2015 celebrates 50 years of the World Forestry Center!
The World Forestry Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to educating people about the world's forests and environmental sustainability.
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| Executive Director Eric Vines and his pooch Siena |
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I will admit to having more than a little fondness for Luciano Pavarotti's voice. The first time I heard a recording of him singing Nessum Dorma, I was simply awestruck. I was at a dinner recently where the host mentioned Pavarotti's visit to Portland and I began to think about the connection between art and forests. Forests provide the fundamental building blocks of human civilization, essential elements like clean water, clean air, stable soils, food, shelter, and fuel. Trees provide the paper for our books, ingredients for our medicines, corks for our wine, and wood for our violins and paintbrushes. In Maslow's hierarchy, forests provide both for our basic needs while trees take us all the way to the top of the pyramid as we search for self-actualization. The arts help us find meaning in our lives. Forests provide means for us to live. If we are to solve the tough problems ahead relating to forest health, climate change, food security, and water shortages, we will need the best that art and science can offer. We will need all of us working creatively toward new solutions to emerging problems. This month, the World Forestry Center Museum opened a new gallery to showcase artwork from artists who use forests as a theme. Our first three shows are in partnership with the Geezer Gallery and I think you will find the artwork both beautiful and inspiring. Humans must figure out how to co-evolve with forests. Pondering this question through art is a stimulating way to begin this conversation. Please join us and lend your voice. 
Eric Vines
Executive Director
PS In partnership with Sustainable Northwest, we are hosting the Northwest Community Forest Forum next Tuesday at the World Forestry Center (details below - registration required). If the idea of community owned and managed forests intrigues you, this is the gathering for you!
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Leadership Hall Spotlight
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Edmund Hayes Education Center: The Man Behind the Name
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Edmund Hayes (1895-1986) wore a lot of hats. Remarkably successful as an independent lumberman operating in Oregon for many years, he also served as an officer and director of the Weyerhaeuser Company and the elected leader of both the West Coast Lumbermen's Association and the Western Forestry and Conservation Association. Following the great Tillamook fires of 1933, 1939, and 1945 that ravaged nearly 355,000 acres of western Oregon, he spoke clearly yet passionately as
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Chairperson of the Joint Committee on Forest Conservation about the way to restore the region to productivity. These were his words:
"We have the land. We know how to manage it. The nation needs our forest products. It is in our hands to mix these ingredients with intelligence and cooperation so that Oregon's productive forest soils will make their destined contribution to society forever."
Edmund took the long view. As a founder and first president of the Keep Oregon Green Association, he emphasized fire prevention efforts as well as reforestation during his 45 years of service on their board of directors. He also advocated for cooperation among small owner-operators in order to secure for them the best available professional forest management advice. Today we honor him as one of the founders of the Western Forestry Center, precursor to today's World Forestry Center. Here, serving as both president and chairman of our board of directors, he guided the development of the Center's prestigious Magness Memorial Tree Farm. Edmund Hayes, a man who knew how to turn ideas into practical applications, devoted his life to the wise management of our beautiful forests and their precious products.
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Oregon Natural Resources Education Program Partnership "Impact Teachers. Impact the Future."
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| The Oregon Natural Resources Education Program (ONREP) provides world-class professional development courses for 1000 Oregon educators all the state-including regular workshops at the World Forestry Center and Magness Memorial Tree Farm. Based at Oregon State University's College of Forestry, ONREP is home of the popular Project Learning Tree (PLT), Project Wild and Stewardship Schools programs. ONREP's hands-on, interactive, and investigative approach supports Oregon teachers meet state and national learning standards while engaging students in relevant, meaningful, and place-based learning. Workshops are designed to provide professional expertise and educational materials to integrate important natural resource concepts into a teachers regular classroom activities. |
World Forestry Center Senior Fellow Rick Zenn has served on ONREP advisory board for many years and is a trained workshop facilitator. On Saturday, April 11, Rick and the ONREP team led a new workshop for teachers at the Tualatin National Wildlife Refuge: "Teaching for Stronger Communities and Sustainable Forests" "We worked for a full day with a very impressive group of highly motivated teachers" Zenn said. "They love the hands-on, real world workshops ONREP provides. Several teach Spanish speaking students and they told us they would be using the materials from the course 'Monday.' That's impact." |
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Summer Hours Resume!
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Starting Memorial Day, our Discovery Museum will be open 7 days a week, from 10 am to 5 pm.
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Treemendous First Thursday
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Visit our Discovery Museum next Thursday, May 7th, and take advantage of $3.00 admission for everyone ages 3 & up!
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Education Department Happenings
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This year was the 22nd annual Children's Clean Water Festival on Tuesday March 10, 2015 at the University of Portland.
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Education Director Rob Pierce presents to children
from local elementary schools
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This year was the 22nd annual Children's Clean Water Festival on Tuesday March 10, 2015 at the University of Portland.
