2023 Year in Review
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2023 Year in Review

At Maine TREE Foundation, forest-based education and workforce development were key themes in 2023. With a dedicated and creative staff, we accomplished a great deal toward our mission of educating and advocating for the sustainable use of the forest and the ecological, economic, and social health of Maine’s Forest communities. We can’t do this alone,…

Climate Change, Beetles, and Fire at the Waterboro Barrens Preserve
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Climate Change, Beetles, and Fire at the Waterboro Barrens Preserve

FCCI visits the Waterboro Barrens Preserve Written by: Gavriela Mallory The fourth year of Maine’s Forest Climate Change Initiative (FCCI) kicked off this fall with a field tour of the Waterboro Barrens Preserve. The FCCI webinar and field trip series is a collaborative effort between Maine TREE Foundation, the Forest Stewards Guild, and UMaine’s Center…

Immersive Education in the Maine Woods

Immersive Education in the Maine Woods

Mark Savage (far left) with students in Brewer’s Forestry Immersion program A New Summer Program Supports Students and Maine’s Future Forest Economy Written by: Logan Johnson On a cool August morning, high school students, with their instructor, thoughtfully assessed the breakdown. Visitors were coming, and they wanted the equipment running well to show off all…

Empowering the Future of Maine’s Forests
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Empowering the Future of Maine’s Forests

Old Town Elementary third-graders at NELA Logging Expo in Bangor Written by: Gavriela Mallory Investment in green workforce development in Maine is growing. As the baby boomer generation reaches retirement age, there is an increasing need for young adults across natural resource industries. In the forestry sector, in particular, 37% of the 2020 workforce will…

The Importance of Maine’s Family Forest Owners
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The Importance of Maine’s Family Forest Owners

Forestry 101 participants at Blue Hill Mountain. Written by Gavi Mallory Family-owned woodlots comprise over 30% of Maine’s forest, more than a quarter of the state’s total area. As climate change, a growing population, and a shifting forest economy feed conversations about the future of the Maine woods, family forests are a significant piece of…

UMaine’s Forest Climate Change Initiative Builds Connections for  Scientists and Land Managers
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UMaine’s Forest Climate Change Initiative Builds Connections for Scientists and Land Managers

At the University of Maine’s Center for Research on Sustainable Forests, a group of scientists from academia and private institutions have come together to form the Forest Climate Change Initiative (FCCI). The purpose of FCCI is to build connections among researchers, scientists, stakeholders, legislators, and the interested public on climate change issues around forests. Despite…

Forests For Maine’s Future Celebrates a Decade of Storytelling

Forests For Maine’s Future Celebrates a Decade of Storytelling

By Logan Johnson Forests for Maine’s Future (FMF) began in October of 2010 by publishing 18 stories to FMF’s “Fresh from the Woods Archive.” Since then, we’ve published over 100 articles that tell stories from the Maine Woods. Topics range from forest ecology all the way to the communities that depend on forests and everywhere…

Forestry for the Future: A film introduces forestry to landowners with a 65-year study

Forestry for the Future: A film introduces forestry to landowners with a 65-year study

By Maren Granstrom *Editor’s note: Forester Maren Granstrom voluntarily submitted this article to Forests for Maine’s Future and Maine TREE to highlight the “Forestry for the Future” video she produced as part of her Master’s of Science work at the University of Maine’s School of Forest Resources. Maine TREE claims no ownership of the video and…

Holt Research Forest Hosts Interns in 2020
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Holt Research Forest Hosts Interns in 2020

Each year at Maine TREE’s Holt Research Forest in Arrowsic, college interns from around the globe get the opportunity to spend their summer in the forest collecting data for a catalog of over 35 years of continuous monitoring. Despite these extraordinary times, Maine TREE and Holt Research Forest hosted another group of interns in 2020….

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Threats, Challenges Facing Maine’s Forests

Forests have always faced threats. From natural disturbances like hurricanes and wildfires to native pests and diseases like spruce budworm to shifts in climate over the millennia. Humanity has been a threat: think about how quickly forests in a large part of Maine were cleared in the 1700s and 1800s to make room for agriculture,…