Global Connections. Regional Roots. August 2019
To Create and Inspire Champions of Sustainable Forestry
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From Joseph Furia, Executive Director
Much of August was spent laying the foundation for this September, which will be one of the most significant months of the year for the World Forestry Center.
Highlights of this last month are described below, but I want to focus on a few upcoming events:
- Our International Fellows, who joined us in March, are preparing for their final presentations on September 12. If you’re able, I’d recommend attending their Forestry Lightning Talks. This event represents the culmination of six months of thoughtful synthesis and study by these accomplished forestry professionals.
- From September 17-19, our 15th annual Who Will Own the Forest? conference will bring timber managers from Sweden to Japan to Portland to discuss investment in the industry. As one of the largest timberland investment conferences in the World, this event is an excellent example of how the World Forestry Center uses our physical campus to facilitate meaningful conversations on the future of forestry.
- At the end of September, we will once again host Oregon Governor Kate Brown and the Wildfire Response Council that she created via Executive Order. The council will be issuing its report to the Governor. As chair of the Council’s Mitigation Committee, I’m honored that the World Forestry Center can act as host for such a historic and important event.
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Oregon Signs Shared Stewardship Agreement
with USDA Forest Service
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On Tuesday, August 13, 2019, state and federal officials joined Oregon Governor Kate Brown and the United States Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment, James Hubbard, to sign a Shared Stewardship Agreement between the state of Oregon and the USDA Forest Service. Oregon State Forester Peter Daugherty and USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Regional Forester Glenn Casamassa also signed.
The agreement will allow for even greater collaboration between the United States Forest Service and the State of Oregon, which have a long history of working together.
“Federal and state agencies face many of the same challenges, including longer and more destructive wildfire seasons; forests facing threats from insects and disease, and the need to ensure the continued long-term ecological and socioeconomic benefits our forests provide,” Casamassa said. “Working together in a spirit of shared stewardship, we are better prepared to tackle these challenges on a landscape scale.”
Earlier this year the Forest Service signed a Shared Stewardship Agreement with the Washington Department of Natural Resources. With this newly signed agreement, the Forest Service anticipates working more effectively with state partners on a landscape scale across the Pacific Northwest.
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Garden Party Marks "Grandchildren's Garden" Dedication
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On Sunday, August 18, the family of Harold A. Miller and World Forestry Center staff gathered for a private dedication of the new “Grandchildren’s Garden.”
This renovation and landscaping project of the green space outside of Miller Hall has created a larger and more inviting location for 125 events and 22,000 people who use the space annually. Over a year in the making, the project was made possible through the generous support of the family of Harold Miller, Hank Swigert, and the World Forestry Center’s board of directors.
“This garden the most used site on our entire campus,” said Executive Director Joe Furia. “Place is at the heart of everything we do at the World Forestry Center. The Miller family’s generosity in funding this project continues their long legacy of support for the next generation of sustainable forestry champions.”
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Liza Lilley, grandaughter of Harold A. Miller accepts a plaque on behalf of her family.
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The project aimed to improve the functionality, intimacy, and beauty of the Miller Hall grounds.
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WORLD FOREST INSTITUTE NEWS
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A Global Forest
Written by Sander Gusinow,
Oregon Business
Fellows at the World Forest Institute debut forest-preserving projects with global reverberations.
When Richard Banda applied to the World Forest Institute's International Fellowship program, he wanted to learn about the most efficient ways to prune trees native to Malawi. A forestry officer, Banda’s company is part of a reforestation project in Viphya Plantations, the largest forestry plantation in Malawi.
“Malawi had one of the largest forest plantations in Africa, but once it was harvested, it was never replanted,” he says. “With 98% of people relying on fuel wood for cooking, pressure to harvest the country’s natural forests has increased.”
Banda applied to the program wanting to learn the best and most efficient pruning techniques.
But after Banda gained access to the program’s resources, the scope of his project became more ambitious. “My project during the fellowship is understanding how to craft a strong project proposal to make investing in reforestation in Malawi appealing to international investors,” Banda says.
The World Forest Institute, based in Portland, offers professional development and continuing education programs for foresters and other natural resource professionals. It has gained a reputation as a center of excellence for forestry practices. As issues of climate change and global deforestation take root in places such as the Amazon rainforest, the institute's work is set to gain increasing global importance.
After meeting with natural resource management leaders in the Pacific Northwest, Banda now believes the best solution to deforestation isn't just efficient pruning, but selling the idea that forests are more lucrative, long-term investments if they are left standing.
“The ultimate goal is to empower the surrounding communities economically by creating jobs and reducing the pressure on natural forest,“ he says.
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International Fellows Experience Site-Level Conservation with the West Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District
This month, the International Fellows met with staff from the
West Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District
. Established in the early 1940s, WMSWCD is charged with helping landowners west of the Willamette River in Multnomah County manage their land. After an informative lecture and discussion, the group went into the field to see three properties where WMSWCD works.
The first stop was the Forest Heights Natural area, a 200-acre property that houses a cedar mill wetland. Here WMSWCD is working on managing storm water and controlling invasive species like the Japanese beetle.
The next stop was a privately-owned property. With support by the WMSWCD, this 5.3-acre landscape is gradually transforming from an invasive blackberry patch to a more natural woodland. The long-term goal of the owner is to restore the site to a healthy forest with enough native species diversity to provide habitat for wildlife.
Malinowaski Farm was the group’s last stop. Malinowaski is 59.2-acre agroforestry farm. The restoration goal here is to restore an overflowing pond and to manage the surrounding oak woodland. Profit made from thinning the oak woodland was used to fund the pond restoration in a cost-share model with WMSWCD.
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Temi's Thoughts and Perspectives on the WMSWCD Study Tour
WMSWCD is changing the narrative around conservation by restoring and improving habitat for wildlife and plants, connecting landscapes, and getting people involved. Their work shows us that conservation at a landscape scale can be achieved in little bits (site-scale) without compromising the overall goal of creating connectivity, resilience, and integrity for the landscape. They also show that people are a very important part of any conservation agenda; people are at the center of any conservation project. Thus, any successful conservation project reflects the successful management of people.
Thank you to our International Fellow from Nigeria, Temitope Dauda, for your insights into the West Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District study tour.
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Forestry Lightning Talks
2019 International Fellowship Program
September 12, 2019 | 5:30-7:30 pm |
World Forestry Center,
Cheatham Hall
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Join us for an evening listening to the International Fellows' stories about the natural resource lessons they have learned during their six months in the Pacific Northwest and how they hope to apply those lessons when they return home.
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Join Us for Back-to-Back Events on
Timberland Investing & Forest Products Markets
World Forestry Center
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Senior Day at the World Forestry Center Discover Museum
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For more information about the World Forestry Center, please contact
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