Talking Forests

Follow Tiffany Roddy on Instagram: @tiffrodd https://www.instagram.com/tiffrodd

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanyroddy

Tiffany Roddy holds two Forestry degrees: an Associates in Forest Technology from Penn State Mont Alto, and a Bachelors in Forest Management from Penn State University. During college, she interned with Weyerhaeuser in Louisiana as a Forestry Summer Intern and also with Penn State as a Cruiser for their Oak Regeneration Research Study.

After college, she worked as a Forester with Weyerhaeuser in Oregon for over seven years; she now works with PRT Growing Services as the PNW CSR (Sales & Marketing Manager). Her hobbies include downhill mountain biking, hiking, gardening, beekeeping, and sheep herding with her border collies, to name a few.

Her main goal in social media is to meet new people as well as spread information about Forestry.

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link: calendly.com/talkingforests 

Voice by Gordon Collier www.linkedin.com/in/jgordoncollier/ Spring by Ikson soundcloud.com/ikson 

Music promoted by Audio Library youtu.be/5WPnrvEMIdo    

Molly Pitts appeared on the America's Forests with Chuck Leavell PBS episode in Colorado check it out (http://www.americasforestswithchuckleavell.com/watch/episode-2-colorado)! 

Molly Pitts was born and raised in the White Mountains of Arizona and later attended college at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. She graduated in 1998 with a BS in Forestry. Shortly after graduation, she was hired to work as a woodland forester for the White Mountain Apache Tribe. She worked full-time until starting her family in 2002 and then worked part-time until the fall of 2004, when she was hired as the Executive Director for the Northern Arizona Wood Products Association (NAWPA). NAWPA is a non-profit trade association that promotes forest restoration and wood utilization. Molly worked for NAWPA for 8 years, during which time she worked extensively on the White Mountain Stewardship Project, served as the Co-Chair for the Governor’s Forest Health Council, and was an active member of the 4FRI steering committee. 

Starting in 2008, Molly also acted as a consultant for the Northland Pioneer College Small Business Development Center, where she worked with the forest industry businesses throughout Apache and Navajo County to assist with business plans, financing, grant writing, grant administration, and marketing/advertising. She also participated in the Workforce Development Taskforce, which was put together to look at increasing and training a skilled workforce for the local forest products industry. As part of this taskforce, Molly helped to develop, administer, and analyze a student survey to determine the interest in a natural resources program at the local community college level. Molly also researched various natural resources programs and outlined a framework for a new natural resources program for the college.

In January of 2012, Molly and her husband moved to Salida, Colorado so that Jim could take a District Ranger position with the USFS. Once settled, Molly started graduate school at Oregon State University and started volunteering with the local USFS. Molly graduated from OSU in the spring of 2014 with a Masters in Natural Resources. Upon graduation, Molly started her own consulting firm (Pitts Resource Consulting, LLC).  Molly is currently the Rocky Mountain States Director for Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities, is serving as the Executive Director for the Colorado Timber Industry Association, and is the Colorado Programs Manager for Intermountain Forest Association. 

Molly served as the Secretary/Treasurer for the Southwest Society of American Forests from 2007-2012 and as the Chapter Chair for the Southeast Colorado Chapter of the Colorado/Wyoming Society of American Foresters from 2012-2018. Molly and her husband Jim have two sons: Colby (age 16) and Caden (age 14) and two bird dogs. Molly is a very active person and enjoys camping, backpacking, mountain biking, fishing, hunting and in general spending time outdoors. 

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link: https://www.calendly.com/talkingforests Voice by Gordon Collier https://www.linkedin.com/in/jgordoncollier/ Spring by Ikson https://www.soundcloud.com/ikson Music promoted by Audio Library https://www.youtu.be/5WPnrvEMIdo    

Dr. David Coyle is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Conservation at Clemson University. His Extension Forestry program focuses on forest health and invasive species management in forest types across the Southeast.  

You can find Dave’s forest health outreach work at http://southernforesthealth.net/, or find him on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/southernforesthealth/)

Instagram (drdavecoyle) www.instagram.com/drdavecoyle and Twitter https://twitter.com/drdavecoyle where he regularly posts about invasive forest pests, silviculture, and forestry in general.