The Children's Clean Water Festival is a one-day environmental education event for 4th and 5th grade students from around the Portland Metro area. The Festival reinforces STEM, Common Core and Next Generation Science concepts through water-focused classroom presentations, exhibits and stage shows. Each year more than 1,400 students from local schools come to a college campus for a day of learning and fun!
For the past several years the WFC Education Department has participated with the Children's Clean Water Fest by hosting a table for information. This was a more casual, drop in format for students that took place in the main hall with other organizations.
This year, however the WFC Ed Dept took on a leadership role as a classroom presenter. Classroom presentations lasted about 30 minutes and had approximately 35 students per session.
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The program was titled Totally Tubular Trees and was presented by WFC Education Director Rob Pierce and Nathan Boles, Assistant Tree Farm Manager. It focused on how trees and plants use water and how it moves through the tree itself. We looked at xylem to see if it looked like what we assumed it would after explored its function. Students used a teaspoon of water on a horizontal whiteboard to see who could stretch it the farthest before it broke representing water being pulled through a tree through transpiration. Students also used Bubble Bazookas obtained from OSU's Wood Magic program. This tool shows students that wood is comprised of many tubes that bring water from the roots all the way to the leaves. One end is dipped in bubble solution or soap. Then the student blows through the opposite end creating a cascade of tiny bubbles.
The WFC Ed Department presented to students from Witch Hazel, Oliver, Mill Park, Glencoe and Tom McCall Elementary school.
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World Forest Institute News
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WFI Fellows Gets an Introduction to Portland
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| From Left: Stuty Maskey (Nepal), Shadia Duery (WFI), Sara Wu (WFI), Miguel Sanchez (Bolivia), Sarita Lama (Nepal), and Chandalin Bennett (WFI) dining on some wonderful Thai food. |
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| From left: Miguel Sanchez (Bolivia), Stuty Maskey (Nepal), and Sarita Lama (Nepal) exploring the International Rose Test Garden. |
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| What's the best way to introduce our foreign-arriving scholars to Portland? Take them out to eat, of course! Our new Fellows joined WFI staff for a meal and conversation to ease them into their new lives in Portland. As the Fellows begin their research and start on field tours and sites visits, they will also be learning American culture and customs, such as how to properly tip at a restaurant! The Fellows are also spending time exploring Portland area attractions. Being based out of the World Forestry Center in Washington Park,they took a lovely walk on the Wildwood Trail, |
right outside their offices, and hiked down to the Japanese Gardens and surrounding sites. Exploring nature, whether urban or rural, natural or planted, is all part of the experience here and the Fellows are jumping right in! Follow them on our Facebook and on the WFI Reflections Blog page to see what exciting field trips and site visits they are attending throughout their time here. |
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Fellowship Program Reunion
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WWOTF Conference Update
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Merlo Corporation's Director of Operations, Linda V. Hanson, took this photo of WFI Founder Harry A. Merlo with Angie DiSalvo, Sara Wu, Shadia Duery and Chandalin Bennett. These women represent four generations of International Fellowship Program Managers at WFI. |
This year's
Who Will Own the Forest?
conference on timberland investing will feature two WFI Fellowship Alumni speaking on global timber issues. John Turland (New Zealand) will discuss "The Growth of Southeast Asian Plantations - and Its Impact on Wood Trade and Investors," and Ke Dong (China) will join a panel discussing "Issues and Strategies in Managing ESG Expectations in Timberland." John is currently a Senior Economist covering International Timber for RISI, and Ke is a consultant on responsible timber trade in China, including regulatory and voluntary verification systems. They join a 2.5-day packed program on forestland investing.
Registration is now open so be sure to reserve your seat at the early bird rate!
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Follow Our Fellowship Blog!
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Fellow Updates on Facebook
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Our Programs Manager Shadia is now curating a blog on the Fellow's time here. Find the blog here.
