During these challenging and uncertain times, each of us at the Oregon Forest Resources Institute (OFRI) hopes our partners, stakeholders and friends are staying safe and healthy. OFRI has temporarily closed its offices in Portland and Silverton and moved all staff to telework. We’re working and available via
telephone and email
, if you need to reach us.
Due to the office closure, we’re unable to ship
publications
at this time. We’re still taking publication orders, however, and will work through the backlog when we return to the office. All our publications are available for FREE download, so please take advantage of this option.
OFRI staff have been busy working on creative ways to deliver our
K-12
and
Landowner Education
programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read on for more details about how we’re continuing to engage with the public, educators, parents, students and landowners to inform them about Oregon’s forests, forest management and forest products.
For the forest,
Erin Isselmann
Executive Director
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While schools are closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, OFRI’s K-12 Education Program is offering free downloadable educational materials for at-home learning about Oregon’s forests.
Teachers, parents and students can download the materials from a new
webpage
on OFRI’s website for K-12 education,
LearnForests.org
. The page includes a series of “mini lessons” using OFRI’s educational materials, designed for at-home learning. Each lesson explores a forest-related topic through a combination of reading, writing and scientific investigation.
OFRI has promoted the Institute’s educational resources for remote learning during the school closures to teachers, parents, students and partner forest-education organizations, local television and radio stations, and on social media. A special edition of OFRI’s
Forestry for the Classroom
e-newsletter for K-12 educators highlighted ways teachers can use OFRI’s educational materials to keep their students engaged and learning while away from school.
OFRI offers a range of resources for K-12 education designed specifically for different grade-level ranges. All these materials provide science-based, factual information about Oregon's forests, are regularly updated to reflect the latest research findings, and align with state education standards. Students and their families are encouraged to explore OFRI’s
learning library
to find an array of educational materials to try at home.
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Landowner education webinars planned
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With the cancelation of so many forest landowner education programs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, OFRI’s Landowner Education Program is responding by working with partners to start a new webinar series to continue educating landowners during this time of social distancing.
The new Tree School Oregon webinar series, hosted by OFRI and other members of the
Partnership for Forestry Education
, will feature weekly 90-minute sessions starting in late April. The first two live webinars are scheduled for 3-4:30 p.m. on April 21 and 28. Starting May 5, the webinars will take place twice each Tuesday, starting at 10 a.m. and again at 3 p.m. Weekly webinars are currently scheduled to take place through July 21, and all will be recorded and available for later viewing.
Presenters for this new webinar series will include several of the speakers who were planning to present at
Tree School Clackamas
, Oregon State University Extension’s annual educational event for forest landowners at Clackamas Community College. It was originally scheduled this year for March 21, but has been canceled due to the pandemic.
Members of the Partnership for Forestry Education, including Oregon State University Extension, the Oregon Department of Forestry, the Oregon Small Woodlands Association, the Oregon Tree Farm System and OFRI, are jointly leading this effort to develop a series of webinars for forest landowners. Representatives from these organizations will be featured as speakers.
All webinars will be advertised and archived on the Partnership’s
KnowYourForest.org
website.
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Viewership up for OFRI's educational advertising
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Every spring OFRI’s annual educational advertising campaign hits the airwaves and the internet.
This year’s ads are currently running in Oregon’s principal television markets – Portland, Eugene, Medford and Bend – as well as through streaming services such as Hulu. Other places the ads are appearing online include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. The ad campaign will run through May 11.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, TV viewership is up by about 11%, increasing the likelihood that OFRI’s array of spots will reach a greater number of Oregonians than in years past. Oregonians’ increased screen time is also resulting in a much higher level of engagement for OFRI’s online spots, especially those appearing on social media.
Television and digital advertising helps OFRI reach the most Oregonians and educate them about Oregon’s forests, forest practice laws and protections. Many people are simply not aware of laws that require reforestation, conservation of wildlife habitat or the protection of drinking water.
The two new OFRI ads debuting this year highlight the 40 million trees planted in Oregon’s forests every year, the state laws aimed at protecting forest fish and wildlife habitat and drinking water sources, and the benefits of forests and wood products. The first spot, called “
Rings
,” touts the many uses of trees within the forest and outside it. The second ad, “
Devices
,” reminds viewers that even though many of us are disconnected from Oregon’s forests on a day-to-day basis, others are out there every day making sure they’re sustainably managed.
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Blog: "40 million seedlings? Are they all Doug-fir?"
In a new blog post, OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy explains the math behind the “40 million seedlings planted each year in Oregon” statistic that’s touted in OFRI’s educational advertising, as well as the importance of those seedlings representing a diverse mix of tree species. Read the
blog
.
Blog: "A healthy forest is no accident"
Forest health is a human construct that is best promoted by human actions, OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy explains in one of his latest blog posts. Read the
blog
to learn why a “healthy forest is no accident.”
Oregon Envirothon taking place remotely
OFRI has canceled the in-person Oregon Envirothon 2020 event scheduled for May 1, but high school students can still participate in the natural resources knowledge competition remotely. This includes submitting current-issue videos for judging, and an online testing component that can still be done in teams. Deadlines for submitting videos and completing tests have been extended until May 8. For more information, contact OFRI Senior Manager of Forestry Education
Julie Woodward
.
OFRI board meeting to be held online
The April 24 OFRI Board of Directors meeting and public hearing for the Institute’s proposed 2020-21 fiscal year budget will be conducted via video conference instead of in person, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The meeting is still scheduled to start at 9 a.m. Details on how to attend the meeting through Zoom are available
here
. OFRI’s proposed 2020-21 budget will be available for public review through April 23. Members of the public interested in reviewing the budget can email Senior Manager of Business Operations
Kathy Storm
to request a digital copy.
OFRI video wins award
OFRI’s
Forest Team GO!
educational video starring Oregon State University Extension forester Lauren Grand has won a first-place award from the Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals in the organization’s annual Outstanding Educational Materials Awards. Developed for fourth- through sixth-grade students,
Forest Team GO!
highlights the range of careers available in the forest sector.
Watch the video
.
ODF seeks public comment on state forests
The Oregon Department of Forestry is inviting public comment on planned projects, timber sales and other management activities in state-owned forests for the 2021 fiscal year. Oregonians have until May 6 to weigh in online or by mail on draft state forest Annual Operations Plans, which lay out on-the-ground activities expected to take place in the coming fiscal year.
Learn more
.
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Oregon Forest Resources Institute
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The Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Forest Resources Institute in 1991 to advance public understanding of forests, forest management and forest products and to encourage sound forestry through landowner education.
A 13-member board of directors governs OFRI. It is funded by a portion of the forest products harvest tax.
Copyright © 2020, Oregon Forest Resources Institute. All Rights Reserved.
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