Global Connections. Regional Roots. January 2019
To Create and Inspire Champions of Sustainable Forestry
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From Joseph Furia, Executive Director
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I generally aim to enter the New Year with a renewed sense of hope and this year it is especially true. All around me the green shoots of growth and renewal are sprouting at the World Forestry Center.
For example, our construction of the Miller Hall landscape project, named the Grandchildren’s Garden, is well underway and on schedule for completion this spring. Our fellowship program has selected its finalists for the class of 2019 who will arrive on campus in a few months. Our museum has opened a new exhibit on the history of a multicultural logging culture in Maxville, Oregon. The Hagenstein Lecture series continues in May with us hosting a conversation with John Maclean led by Oregon’s former State Forester, Doug Decker. And we are nearing completion of a strategic planning process to help us chart the next few years of growth at the World Forestry Center.
I encourage you to come in from the weather and visit the World Forestry Center this winter. You might just find an ember of hope that warms your soul even as temperatures drop across the country. It is going to be a great spring.
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Forestry Leadership Hall Spotlight
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In 1971, the World Forestry Center began a tradition of honoring those pioneers who have contributed significantly to the advancement of forestry. This month we are honored to spotlight Harold A. Miller and we are excited to announce the groundbreaking of the Miller Hall Grandchildren's Garden.
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The project will improve walkways, add a wood arbor, fencing, and dozens of native trees and shrubs.
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Harold A. Miller was an immensely successful lumberman in the Pacific Northwest and California and a founder of the Western Forestry Center (now known as the World Forestry Center). As Chairman of the Board from 1968 to his death on February 12, 1981, his leadership and support were vital to the establishment, growth, and success of the World Forestry Center.
In partnership with his fellow board trustees, Mr. Miller recognized a need to replace Portland’s old Forestry Building after its tragic destruction by fire in 1964. Upon obtaining widespread community support, Mr. Miller and co-founders began planning construction of the Western Forestry Center in July 1969. On June 5, 1971, the 35,000 square-foot Center opened its doors to the public.
Following a decade of rapid educational growth, the need for expansion was recognized by the trustees in 1979. Mr. Miller provided the initial efforts to fund a million-dollar, 10,000 square-foot education building which was dedicated as Harold A. Miller Hall on December 19, 1980.
Now almost forty years later, the WFC is excited to announce the groundbreaking of the Miller Hall landscape project, named the Grandchildren’s Garden. The family of Mr. Miller and the WFC are setting out to improve the functionality, intimacy, and beauty of the Miller Hall grounds for the next generation of patrons. The garden, designed by Huntington and Kiest, includes upgrading and improving walkways, installing a wood arbor and fencing, and planting dozens of native trees and shrubs.
The name “Grandchildren’s Garden” carries on the legacy of Harold A. Miller and Miller Hall in supporting the next generation of forestry champions. With the support of the family, the necessary funding for the project was raised and construction started in late 2018 with expected completion in spring 2019. We look forward to sharing this new space with our community.
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We invite you to visit the Forestry Leadership Hall located on the second floor of the Discovery Museum. For more information
click here
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World Forest Institute News and Updates
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Xuejiao Li
returned to the Chinese Academy of Forestry in time to celebrate the agency’s sixtieth anniversary. In late 2018, Xuejiao helped organize several workshops on natural resource management. The 4th International Congress on Planted Forests aimed to investigate the contribution of planted forests to green development in the context of global changes. She also helped organize an international workshop on Forest Research in Response to Climate Change that examined how forest science can contribute to the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. Finally, the objectives of the International Workshop on Certified Forest Products and Sustainable Forestry were to further the exchange of global experiences and to explore the impacts of forest certification on sustainable forestry.
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Thammarat Mettanurak
is continuing his quest to learn about U.S. wood products and their potential use in the Thai market. Thammarat recently attended the American Hardwood Seminar in Bangkok, which was organized in part by the American Hardwood Export Council and aimed at promoting American hardwoods.
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Since returning to the Taiwan Forest Research Institute (TFRI),
Meei-ru Jeng’s
fellowship project on the biochar supply chain has continued to be a major part of her work. To date, she has presented on three separate occasions on the biochar management platform information that she gained while in the Pacific Northwest. In addition, Meei-ru is now responsible for information security management and social media management at TFRI.
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Tuan Phan’s
schedule has been busy sharing the knowledge he gained throughout his fellowship since returning home to Vietnam. This past October, Tuan participated in a roundtable discussion on “opportunities and challenges for sustainable energy development of Vietnam and experiences from China,” where he introduced models and initiatives in carbon and natural resources sustainable management from the U.S. In November, Tuan was invited by GreenID to talk about U.S. models and initiatives on developing air quality policy in Vietnam. In addition, Tuan served as a key consultant for legal and policy inputs at the World Bank-funded Coastal Cities Sustainable Environment Project.
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Jeen Bunnik
returned home to the Netherlands to continue working as a procurement forester for his fifth-generation family business, Houtkoperij-vesterij Bunnik. He sent us this photo of himself loading red oak logs that are bound for China, where they will be used in floor construction for the U.S. market. Jeen pointed out that he purchased these logs from a Dutch national park and that, in the Netherlands, government agencies remove “foreign” or “alien” species, some of which are native to the U.S., such as American red oak and Douglas-fir.
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Calendar of Events and Conferences
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The Hagenstein Lectures:
A Conversation with John Maclean
hosted by Doug Decker
Thursday, May 2, 2019
7:00 pm (doors open at 6:00 pm)
Miller Hall, World Forestry
Center
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John Maclean, the nation’s leading wildfire writer and observer and Doug Decker, Oregon’s former State Forester and forest historian, share conversation, stories and insights that explore the complex relationship between fire, forests and people. Fire has always been a defining force in the Western landscape. In the 21st century, fire will play an even more important role as development, climate change and shifting policy continue to reshape our relationship with forests and wildlands.
This event is free, but advance tickets are required.
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TREEmendous Second Saturday Event Series
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The World Forestry Center Discovery Museum is offering special events each month as part of our TREEmendous Second Saturday event series. Come to the Discovery Museum for hands-on learning about trees and forests and find out how they relate to our everyday lives. Activities are free with museum admission.
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Mark your calendar and join us on the following Saturdays:
February 9
March 9
April 13
May 11
June 8
July 13
August 10
September 14
October 12
November 9
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New Exhibit
Timber Culture: The History of Maxville, Oregon –
A City United and Divided
January 12, 2019 – June 30, 2019
This exhibit provides a comprehensive look at Oregon’s multicultural logging industry. Through a series of historical photographs from the Maxville logging operation, the exhibit depicts the lives of loggers and their families drawn together from different cultures during the Great Migration.
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This exhibit is on loan from the Maxville Heritage Interpretative Center.
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For more information about the World Forestry Center, please contact
Merrit Thompson, Development and Community Relations Manager
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