Beavers are often seen as a nuisance, but what if they're actually some of nature's most effective forest managers? In this episode of SilviCast, we welcome renowned ecohydrologist Dr. Emily Fairfax to explore the surprising role of beavers as ecosystem engineers. Learn how beaver-created wetlands improve water storage, reduce wildfire risk, enhance biodiversity, store carbon, and influence forest management. Dr. Fairfax highlights practical strategies for addressing challenging beaver activity that impact roads, infrastructure, and timber production. This episode offers a fresh perspective on how one species can reshape landscapes and strengthen forests in a changing climate.

Emily Fairfax, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Geography, Environment & Society, University of Minnesota
Emily Fairfax is an Assistant Professor of Geography, Environment & Society at the University of Minnesota and an affiliate faculty member at the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory. An ecohydrologist by training, her research combines remote sensing, fieldwork, and modeling to investigate how beavers shape ecosystems and enhance resilience to drought, wildfire, and climate change. Her work has been featured by National Geographic, BBC, NPR, PBS, Scientific American, the Los Angeles Times, and the New York Times. Fairfax teaches courses in environmental data analysis, data visualization, hydrology, and geomorphology, and is widely recognized for her engaging science communication and passion for beavers as natural ecosystem engineers.

Learn more about Emily Fairfax.

Learn more about Emily Fairfax’s research.

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 What tree begins life looking more like a tuft of grass, survives repeated fires for years on the forest floor, and then suddenly bolts toward the canopy in a remarkable growth spurt? The longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) is one of the most unique and ecologically important tree species in North America. Once dominating the coastal plains of the southeastern United States, longleaf pine forests have been reduced to less than 5% of their historic range. Yet these forests remain among the most biologically diverse ecosystems on the continent. In this episode of SilviCast, we explore the fascinating life history of longleaf pine and the silvicultural practices being used to restore these iconic forests. Join us for a conversation with Steve Jack, Executive Director of Boggy Slough Conservation Area, who shares insights from decades of longleaf pine restoration work across the southern United States. 

Guest on the Episode:
Steve Jack, Ph.D.
Director of the Boggy Slough Conservation Area

Dr. Steve Jack is the founding executive director of the Boggy Slough Conservation Area (BSCA), a 19,000-acre property near Lufkin, Texas owned by the T.L.L. Temple Foundation. In that role Steve leads the foundation’s vision for BSCA “to serve as a model of excellence for East Texas through ecological research and outreach to promote conservation, management, and stewardship of natural resources.” Prior to BSCA, Steve spent over two decades at the Jones Center at Ichauway in southwest Georgia, focused on the management and restoration of longleaf pine. He has a BS from Erskine College in SC, a MS from University of Florida, and a PhD from Utah State University.

Show Notes
The Longleaf Alliance
America’s Longleaf Restoration Initiative
Silvics of Longleaf Pine (digital manual)
The Art of Managing Longleaf (book)
Ecological Restoration and Management of Longleaf Pine Forests (book)
Multiple Value Management: The Stoddard-Neel Approach to Ecological Forestry in Longleaf Pine Grasslands (outreach publication)

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Good silviculture isn’t just about knowing the science—it’s about building strong partnerships. One of the most critical relationships in forestry is the collaboration between foresters and loggers. Successfully marking a timber sale, for instance, means understanding not only the forest but also the equipment and capabilities that will bring the prescription to life. In this episode of SilviCast, we dive into the world of modern logging equipment used across eastern North America. Joined by Carl Lockhart, Forestry Products Consultant with John Deere, we explore how today’s machines shape on-the-ground decisions—and why aligning knowledge between planning and execution is key to getting silviculture right.

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Managing forests for carbon—and navigating emerging carbon markets—can feel overwhelming, especially for family forest owners managing smaller parcels. So how can landowners with just a couple forty-acre parcels participate in these opportunities? And what does carbon-enhanced silviculture actually look like at that scale? In this episode of SilviCast, we sit down with Brittany VanderWall, Lynn Riley, and Richard Campbell from the American Forest Foundation to break down the essentials of the Family Forest Carbon Program. They share practical insights on how family forest owners can access carbon markets, implement climate-smart forest practices, and make the most of their land—without needing thousands of acres to get started. 

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 Many of us in forestry remember the spotted owl controversy of the 1980s — a pivotal moment that put old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest in the national spotlight. But what’s less often told is how that same moment sparked a wave of old-growth research here in the Lake States, launching more than three decades of work to better understand how old-growth northern hardwood forests differ from those we actively manage. In this episode of SilviCast, we sit down with Julia Burton, Associate Professor of Silviculture at Michigan Technological University, to explore what we’ve learned from that research — and how those insights are shaping the future of northern hardwood forest management. 

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Foresters know degraded forests all too well. You’re out on a woods-walk with an enthusiastic landowner, but your eyes go straight to the poor growing stock, invasive plants, and eroded forest soils – the fingerprints of past degradation. Regardless, you set about the complex task of developing a prescription that will nudge this forest towards a brighter future. Foresters don’t always think of themselves as restorationists, but in many ways, the tools of silviculture are the tools of restoration. In this episode of SilviCast, we dive into the science and practice of forest restoration with John Stanturf, visiting professor at the Estonian University of Life Sciences and Senior Forest Restoration Specialist with InNovaSilva. With more than 30 years of experience researching forest restoration in both temperate and tropical forests around the world, John brings a global perspective to the question of what it means to restore a forest. 

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A dead tree is not truly dead. As trees die, they become snags, downed logs, and eventually return to the soil as organic matter. Along this journey, they host a wide range of organisms and play essential roles in forest ecosystems. How foresters think about and manage dead trees can be just as important as how they manage living ones. In this episode of SilviCast, we explore the concept of morticulture - the intentional management of deadwood in forests. Join us for a conversation with Mark Harmon, professor emeritus in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society at Oregon State University. Dr. Harmon has spent decades researching tree mortality, wood decomposition, and the management of coarse woody debris in our forests. 

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Sometime the hardest thing and the right thing are the same. It is true of relationships, and it is true of forests. In this episode, we talk with author Ethan Tapper about his new book, How to Love a Forest. A Vermont Forester, Ethan dives deep with us into what it means to love a forest as a landowner and a forester, and to work with those who may not see the potential in restoring their forest. 

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The legacy of the “cutover” has left much of the Lake States—and many other regions—with a dominance of even-aged forest stands. Today, both landowners and foresters increasingly consider converting these stands to uneven-aged management to achieve a range of ecological, economic, and aesthetic goals. However, the outcomes of these efforts—even after multiple stand entries—have sometimes fallen short of expectations. Significant silvicultural challenges remain in determining the most effective approaches for even- to uneven-aged conversion. To explore these challenges, we’re joined by Dr. Ralph Nyland, Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Silviculture at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. 

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Restoring and reforesting floodplain forests is no small feat—these ecosystems are as fascinating as they are complex. While they face many of the same disturbances as upland forests, bottomland ecosystems are uniquely shaped by water. Adding to this challenge of hydrology are the profound impacts of levies, agriculture, dams, and other disturbances. In this episode of SilviCast, we dive deep into the world of bottomland forest restoration with insights from national experts at the 2025 Northeastern and Southern Forest and Conservation Nursery Meeting. Join us for an engaging panel discussion featuring Dan Dey (recently retired, USFS Northern Research Station), Andy Meier (Lead Forester, US Army Corps of Engineers – St. Paul District), and James Shelton (Manager, Arkansas Baucum State Nursery). 

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