To address this issue, a multidisciplinary research team comprised of a natural resources sociologist (Cassandra Johnson, USFS); geographers (Stephen Holloway and Nic Goodson, University of Georgia), and arborists (Dudley Hartel and Eric Kuehler, USFS) examined Latino involvement with urban green space in Gainesville, Georgia, a small city in the northeastern portion of the state. Gainesville had a four-fold increase in the Latino population between 1990 and 2000, attributed largely to the labor demand in the area’s poultry industry and the preference of local producers for Latino labor. Gainesville can be described as a "new destination" city for Latino migration and immigration. The study focused on two Gainesville communities--Old Town with a majority Latino population (69%) and the Lake Area with a majority Anglo population (76 %). Researchers compared residents’ perceptions, interactions, and exposures to urban green space in the two neighborhoods. Also, an arboricultural assessment of tree health and quality in the two neighborhoods was conducted, along with a longitudinal analysis of canopy cover for the two areas at various points in time.

Results showed that residents of the Lake Area had more passive exposure to green space. This means that Lake Area residents were more exposed to green space since they had a greater amount of canopy coverage than Old Town residents. There was no difference found between the neighborhoods in the active engagement of residents in activities such as tree planting and the amount of time spent near trees. However, Old Town respondents were found to be less involved in making neighborhood tree planting decisions and hence had less interaction with district and municipal tree planting authorities. Local governments’ lack of collaboration in green space enhancement projects may work to the detriment of immigrant neighborhoods, as arborists have found that tree planting and maintenance are most successful in neighborhoods where residents are actively involved with city planners for the establishment of neighborhood green spaces.

Overall tree health and quality of trees was good in both neighborhoods. In the Old Town section, an increase (6%) was found in the tree canopy between 1999 and 2006, suggesting that Latino’s were involved in improving green spaces in their neighborhoods. Rather than formal channels involving city planners and arborists, Latino neighborhoods were being revived through informal channels and through community efforts to make improvements.

For both neighborhoods, homeownership was the largest contributing factor for residents’ interaction with local green spaces; homeowners were found to be more likely than renters to plant trees and spend time near trees. Because renters tend to be more transient than homeowners, they are more likely to depend on public parks for nearby nature experiences. Old Town residents were more likely than Lake area residents to be renters (84.5% and 68 % respectively), and as such may have been less likely to have influence over how space around their homes were organized and managed. This kind of information suggests that rental-home developers may want to consider green space as a useful addition to the amenities for developments.

Several environmental justice studies have suggested that low-income minority and immigrant neighborhoods tend be located farther from green spaces than Anglo communities. Our data indicates this is not the case for Old Town Latino immigrants, as the household, arboricultural, and canopy data showed abundant vegetation in Old Town (although less than the Lake Area) and suggested informal networks may be involved in green space restoration in Old Town. Researchers concluded that, in some cases, Latinos who migrate to the South "inherit" established, urban green spaces in neighborhoods vacated by Anglos. More information is needed about Latino and renter populations in the southern United States to understand better how these populations make use of municipal green spaces and more dispersed outdoor areas on state and federal lands.