Standards trailblazer training transport Tree Tree Care Tree Champion Tree Council Tree Fayre tree felling Tree Health Tree Health Week Tree Inspection Tree Life tree loss tree management Tree of the year Tree Officer Tree officers tree pathogen tree planning Tree Planting Tree Production Innovation Fund Tree Protection tree register Tree Risk Tree Shears tree species Tree Supply Tree Surgeon Tree Surgeons Tree Week Tree Work at Height Tree Workers Zone TreeAlert Treeconomics tree-felling TreeRadar trees trees' Trees & Society Trees & Sociey Trees and Society Trees and the Law Trees for Cities Trees, People and the Built Environment trust' trustee Trustees TrustMark Two Rope two-rope UAG Uitlity UK favourite UK&ITCC ukas Ukraine UKWAS urban urban forest Urban Forestry Urban Tree Challenge Urban Tree Challenge Fund Urban Tree Cover Urban Tree Diversity Urban Tree World Cup urban trees UTD4 Utility Approved Contractors Utility Arboriculture Group UTWC vacancy Vanuatu VETcert veteran trees video Videos Virtual ARB Show volunteer voting VTA WAC Wales Wales Branch Warning Watering watering solutions Webinar webinars website Wednesday Webinars Wellbeing Western Westonbirt Wharton White Paper WIA Witley Women Women in Arb women in arboriculture Womens Arb Camp woodland Woodland Carbon Code Woodland Carbon Guarantee woodland trust woods Work Work at Height Workshops World Environment Day World Fungi Day Xylella young Young Arboricultural Professional Young Arboricultural Professional Award young arborists Young People’s Breakfast Event Young Tree Aftercare Youth Programme zoo

Travels in Asia

Author:  Boel Hammarstrand
  03/03/2020
Last Updated:  05/03/2020
The view from the top of a Taiwan cow-tail fir

The view from the top of a Taiwan cow-tail fir, one of fewer than 1,000 individuals left in Taiwan. This tree has seen a lot during its approximately 800-year lifespan, now including the planning for the WACT. (photo: Weng Heng Bin, Taiwan)

I spent most of December travelling around Asia, meeting arborists in four different countries and participating in three climbing competitions as well as making plans for WACT – Women ’s ArbCamp in Taiwan.

WACT will be held on 6–8 March at ShuiTou Villa in Nantou, Taiwan, and is being organised by Sylvia Hsu and Climbing Trees. The themes of the workshops for the event will relate to strength, health and beauty, and we are planning to include workshops on yoga, stretching, training and healthy eating with the female body and climbing activities in mind, as well as climbing workshops on moving rope and static rope systems for both beginners and those at a more advanced level. The event is open to any woman within the field of arboriculture who wants to travel to Taiwan to be part of WACT: you can find more at www.womensarbcamp.com as well as on the Women’s ArbCamp in Taiwan Facebook and Instagram pages. This will be the first time an event like this has been held in Taiwan and we are super-excited to be able to support and help out at the event.

Just another day hanging out at work for Sylvia Hsu of Climbing Trees

Just another day hanging out at work for Sylvia Hsu of Climbing Trees, teaching students how to climb and sharing her passion for trees to inspire new climbers.

Climbing competitions

During my time in Asia I also participated in three climbing competitions – in Hong Kong, Thailand and Malaysia. All three competitions were great and very different, and the organisation of the events was amazing. Hong Kong hosted its 10th-anniversary competition and had a really great turnout for the event: there were a total of 37 competitors of whom 12 were women. Competitors travelled from all over the world, including Sweden, the UK, Taiwan, Macau, China and Singapore as well as Hong Kong.

Thailand hosted its second event and attracted 31 competitors of whom eight were women. This competition had a great turnout of international participants both as competitors and judges, with people travelling from Sweden, the UK, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, USA, Malaysia, New Zealand and Thailand. I thought it was great to see such a young chapter and competition being so well organised and already implementing some of the fundamental skills for tree care. Competitors always installed a friction saver before ascending on a moving rope system, even if this meant that they barely got off the ground in the Masters Challenge due to an unlucky throwline. The competitors still took the time to protect the tree and not just climb up without a cambium saver or such like – something that more established chapters and climbers could learn a lot from.

Malaysia has had different organisations running climbing competitions and I think 2019 was the fifth year it hosted a tree climbing competition. There were 40 competitors of whom at least eight were women (I can ’t find the exact number, but we were six women in the Masters and a few that didn ’t make the cut.) Malaysia also had international competitors coming from Sweden, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Are there more women climbers in Asia?

