Jenny Knoth, PhD., joins the Stump to talk about her career in forestry and the current work in the forest policy she is doing. She talks about her work as an associate professor and her work to bring real-world issues to the classroom. We also start to discuss "wealth gaps," the impacts of the anti-forestry movement, and the impacts rural communities experience when forest management is opposed and/or reduced.

On this episode of The Stump, I am joined by Sue Pedersen, a candidate for the Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands.

Sue is a biologist with a policy and management background and if successful would lead the Department of Natural Resources in Washington.

Many people are unaware of what this position does, and this is my effort to try to educate the voters on some of the issues and introduce them to the various candidates.

I had identified who I believed were the top five candidates in the race that had the potential to make it through the Primary. Three did not respond to requests for interviews.

I hope you find these interviews interesting.

On this episode of the Stump, I am joined by Kevin Van De Wege, a candidate for the Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands.

Kevin is a former State Senator, Career Fire Fighter, and if successful would lead the Department of Natural Resources in Washington.

Many people are unaware of what this position does and this is my effort to try and educate the voters on some of the issues and introduce them to the various candidates.

I had identified who I believed were the top five candidates in the race that had the potential to make it through the Primary. Three did not respond to requests for interviews.

I hope you find these interviews interesting.

Steve Courtney of the Beck Group joins us on the stump. Steve has an extensive career in the forest products sector in the Pacific Northwest. Association work, forestry, raw material procurement for sawmills, and now using those skills and knowledge working for the Beck Group.

Join us as Steve and I chat about his career, his work at the Beck Group, and some of the things that have helped him succeed.

To learn more about the Beck Group or to connect with Steve, please visit, https://www.beckgroupconsulting.com/

Lloyd McGee joins The Stump to talk about his career in forestry and how an early life experience influenced that career path. Lloyd, currently works for The Nature Conservancy as their Washington Forests Program Manager, on forest restoration in eastern Washington, which requires collaborating with a diverse group of stakeholders. Lloyd leads us through his life story and how a traumatic experience in childhood, as well as the impacts of the "Timber Wars" prepared him for the critical work he currently does today. We also discuss the opportunities for a rewarding career in the forest products and natural resources fields. We touch briefly on the need to maintain the existing logging and milling infrastructure if we are going to meet the forest restoration and maintenance goals in the face of a changing climate to maintain healthy forests in the Pacific Northwest. Lloyd updates us with a brief history and status of the Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project, a 75,000 forest restoration project. And we share a couple of stories about our friend the late Maurice Williamson. The North Central Forest Health Collaborative (NCWFHC): https://www.ncwfhc.org/ The Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project: https://www.ncwfhc.org/project/upper-wenatchee-pilot-project/ The Northeast Washington Forestry Coalition (NEWFC): https://www.newforestcoalition.com/ The Nature Conservancy - Washington (TNC): https://www.washingtonnature.org/

Trevor McConchie joins The Stump to talk about the Good Neighbor Authority. What is Good Neighbor Authority, GNA for short? How does it fit into the management of Forest Service lands? How is GNA implemented in Washington State? Trevor leads the Good Neighbor Authority program in Washington State for the Department of Natural Resources. With a relatively small but passionate team of foresters, engineers, and other natural resource professionals, DNR is working with federal land managers on critical work that benefits both the environment and society. The GNA program produces a variety of tangible and intangible benefits, from wood for the marketplace, road maintenance for access, recreation opportunities, water and habitat improvement work, and jobs in rural communities. All are done more efficiently than can often be obtained through Federal Government contracting methods. You can learn more about the Good Neighbor Authority at the links below: U.S. Forest Service: https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/farm-bill/gna National Association of State Foresters: https://www.stateforesters.org/state-defined-solutions/good-neighbor-authority/ Western Forestry Leadership Coalition: https://www.thewflc.org/partnerships/gna-information-and-resources Washington State Department of Natural Resources: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/gna

Andy joins The Stump to talk about extension forestry, family forestry, and some of the challenges and opportunities facing particularly family forestry in Washington State.

Andy has a diverse background in how he came to Washington State University Extension. He organizes and leads a variety of training and educational events for small-family forest owners, loggers, teachers, etc. mostly in eastern Washington.

Resource Links:

WSU Extension Forestry: https://forestry.wsu.edu

DNR Landowner Assistance Portal: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/LandownerAssistancePortal

Association of Consulting Foresters: https://www.acf-foresters.org/

Tim McEntire with the Montana Logging Association (MLA) joins The Stump to talk about his work and what MLA does for the forest products sector in Montana. Tim is a former logger and brings a working knowledge of the challenges and benefits of this industry. The Association supports first aid training, education, and workforce development. as well as forest policy issues.

You can learn more about MLA at logging.org.

Do you know someone who would make a great guest for The Stump? Or maybe you want to be a featured guest? If so drop me a note at matt@thestump.io