Prior to Clemson, Dave ran the Southern Regional Extension Forestry – Forest Health and Invasive Species program, which provided hands-on training, electronic resources, and other services pertaining to management of native and invasive forest insects, plants, and diseases to forestry professionals throughout the southeastern U.S. Dave grew up on a farm in Harmony, MN and completed his B.A. in Biology at Luther College. He then moved to Ames where he finished his M.S. in Entomology and Forestry at Iowa State University, followed by a move to South Carolina where he worked as a technician for the USDA Forest Service – Southern Research Station Center for Bottomland Hardwoods Research. He completed his PhD in Entomology at the University of Wisconsin and a postdoc at the University of Georgia’s Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. At UGA, Dave spent several years working on various forest health issues in the Southeast, covering both hardwood and conifer systems. Dave has extensive experience with southern forest pests, silviculture, management, and woody biomass systems. He serves on the Board of Directors and is President-Elect for the North American Invasive Species Management Association, is on the Advisory Committee for the Southern IPM Center, and is Co-Director for the ProForest group at the University of Florida.   

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link: www.calendly.com/talkingforests Voice by Gordon Collier www.linkedin.com/in/jgordoncollier/ Spring by Ikson soundcloud.com/ikson Music promoted by Audio Library youtu.be/5WPnrvEMIdo    

Kelly is currently the District 5 District Forester for Wyoming State Forestry Division and is responsible for implementing and overseeing the delivery of all programs offered through Wyoming State Forestry Division for the District. 

Read more here:   

http://wsfd.wyo.gov/

http://www.uwyo.edu/haub/ruckelshaus-institute/collaborative-solutions/cpnr/index.html

Such programs include: Forest and fire management on state trust lands, rural forestry assistance – Stewardship and Tree Farm, Community/Urban Forestry program, Forest Health program, and policy. Kelly is very active in Society of American Foresters as she currently serves on both the National Policy Committee and the National Recognition Committee. Kelly was the CO/WY SAF State Society Chair in 2017 and the Northern Wyoming Chapter Chair in 2015. Kelly is a 2017 graduate of the Collaboration Program in Natural Resources (CPNR), a yearlong professional development training series through the Ruckleshaus Institute, a Division of the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Wyoming. Kelly’s passion in community forestry led her to becoming a Certified ISA Arborist and she is also a current member of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of ISA. Prior to her eight years with Wyoming State Forestry, Kelly worked for the US Forest Service on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest as a zone forester on the Evanston/Mountain View Ranger District. Kelly’s true passion for forestry all started with her first job as a forester, in the tiny town of Kelliher, Minnesota with Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Kelly is a graduate from the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point with majors in Forest Ecosystem Restoration and Management and Forest Management and minors in Soil Science and GIS. 

Kelly lives in Buffalo, Wyoming with her husband Nick and their 16 month son, Henry and 4 year old son, Benjamin. They also have a bird dog and two pack goats. In Kelly’s spare time she loves to hike, camp, backpack, canoe/kayak, fish, hunt, cross country ski, and garden.  

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link:calendly.com/talkingforests Voice by Gordon Collier www.linkedin.com/in/jgordoncollier/ Spring by Ikson soundcloud.com/ikson Music promoted by Audio Library youtu.be/5WPnrvEMIdo   

I finished my BS in Zoology with a minor in Chemistry from Southern Illinois University in 2010. I did both my MS and PhD in Forest Entomology at the University of Arkansas, finishing my MS in 2012 and my PhD in 2016. During undergrad, I worked in the aquatic ecology lab at SIU helping students with projects that looked at aquatic macroinvertebrate community changes in relation to riparian vegetation management. I also worked in the forestry department on a project looking at cover crops to conserve native bamboo in the Southeastern U.S. Both my MS and PhD research focused on the ecology and management of a pine-inhabiting woodwasp in the genus Sirex. My research covered trapping and rearing methods, biological control using nematodes, effects of climate on fitness, and modeling predictions of invasive Sirex emergence to predict future interactions with native hosts and insect species. After finishing my PhD I moved to northern Minnesota to work as a forest health specialist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. I worked a lot with foresters and wildlife biologists to identify and treat insect and disease issues on state lands in Minnesota. I also worked with private landowners, university faculty, and non profit organizations to do natural resource education and workshops. During my time in northern Minnesota I also taught forest health at Itasca Community College. In August of 2018 I started as an assistant professor of forest health at Clemson University in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Conservation. Twitter https://twitter.com/ClemsonForest

As far as hobbies, I both practice and teach yoga and have had my own yoga business in the past. I love all things outdoors: I run, bike, kayak, hike, and anything else that takes my outside. I’m also very active in my community and have organized events like the March for Science in Grand Rapids, Minnesota and served on the Human Rights Commission there as well. A couple years ago I started a blog with a colleague, Dr. Molly Darr, called the Feminist Forester, which focuses on social issues in science. We write original content and also share articles and guest pieces through our website, facebook, and twitter accounts. My goal in the world of social media is to get people to think critically. I want people to think beyond the headline and see past the standard media hype that surrounds stories you see on facebook, Instagram, or twitter. 