Some of the competitors at the 2019 Hong Kong TCC

Some of the competitors at the 2019 Hong Kong TCC. Left to right: Angel Huang (Hong Kong), Jessica Wen (Hong Kong), Ya Yun Ke (Taiwan), Boel Hammarstrand (Sweden), Sylvia Hsu (Taiwan) and Yan Ling Yu (China). (photo: Facebook)

Some of the competitors at the 2019 Malaysia TCC

Some of the competitors at the 2019 Malaysia TCC. Left to right: Jolyn Sim (Singapore), Clarice Xue (Singapore), Nabila Zulasmin (Malaysia), Nurulhuda Bt Zulkifli and Fath (Malaysia), Diana Chiu (Singapore), Boel Hammarstrand (Sweden), Noorezkey Zulkifli (Malaysia), Chen Ching Ying (Taiwan). (photo: Mohd Faridzi,TACTeam.my)

Boel and Sylvia Hsu next to one of the big ancient Formosan cypress trees in the Lalashan mountains of Taiwa

Boel and Sylvia Hsu next to one of the big ancient Formosan cypress trees in the Lalashan mountains of Taiwan. (photo: Weng Heng Bin, Taiwan)

I got talking with some of the women at the different events to discuss the difference between competing in Asia compared to Europe, as it seemed to me there were many more female competitors than I see in Europe and it wasn ’t just the same women travelling around all three events like I was: there were some who did two of the events, but the majority were only competing in one.

Is that because women in Asia are more competitive or encouraged to take an active part in different sporting competitions from a younger age so it ’s more natural to compete? Are there more women involved in arboriculture as it ’s such a young profession there? Or is it something else driving women to be part of the events? These were some of the questions that I had and was hoping to get answers to.

The conclusion that I reached in the end was that because arboriculture is a somewhat new profession in Asia everyone who has a passion for trees wants to be part of the event, to get the opportunity to network, see, learn and develop their own abilities, regardless of their gender or previous climbing skills. One of the women I talked to pointed out that she felt empowered by being part of the event – she felt empowered by everyone as we all came together to celebrate trees and each other: it was less about gender and more about bringing each other up towards a joint goal for the trees.

I also realised that a lot of the women I talked to do not work as full-time climbing arborists in the sense that we use the term in Europe, i.e. they don ’t necessarily work with pruning and maintaining or removing trees. A lot of the women were working in research, training, writing reports or other non-climbing arb-related jobs. This means that being part of the competition is an opportunity to climb for a lot of them. It ’s a chance to practise their climbing skills and to see and learn about other and new techniques. It ’s not all about being the best climber but more about spending time with everyone else and hanging out with all your friends.

I had such a great time travelling around in Asia and a lot of it is thanks to Sylvia and Climbing Trees who took me all over Taiwan to see trees and to climb big, unusual ones, as well as letting me see the different workshops etc. that they run for students. They took me to the Lalashan mountains to see the giant cypresses, as well as to see and climb a Taiwan cow-tail fir in a beautiful location and a 50m cypress in the Taichung city area. Taiwan is full of beautiful trees, mountains and great people and I would recommend to anyone who has the opportunity to go there and check it out.

Travelling in Asia also made me appreciate the effort everyone took to talk to me so that I could understand, with English not being their first language. I also realised how difficult it might be for them to travel to parts of the world where they might be expected to understand and talk English and how easy it is as an English-speaking competitor to compete internationally compared to a non-English speaking competitor, even inside Europe and North America.

Women’s ArbCamp Europe

Being away in Taiwan and Asia hasn ’t stopped the planning for WAC 2020 in Europe. We have been talking with BAAS ISA, the Belgian arborist association, and the event will be held in Belgium in August – venue and dates to be confirmed and published on the website, Instagram and Facebook as soon as things are finalised. If you want to get involved in the event, don ’t hesitate to reach out and contact us. As always, the WAC will include different climbing workshops, and we might try to find workshops to cover some of the topics included in WACT, for example, yoga, stretching and training to prevent injuries. If there are any specific workshops you want to attend or would like to hold, send us an email at info@womensarbcamp.com or a message on Facebook or Instagram at WomensArbCamp.

Boel Hammarstrand is the founder of Women ’s ArbCamp. She is a self-employed contractor (Boel Hammarstrand ’s Trädvård (Sweden) and Swallows Tree Surgery (UK)), an NPTC trainer and assessor, and a regular competitor and judge at climbing competitions.


This article was taken form Issue 188 Spring 2020 of the ARB Magazine, which is available to view free to members by simply logging in to the website and viewing your profile area.