TREES OF LIFE:FORESTS IN PERIL
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March 25th, 2015

3/25/2015

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The last two weeks have been interesting and provided opportunities to dialog with several people about my concerns with current management of our remaining forested lands. Iris and I gave two seminars on the "Trees of Life" with some very interested individuals that had some excellent comments and questions. The sessions were in small communities where the attendees were very knowledgeable and experienced in our natural surroundings. We have been pleased with the response and interest people have expressed after the presentations.
     The other exciting discussion occurred on the internet, "linkedin", connection. A person from Spain raised the question on "How much do you know about the awesomeness of Forests?" I responded with some facts on the value of trees and their contribution to the human environment. One tree produces enough oxygen in one year to keep two people alive for a whole year. One acre of trees stores the amount of carbon dioxide produced by driving a car 26,000 miles. In 2007, the "Report on Abuse", assigned economic values to the contribution one tree, over a 50 year life cycle, makes to the human environment equals $162,000.00. I later added facts on the world wide population expansion and yearly rates of increase. If you have checked the new video on my website, you are aware of the Top 5 Environmental issues we face world wide. Number one is population expansion and number three is deforestation. Certainly the demands on our remaining forested lands will not reduce significantly! Proper management is the only opportunity available to address these issues. NATURES WAY focuses on the need to achieve healthy diverse forests and the results will provide the valuable products from the forests.
     The simple question about the awesomeness of forests generated response from several countries including Pakistan, USA,United Kingdom. India and Italy. It is exciting to see that people throughout the world share concerns about our forests. Together we can insist on much needed changes in how we manage our remaining forests to achieve the desired future our species will require!   
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March 16th, 2015

3/16/2015

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Yesterday,Iris and I presented a program at the Geronimo Museum in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. It was a very interesting opportunity to discuss our concerns about the impact humans  have had on our environment. Several attendees  belonged to a rock and gem club with an interest in the connection between forestry and geology. There were also educators in attendance, who were particularly interested in what needs to be done to improve future environmental education programs. I was particularly interested in their appreciation for the need to develop management prescriptions that emphasizes improving diversity within our remaining forested lands. It was also rewarding to observe the groups understanding and support for the need to reach back to our past to teach our youth how to observe and appreciate the complexity of our human environment. I sincerely hope that our efforts will encourage others to take an active role in reaching out to change current management goals and objectives that will drive the management of our forests. These programs have been exciting,as we learn much from the opportunity to dialog with a wide range of public interests. This meeting may have disclosed an opportunity for some economic support to further our efforts. It would be exciting to be able to develop some educational videos on observing and understanding the complexity of our human surroundings, for use in the schools at all levels.
The other exciting thing has been the completion of our efforts to document Iris's Cherokee ancestry. When we started this effort, we hoped to develop a family tree for members of our family. After 5 years of research, the information and interesting stories discovered exceeded our expectation and seemed to demand much more than a simple ancestry tree. The result is a short story that includes the ancestry connections and many of the stories about the individuals involved.   We have learned much from these two projects but most important has been the recognition that the wisdom of our indigenous people is where the key to the proper management of our forests is to be found.
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March 16th, 2015

3/16/2015

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Yesterday, Iris and I presented a program on TREES OF LIFE at the Geronimo Museum in Truth or Consequences
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March 01st, 2015

3/1/2015

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There has been several news articles recently, announcing the start of the first revisions of the National Forest Management Plans. I even had the opportunity to review a recent study completed by the University of Montana, on the U. S. Forest Service efforts to prepare public participation plans for the revision process. It was encouraging to see the efforts that are under-way to ensure adequate involvement by the interested public. Two weeks ago I was asked by the local District Ranger to participate in his first public meeting to start the revision process locally. 
     This undertaking offers an excellent opportunity to improve on the previous planning short-comings. As I stated, I was encouraged by the lengthy study completed by the University of Montana, but I found some important steps missing. The first step that is all to often passed over is the need for the unit manager to carefully identify the all potentially affected interests and effectively search out their participation. A favorite tactic of some of the fringe interests, is to avoid early participation so they can "lob distractions" into the planning process at a later date. This step is vital, as simply inviting the public is insufficient. Relying on staff or contractors to identify the potentially affected interests usually results in missing some important interest. Remember you are identifying"potentially affected" interests. This may result in identifying some people or groups that fail to recognize the impact the final plan may have on them.
     We must next remember that the participation of the unit manager in all public meetings is vital to the development of trust for future controversial  discussions. Utilizing contractors to facilitate public meetings is acceptable as long as they do not become involved in the discussions. Their role is to simply keep the discussions focused and record the comments. 
     One concern I had with the U. of M. study report was their comments on "educating the public". Educating on the planning process is one thing but, all to often these words get interpreted as, " If only we could educate the public they would agree with our decisions". This can be a dangerous mistake. There is no such thing as the "silent majority". As soon as someone realizes they may be effected by a proposal, they will search out others or groups that fit with their conclusions and desires. 
     Finally, we must use the initial meetings to identify goals and objectives and avoid tools and techniques. Goals and objectives define desired future conditions we want for our forests. Tools and techniques are the management actions used to achieve the accepted goals and objectives.  
     These few key steps will help develop some degree of informed consent and allow your planning process to conclude with some acceptance for the needs of our valuable forested lands.                     
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