Community Forests Conference


Conference Proceedings
FRIDAY, June 17th
7:30 – 8:00 a.m.	Breakfast / Welcome and Announcements (Bitterroot/Blackfoot Room)
8:00 – 8:45 a.m.
"A Historical Perspective on Community Forests in the U.S." Guest Speaker: Robert McCullough Robert McCullough teaches in the University of Vermont Graduate Program in Historic Preservation. He wrote The Landscape of Community: Communal Forests in New England. View his complete remarks (Adobe PDF) .
9:00 – 10:30 a.m.	Concurrent Panel Sessions
Community Experiences A (Russell Room) Stories of community forests created and managed in a variety of ways. *Moderator:* Kathryn Mutz, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO Presenters: Paul DeClay, Jr., Tribal Forest Manager, White Mountain Apache, AZ Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation(26.4MB) Brian Donahue, Lands' Sake Town Forest, Weston, MA Neil Paulson, Bayfield County Forest, WI Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation(.3MB) Ray Powell, Executive Director, Valles Caldera, NM Community Experiences B (Lewis Room) Stories of community forests created and managed in a variety of ways. *Moderator:* Caroline Byrd, The Nature Conservancy, Missoula, MT. Presenters: Mark Andre, Arcata, CA, Community Forest Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (5.3MB) Dale Block, Brooks Township Forest, MI Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (2.8MB) Mikki Sager, Palmetto-Peartree Preserve, NC Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (13.2MB) Changes in Timberland Ownership (Clark Room) Information about recent trends in forestland ownership nationally and options for large-scale land conservation. Moderator: Mo Hartmann, Northwest Connections, Condon, MT Presenters: Paul Doscher, Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, Concord, NH Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.8MB) Michael Goergen, Society of American Foresters, DC Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.2MB) Peter Stein, Lyme Timber, Lyme, NH Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.5MB) Bettina Von Hagen, Ecotrust Forests, OR Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (3.5MB)
10:30 - 11:00 p.m.	Break (Coffee served in hall outside Lewis and Clark Rooms)
11:00 – 12:30 p.m.	Concurrent Panel Sessions
Community Experiences C (Russell Room) Stories of community forests created and managed in a variety of ways. *Moderator:* Carol Daly, Communities Committee, Columbia Falls, MT Presenters: Ramona Faust, Harrop-Procter Community Forest, Canada Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.1MB) Steve Keith, Farm Cove Community Forest, Downeast, ME Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (14.2MB) Eric Schallock, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, Pablo, MT Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (4.7MB) David Willcox, Randolph Town Forest, Randolph, NH. Community Outreach (Lewis Room) Outreach and involvement activities that panelists have found critical to the success of a community forest. Moderator: Melanie Parker, Northwest Connections, Condon, MT Presenters: Shanna Ratner, Yellow Wood Associates, VT Tom Tuchmann, US Forest Capital, Portland, OR Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.0MB) Robert Turner, Starksboro Town Forest, VT Partnerships (Clark Room) Elements of successful partnering, the benefits of partnerships, good communication, and decision-making. Moderator: Anne Dahl, Swan Ecosystem Center, Condon, MT Presenters: Ben Eisenberg, Randolph Community Forest, NH Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (2.0MB) Linda Gibbs, Tug Hill Commission, NY Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (5.7MB) Greg Neudecker, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Great Falls, MT Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (7.0MB) Funding for Acquisition: Public Programs (Canyon Room) Sources of federal, state and local public funding for the purchase of community forests, the requirements of each, and suggestions of how to combine funds effectively. Moderator: Gerry Gray, American Forests, Washington, DC Presenters: Thomas Cassidy, The Nature Conservancy, VA Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (31.0MB) Ernest Cook, Trust for Public Land, Boston, MA Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.9MB) Paul Doscher, Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, Concord, NH Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (18.8MB) Alan Wood, MT Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Helena, MT Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.9MB)
12:30 – 1:30 p.m.	Lunch (Blackfoot/Bitterroot Room)
"Potential Role of Community Ownership and Management of Productive Forestland: Discussion of Research and Findings" Presenters: Keith Bisson, for the Mt. Washington Valley Economic Council Rodger Krussman, Trust for Public Land, VT Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (4.1MB)
1:45 – 2:45 p.m.	Concurrent Breakout Sessions
Breakout topics may change in response to panelists' suggestions... Forestland Ownership Changes. (Russell Room) What’s in store for particular regions? How can communities have a voice in future ownership and management of privately owned lands? *Moderator: Michael Goergen?* Community Collaboration. (Lewis Room) When are you ready to begin? How do you develop a collective vision and build leadership? Who participates (and who doesn’t)? Who makes decisions? *Moderator: Brian Donahue?* Target Groups. (Clark Room) Strategies to involve youth/schools, potential volunteers, seniors, other forest users, etc. Using the community forest itself as an outreach tool – guided or self-guided tours, demonstration sites, research and monitoring projects, etc. *Moderator: Robert Turner* Increasing Public Funding. (Canyon Room) Working together to maintain or increase public funding at all levels for land acquisition? Using little-known programs in creative ways. *Moderator: to be announced.*