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Want more? Follow us on Facebook where we post pictures and recaps from Senior Fellow Rick Zenn about the Fellows and other forestry related news. |
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| Magness Memorial Tree Farm Updates |
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Educational Work Experience at Magness Memorial Tree Farm
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| The Magness Memorial Tree Farm, located in McMinville, Oregon, is an excellent spot to take a hike through a well-managed woodland setting. It host nearly 3,000 students of all ages on educational trips each year. This attractive "Outdoor Classroom" would not be possible without the help of volunteers and educational learning projects - a way of teaching about forestry that benefits the healthy trees on the property. The Boy Scouts of America has provided many volunteers at Magness, many of which working on their Eagle Scout projects. Recently, two Eagle Scout candidates selected the tree farm as the location to base their projects on. Thanks to these young men, our weathered flagpole was replaced and a section of trail was widened to accommodate larger groups and easier access. Because most heavy equipment are not able to access certain parts of our tree farm, the manual labor provided is the most effective method of completion. Projects are overseen and guided by our resident tree farm manager and other staff who can provide the knowledge of proper practices to these young men. In total, The World Forestry Center has had nearly 50 Eagle Scout projects completed on the all of our grounds since 2002, all of them being at little to no cost to the center. The young men who complete their projects here, along with their fellow Scouts often utilize Magness' flag pole and fire ring for various ceremonies. Eagle Scout Ian Masters, member of a Boy Scout Troop that has been visiting Magness for 5 years now, is responsible for the replacement of the rotting and weathered wooden flag pole. Ian chose the tree farm as the recipient for his community service project because of the love he has gained for the property. |
The trail widening project was undertaken by Matt Populupuna, who spent his resources and hard work on our newest section of trail. The "Heater Trail", was a section of trail that was previously covered with roots and an uneven walking surface. The trail has been graded with careful attention paid to keeping a natural aesthetic to the trail, and preserving vital roots and other important plants. The World Forestry Center would like to extend our sincerest thanks to these two fine young men, and congratulate them on their achievement of Eagle Scout. Their projects are clear indicators of their dedication to public service and our mission. Another area that our tree farm recently needed a little help on was a section on our newest trail the "Heater Trail". This was a section of trail that previously was covered with roots and an uneven walking surface. With the help of Matt Populupuna we were able to even the trail out and make it a better experience for all of our hikers. Please join me in thanking Matt Populupuna for all his hard work and dedication. If you've not yet visited The World Forestry Center's Magness Memorial Tree farm, we encourage you to bring your family or friends out for a visit. We have three and a half miles of trails good for hiking, walking, running, and nature watching. We invite dogs to visit, too! We simply ask that they remain on a leash on the farm. To get a map to the site, or get more information about Magness please visit our website. |
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A Gracious Thanks to All 2015 Donors
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It is with their support that we are able to carry on with our mission here at The World Forestry Center.
Please visit
this page to view all of our 2015 donors.
If you would like to be a supporter, please feel free to make a donation
here.
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Place your own text here.
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Managing Change in Our Community Forests: A Toolkit for Action
Thursday, June 4, 2015, World Forestry Center, Miller Hall
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Invasive pests, changing climate regimes and increased urban density will cause changes in our urban forests in the coming years. What tools and strategies can managers use today to help our community forests adapt? This one-day conference will provide participants with a toolkit full of possibilities, based on the most recent research in our field. Join your colleagues for a lively discussion of the challenges and opportunities coming to a community forest near you.
Early bird discount registration open through
April 15. See full program and
register here.
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Northwest Community Forest Forum
Monday, May 11 to Tuesday, May 12, 2015,
World Forestry Center
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| The 2015 Northwest Community Forest Forum is the only regional community forest conference and networking event focused on community forests in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and northern California. The Forum brings together community-based organizations, land trusts, national and regional non-profits, landowner, legal and financial advisors, funders, and local, state and federal government representatives to elevate understanding and awareness of community-owned forests as a model to sustain working forest lands and communities that depend on them. Check out our agenda here.
We Thank our Sponsors for supporting this event:
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Company Picnics at The World Forestry Center
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Tell your boss about this and be a hero! Company picnics are fun and festive when you have them at the World Forestry Center. Dine, dance and party under our 40' x 80' tent as you enjoy a picture perfect Portland summer day. Guests are also invited to go into the Discovery Museum for free. Call
503-488-2101
for more information. Mention this article and get 10% off your rental fee. Offer valid now through
Oct. 18, 2015
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Learn More About The World Forestry Center
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Connect With Us!
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Visit Us:
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We are located in Washington Park at:
4033 SW Canyon Rd
Portland, Oregon 97221
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GENERAL INFORMATION
Michelle Coumarbatch,
Office Manager
503-228-1367 x100
OFFICE OF DEVELOPMENT
Wendy Mitchell, Director
503-488-2111
Amber Morrison, Manager
503-488-2111
Zak Roundy, Membership & Database Specialist
503-488-2134
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Eric Vines
503-488-2119
Rick Zenn, Sr. Fellow
503-488-2103
EVENT SERVICES
Jennifer Kent, Director
503-488-2117
Jessica Love, Liaison
503-488-2101
Chuck Wiley, Facilities & Maintenance Mgr.
503-488-2138
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FINANCIAL DIRECTOR
Darlene Boles, C.P.A.
503-488-2112
WORLD FOREST INSTITUTE
Sara Wu, Director
503-488-2130
Chandalin Bennett, Sen. Programs Mgr
503-488-2137
Shadia Duery. Programs Manager
503-488-2110
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PUBLIC PROGRAMS
Mark Reed, Director
503-488-2102
Rob Pierce, Education Dir.
503-488-2118
Louise George, Visitor Services Mgr.
503-488-2114
Reade Weber, Curator
503-488-2017
Bill Woods, Tree Farm Mgr
503-625-7471
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