High School Students Gain Firsthand Forestry Experience in Alberta

The JFR crew stationed on land we manage near Grande Prairie this summer.

In Alberta, Canada, high school students interested in natural resource management can spend a summer gaining skills and making connections through the Junior Forest Ranger program, operated by the province's Ministry of Forestry and Parks.

This summer, one JFR crew was stationed on land we manage near Grande Prairie, Alberta, and they got an immersive experience in forestry - including getting to plant hundreds of seedlings we donated to the program.

"The Junior Forest Ranger program is really unique," says Trevor Nichols, the JFR program specialist with Alberta's Forestry and Parks department. "Students live outdoors for weeks at a time and get exposure to a wide variety of roles and activities relating to forestry, conservation, Indigenous culture and wildfire management."

A 2015 JFR crew in Grande Prairie that helped our Timberlands team build recreational trails. "Learning about forestry from books is one thing, but getting exposure to it firsthand is a total game-changer for many of these students," Trevor says. "When kids participate in both the Junior Forest Warden and Junior Forest Ranger programs, they build so much confidence by the time they graduate high school. It's awesome."

PRACTICING REAL FORESTRY

Students selected to participate in the JFR program are placed in crews of up to eight members, who are supervised by two post-secondary students or graduates. Each crew lives on a different Alberta Wildfire base for the months of July and August. Every weekday they take on a variety of hands-on work projects and educational opportunities.

Our Canadian Timberlands office in Grande Prairie has supported the JFR program for more than a decade.

"We help provide some of the silviculture-related tasks and experiences," says Tyler Niles, silviculture manager. "They work on our forest management areas, and we often give them silviculture 101 lessons before they try planting seedlings themselves."

This year, Grande Prairie donated more than 2,000 seedlings to the program. Each crew was responsible for planting about 250 of them, including the crew stationed at the government-owned fire tower located within Grande Prairie's forest management area.

"Planting is a really important component of the JFR program because it's related to both forestry and conservation," Tyler says. "We love to provide any assistance we can, whether through donations, demonstrations or mentorship."

The hands-on exposure also helps the students gain valuable real-world experience with silviculture.

"It's hard work," says Ian Kwantes, a strategic manager at our Pembina Forestlands in Edson. "When they learn Weyerhaeuser usually plants about 6 million trees at each of our sites, they get a sense of just how vast our operations really are within the province."

Our Tyler Niles sets up a drone to give a demonstration of Grande Prairie's drone seeding program.

BUILDING SKILLS AND CONFIDENCE

JFR crews also participate in activities such as trail building, stream assessments, helicopter rides, responding to mock wildfires, flora and fauna identification, and ATV certification. On weekends, they're free to hike, kayak, canoe, fish and take part in other outdoor activities that interest them.

"Being away from home for two months in this immersive experience allows for a kind of growth and leadership development that's hard to get any other way," Trevor says.

Some students who participate are already interested in careers in forestry or conservation; others are just curious.

"It's an outstanding way to reach kids and give them a taste of many different facets of these fields," Trevor says. "Many students end up attending the North Alberta Institute of Technology for Forest Technology."

GROWING FUTURE FORESTERS

Two of Ian's children attended a related program in Alberta, the Junior Forest Wardens, which targets elementary school students.

"They participated in age-appropriate versions of Junior Forest Ranger activities, like learning how to use maps and compasses," Ian says. "In my earlier role as a forester, I sometimes volunteered to help teach a curriculum about growth rates of trees, and the ecology and biology of the forest."

Students don't just learn technical skills through these programs. They often gain a new appreciation for the outdoors and an interest in careers that could eventually lead them to Weyerhaeuser.

"Every province in Canada, and every U.S. state with a forestry presence, could gain a lot by creating programs like these," Tyler says. "These experiences teach kids that working in forestry isn't just rewarding. It can also be a lot of fun!"

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