2:45 - 3:15 p.m.	Break (Beverages and cookies served in the hall outside Lewis and Clark Rooms)
3:15 – 4:15 p.m.	Concurrent Panel and Breakout Sessions
Forest Legacy and Land and Water Conservation Fund An in-depth look at using these resources to create and/or manage community-owned forests. *Moderator:* Jim Beil, Communities Committee Presenters: Richard A. Cooksey, USDA Forest Service, Forest Legacy, DC Dick Todd, Bureau of Land Management, OR Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.3MB) Working with Diverse Partners. (Lewis Room) Bringing diverse partners to the table, bridging organizational differences, and developing partnerships with congressional members/staff and other policymakers. *Moderator: Ray Powell (invited). Sustaining Public Involvement. (Canyon Room)* You may get people to attend a couple of meetings, but how do you keep them coming? Is it important to keep the broader public involved, or is it adequate to just keep people informed? *Moderator: Arnie Valdez.* Risks and Benefits. (Clark Room) The ups and downs of owning and managing land for interested communities. Long-term investments required and risks undertaken. *Moderator: David Willcox*
4:15 - 5:30 p.m.	Free Time
5:30 – 6:30 p.m.	Social Hour/No Host Bar (Blackfoot/Bitterroot Room)
Time to meet and mingle. Be sure to visit the exhibits and posters on display in the Pre-Function Room (just off the lobby, next to the Russell Room).
6:30 – 8:30 p.m.	Dinner, Followed by Previews of Tomorrow's Field Trips Download or view the Blackfoot Challenge PowerPoint Presentation (5.9MB) Download or view the Swan Valley PowerPoint Presentation (2.6MB) View Field Trip Descriptions
SUNDAY, June 19th
7:00 – 8:00 a.m.	Continental Breakfast (Blackfoot/Bitteroot Room)
Regional sessions. Enjoy breakfast with others from your region while you discuss how you can work with and help each other’s community forest efforts. This is also an opportunity to provide written feedback to the conference organizers and make suggestions for “next steps.”
8:30 – 10:00 a.m.	Concurrent Panel Sessions
Funding for Acquisition: Creative and Emerging Mechanisms to Tap Private Funds. (Russell Room) Funding the purchase and management of community forests through private funding, including revolving loan funds, New Markets Tax Credit investments, and Community Forestry Bonds. Moderator: Ann Ingerson, The Wilderness Society, Craftsbury Common, VT Presenters: Liz Bell, Conservation Advisory Services, Seattle, WA William Ginn, The Nature Conservancy. ME Peter Stein, Lyme Timber Company, Lyme, NH Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.0MB) Tom Tuchmann, US Forest Capital, Portland, OR Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.1MB) Governance: Administration and Management Structure (Lewis Room) Technical aspects of owning and operating a community forest, including a look at various governance models. Moderator: Jill Belsky, Bolle Center for People and Forests, University of Montana, Missoula Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (3.8MB) Presenters: Scott Ferguson, City of Forest Grove, OR Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (.9MB) Darrell Frank, Community Forest of North Cowachin, BC, Canada Moises Gonzalez, Mexicano Land Trust Frank Reed, New England Forestry Foundation Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.8MB) Long-Term Management (Clark Room) Elements of long-term management – management plans, balancing revenues with special value management, relationships with logging contractors and woods products processors, and more. Moderator: Patrick Heffernan, PAFTI, Inc., Hungry Horse, MT Presenters: Brian Barkley, Ontario Model Forest, Canada Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.7MB) Dave Epperly, St. Louis County Forest, MN Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (1.0MB) Don Johnson, Forest Land Improvement, Inc., NH town forests Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (5.4MB) Philip Rigdon, Yakama Nation, Toppenish, WA Download or view the PowerPoint Presentation (9.4MB)
10:00 - 10:30 a.m.	Break (Coffee served in the hall outside Lewis and Clark Rooms)
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.	Concurrent Breakout Sessions
New Funding Options. (Russell Room) Matching ownership options – easements, timber rights purchases, full fee ownership – with funding sources. Possible ways to develop and expand those sources. *Moderators: Bill Ginn and Tom Tuchmannp* Bridge Funding. (Lewis Room) Getting the money you need to take land off the market quickly and finance holding costs while you’re getting the other aspects of the deal worked out. *Moderators: Peter Stein and Liz Bell.* Ownership Structure. (Clark Room) Alternative forms of ownership and management (in terms of governance and administration). Setting policy that lasts. *Moderator: Steve Keith.* Participant-defined breakouts (Canyon Room and Other Rooms TBA)
11:45 – 1:00 p.m.	Box Lunch & Final Presentation "What Have We Learned, and Where Do We Go From Here?" Carol Daly, Communities Committee, MT
1:00 p.m.	Conference Ends

Conference Proceedings