WASHINGTON and OTTAWA, March 06, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) announced five conservation grants today that will advance our shared understanding of the conservation benefits associated with well?managed forests across the United States and Canada. These grants feature collaboration between SFI and a diverse range of partners and experts from 45 organizations to advance SFI’s ground breaking Conservation Impact Project.
This year’s grants focus on key natural resource sustainability issues, such as investigating climate resilience and carbon storage, improving water quality and quantity in forests, and enhancing biodiversity. Specific areas of study include caribou, steelhead trout, and boreal bird habitats, forest carbon values, and links between best management practices for water and forest practices. Ultimately, results will help clarify the connection between sustainable forest management, responsible supply chain choices, and environmental benefits we all care about.
“Collaborating with SFI offers incredible scale in terms of major forest regions and forest types. It also allows us to interact with a wide range of SFI Program Participants and partners in practical ways. Our ongoing efforts could dovetail with SFI grant work underway with the American Bird Conservancy in the United States, providing continent-wide impact for SFI bird conservation efforts,” said Fiona Schmiegelow, a professor in the Northern Environmental and Conservation Sciences Program at the University of Alberta.
Grantee organizations represent leading research institutions and conservation organizations and include University of Alberta, Virginia Tech, University of Maine, Fraser Basin Council, fRI Research, and American Forests. Partnerships represented by these projects reach even more broadly and include the American Bird Conservancy, the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Université Laval, Ducks Unlimited Canada and many other conservation leaders. The Canadian Forest Service, the Southern Group of State Foresters and government agencies in North Carolina, British Columbia and Ontario are also closely involved along with landowners certified to SFI Standards and the grassroots network of SFI Implementation Committees.
“Every year our conservation grants reach more organizations and cover a wider array of conservation issues. One of our program’s great strength is the active role we take in working with grantees to build partnerships and facilitate meaningful engagement with landowners certified to SFI Standards. These projects promise to build critical understanding of conservation outcomes in managed forests, to benefit conservationists and consumers alike,” said Paul Trianosky, Chief Conservation Officer at SFI.
SFI conservation grants were awarded through the SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program, which is dedicated to improving forest conservation and strengthening the communities that depend on forests. SFI is a non-profit sustainability organization dedicated to the future of our forests. SFI advances conservation objectives in forests throughout North America through the values expressed in our standards, through carefully targeted research, through direct leadership of critical initiatives, and through partnerships that effectively contribute to multiple conservation objectives.
2018 SFI CONSERVATION GRANT SUMMARIES
Monitoring and Quantifying the Effects of State Forestry BMP Programs on Soil Erosion and Sediment Delivery for the Southeastern United States, led by the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation at Virginia Tech, will support collaboration across the Southeastern U.S. to measure and improve the water quality benefits of sustainable forest management.
Applying Data-Driven Measures to Evaluate and Improve the Conservation Value of Managed Forests for Birds, from the Department of Renewable Resources, Boreal Avian Modelling Project, at the University of Alberta, will enhance bird conservation efforts on a continental scale through the development of new data and a new partnership with the Boreal Avian Modelling Network.
Caribou conservation through better cutblock design, led by fRI Research, will determine active forest management practices that improve habitat for caribou and other species of concern.
Assessing and Monitoring the Influence of Forest Management Practices on Soil Productivity, Carbon Storage, and Conservation in the Acadian Forest Region, led by the University of Maine, aims to study and improve climate change benefits provided by working forests
Monitoring Water Temperatures and Flows for Steelhead in Relation to Forest Management Practices, from the Fraser Basin Council, will work to conserve steelhead trout in BC through improved forest management techniques.
About the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc.
The Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) is a sustainability leader that stands for future forests. SFI® is an independent, non-profit organization that provides supply chain assurances, produces conservation outcomes, and supports education and community engagement. SFI works with the forest sector, brand owners, conservation groups, resource professionals, landowners, educators, local communities, Indigenous peoples, governments, and universities. SFI standards and on-product labels help consumers make responsible purchasing decisions. Additionally, they oversee the SFI Forest Partners® Program, which aims to increase supply of certified forest products, the SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program, which funds research and community building, and Project Learning Tree®, which educates teachers and youth about forests and the environment. SFI Inc. is governed by an independent three-chamber board of directors representing environmental, social, and economic sectors equally. SFI believes caring for forests improves everyone’s quality of life. Learn more.
Conservation at SFI
SFI Inc. is the only forest certification program in North America that requires participants to support research to improve forest health, conservation understanding, productivity and sustainable management of forest resources. Since 1995, SFI Program Participants have invested more than $1.6 billion in forest-research activities. In 2016, SFI Program Participants engaged with over 500 organizations on 420 different conservation and research projects. SFI Program Participants invested $59 million in forest research in 2016. Learn more.
