Forest Stewardship Institute

27 09, 2018

Searching for Amphibians in the Demonstration Forest

2018-09-27T09:57:24-04:00September 27th, 2018|Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

Earlier this month, the Sustainable Forestry Interns took a break from running chainsaws to join herpetologist Jim Andrews on his search to document the species currently found in Vermont, town by town. The day we met Jim, he was on a mission to document some of the species thought to be living in Morgan, VT. After driving to the NorthWoods Demonstration Forest access in Morgan, we gathered with Jim and two volunteers to hear our goal for the day. Jim started by explaining the habitat that we were looking for, "Most herps prefer hardwood forests, and plenty of downed wood. That's mostly found in older [Read More...]

23 09, 2018

Nominations for 6th Annual Buzzell Award

2018-09-23T12:52:04-04:00September 23rd, 2018|Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

NorthWoods Stewardship Center is pleased to accept nominations for the sixth annual George Buzzell Forest Stewardship Award. In honor of the esteemed county forester for which it is named, this award recognizes an individual who is making a positive impact on Northeast Kingdom forests. An award ceremony will be held at the NorthWoods Stewardship Center on Tuesday, December 11, 2018. During his 44 years as Orleans County Forester, George Buzzell exemplified the best practice of his trade, including research that helped to re-define sugarbush management in Vermont. George also cast a [Read More...]

15 09, 2018

2018 Sustainable Forestry Interns Join the Team

2018-10-25T12:58:34-04:00September 15th, 2018|Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

The beginning of September may not have brought a change from summer to fall weather, but it did mark the beginning of another field season at NorthWoods. Our fall Sustainable Forestry Internship kicked off just a few weeks ago, and we're excited to welcome Ariana, Matt and Trevor to the team! This 12-week program has started off with a mix of seasonally-appropriate projects, and this hard working crew has already thinned 5+ acres of young hardwoods in the Demonstration Forest, treated over an acre of invasive common reed (Phragmites australis) for [Read More...]

11 09, 2018

New Steward”ship” at NorthWoods

2018-09-11T15:15:49-04:00September 11th, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

Happy Birthday Northwoods! While we celebrate 29 years of commitment to the care and well-being of Northern Forest communities, our steward“ship” does not stop here. On the contrary, the needs of our human and natural communities are greater than ever before. On this occasion, NorthWoods is revamping its “ship”, strengthening itself to further meet the needs of the present and for generations to come. NorthWoods is delighted to welcome Jonathan Gilbert as our new Executive Director. He joined our team of stewards with the necessary skills to strengthen and further our [Read More...]

13 06, 2018

New Stormwater Strategic Plan released for the Memphremagog Watershed

2018-06-14T11:25:13-04:00June 13th, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

Some great news from the Stormwater Collaborative, of which NorthWoods is a member organization: Since December of 2017, a group of local organizations, municipalities, and State agencies have been working together and recently completed a Stormwater Strategic Plan for the Memphremagog watershed. This group, known as the Stormwater Collaborative, was initiated at the Leahy Summit at the Echo Center in Burlington and funded through a grant from the High Meadows Fund. “Given the numerous sources of stormwater runoff and our large geographic area, establishing this collaborative is paramount to improving the [Read More...]

11 05, 2018

Building Resilience: Cenkl’s 2018 VT Climate Run

2018-05-11T18:08:36-04:00May 11th, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

Our friend and board member Pavel Cenkl is doing it again! In 2015 he ran his first Climate Run - 240km across Iceland from south to north. In 2017 he ran a grueling path on the Arctic Trail through northern Scandinavia. And this summer, he will be bringing climate resilience and awareness close to home with a 500 mile trek, biking down the full length of the state of Vermont in a single day, then running back north via the Long Trail. On June 20th, 2018, Pavel will tackle the [Read More...]

1 05, 2018

GOL: Hands-on Learning and Competition in the Woods

2018-05-01T14:50:59-04:00May 1st, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

This past weekend we hosted our annual spring Game of Logging workshop at NorthWoods. The Game of Logging (GOL) is a chainsaw skills and safety training curriculum developed in the 1960s by Swedish logger and instructor Soren Eriksson, focusing on small hands-on group learning and friendly competition to instill successful chainsaw techniques, felling strategies and safety practices. GOL is one of the most popular adult workshops we host, with multiple yearly workshops nearly always selling out well in advance of the event. GOL can only be taught by certified instructors, [Read More...]

18 04, 2018

NorthWoods Adapts to Climate Challenges

2018-04-19T11:46:57-04:00April 18th, 2018|Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

The USDA Forest Service has published a new report, New England and Northern New York Forest Ecosystem Vulnerability Assessment and Synthesis: A Report from the New England Climate Change Response Framework Project. This report describes how climate change is expected to affect the 40 million acres of forest in our region. Climate change is already having an impact on our forests, increasing damage from extreme precipitation events and insect pests. Future changes could dramatically alter the landscape that characterizes the region. The report, which has more than 30 authors, provides a foundation [Read More...]

16 04, 2018

Mud Season and What To Do About It

2018-04-16T13:34:31-04:00April 16th, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

Mud season has arrived. For many of us that means an extended period of wearing rubber boots and a lingering feeling of concern (or perhaps adventure!) everytime we get in the car for our daily commute across some of Vermont's roughly 8,000 miles of unpaved dirt roads, now ridged into a potentially car-eating quagmire thanks to thawing ground and melting snow. But mud season also means spring -- warmer weather, the first migratory bird arrivals like warblers and red-winged blackbirds, and the emergence of beautiful forest ephemerals like Spring Beauty, [Read More...]

28 02, 2018

Alert! Emerald Ash Borer Found in Vermont

2018-02-28T11:06:25-05:00February 28th, 2018|Conservation Corps, Education, Forest Stewardship Institute, Highlights, News|

We were disheartened yesterday to learn that despite the best efforts on the parts of citizens and conservation professionals throughout the region, the invasive Emerald Ash Borer has finally found its way into the state of Vermont.  For those who care for and enjoy Vermont forests, this is major blow, and now more than ever it is important to help educate your friends and neighbors about this issue and ways to slow the effects, namely: DO NOT MOVE FIREWOOD! The insect itself is only able to fly short distances, and the [Read More...]

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