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link:calendly.com/talkingforests Voice by Gordon Collier www.linkedin.com/in/jgordoncollier/ Spring by Ikson soundcloud.com/ikson Music promoted by Audio Library youtu.be/5WPnrvEMIdo   

Sarah is the first woman to teach as a full time faculty member at the Maritime College of Forest Technology! She has a passion for helping others learn about many facets of forests and talks about it with us in a great episode! 

She has a Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Horticulture from Dalhousie University & the Nova Scotia Agricultural College, and Forest Technologist diploma from Maritime College of Forest Technology (MCFT)

I have worked as a forest technician both in urban forest roles (ISA certified Arborist) and for the Canadian Forest Service working with invasive and native insects. I have worked on many research projects including brown spruce long-horned beetle and spruce budworm.

Currently: Forestry Instructor at the Maritime College of Forest Technology (MCFT) in Fredericton NB. I teach 5-6 courses a year including forest entomology and pathology, Urban Forestry, Dendrology, Botany, Public Speaking and Arboriculture Sciences. Each year I have approx 100 students training to be forest technologists!

Hobbies: Raising chickens!

Social Media: Incorporating more into my classes. I think social media is a great tool and they should know how to use it effectively.

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link:calendly.com/talkingforests

Ciara Fenimore is an assistant forester for Hancock Forest Management out in Kapowsin WA. She will be getting her bachelors in forest management from Green River Community college in the Spring. She keeps herself busy with a lot of things, like crocheting, spinning, knitting, cooking, hunting, fishing, wood projects etc.

Scott and Ciara are a part of a family owned and operated sawmill business that mill logs into your custom needs called Creative Inventory!

Instagram: www.instagram.com/creativeinventory

Facebook: www.facebook.com/C.Inventory

Check out: www.etsy.com/shop/CreativeInventory

"Never give up on your goals, everyday you get an opportunity to take the next step towards it."-Ciara

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link: calendly.com/talkingforests

On this episode, we talked about the importance of silviculture and the fun challenges we see in the field! Taisa is a fantastic guest with a depth of knowledge in regenerating our forests for the future, please listen in. 

Her Instagram: www.instagram.com/taisabrown

Silviculture: Concepts and Applications by Dr. Nyland states, "Silviculture deals with the methods for establishing and maintaining healthy communities of trees and other vegetation that have value to people."

Taisa graduated from the University of New Brunswick in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Forestry with Honours. She is currently working for Western Forest Products on Vancouver Island, Canada as an Area Forester. She is a Registered Professional Forester with the ABCFP, the Association of British Columbia Forest Professionals. She loves backpacking, mountaineering, and sea kayaking and tries to go backcountry camping every weekend from May to November. 

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link:calendly.com/talkingforests

She works as a biologist for an engineering and environmental consulting firm and loves it!  We dive into a great conversation about breaking barriers to fish and new ways of building to help the future. 

Education: Honours Bachelor of Science in Environmental and Resource Science from Trent University (2008-2013), Specializing in Indigenous Environmental Studies. Studied abroad in Norway: Songal University College (2011), University of Tromso (2012). 

Cassie is an Ecologist with over 5 years of experience the environmental field, including forest management planning, species at risk assessments, and environmental impact studies. Ms. Bott-Baxter’s field experience includes forestry inventories, field survey for vegetation, birds, reptiles and amphibians, and ecological classification. She has also completed Species at Risk surveys for Blanding’s turtle, whip-poor-will, barn swallow, bank swallow, eastern meadowlark, and SAR vegetation. Her past experience includes preparing fish and wildlife license and species at risk permit applications to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, environmental impact studies, natural heritage evaluations, and forest management plans. Ms. Bott-Baxter also has extensive experience working with Indigenous communities conducting consultation on resource projects, land use planning, environmental assessments, and traditional knowledge studies. 

Job History

Junior Biologist, McIntosh Perry Consulting Engineers (2018 - Present)

Ecologist, EcoTec Environmental Consulting Inc. (2016 – 2018)

Forestry Technician, Cariboo Forestry Consulting (2015 - 2016)

Forestry Coordinator, Tolko Industries (2014 – 2015)

Lands and Resource Assistant, Nazko First Nation (2014)  

Fisheries Assistant, Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (2013)

Junior Researcher, Inuit Circumpolar Council/Trent University (2009 – 2011)

Volunteering 

Affiliations

Nipissing Forest Local Citizen’s Committee Member

Nipissing Forest Operations Task Team Member

Canadian Institute of Forestry Algonquin Section

Nipissing Naturalists

Hobbies/Projects

Plant walks with kids at the local nature area

Writing a field guide for plants for kids 

Writing an online course to plant identification 

Ski racing, canoeing, snowshoeing, wildcrafting, mycology

Want to be featured? Schedule your interview with Talking Forests on this link:calendly.com/talkingforests