(95) Looking to the Future - Wisconsin’s Woodland Leadership Institute

Session: Poster session

Wisconsin's Woodland Leadership Institute was developed to help woodland owners find their voice and give them some of the tools necessary to speak out and become active participants in deciding the issues that directly affect their ability to manage their woodlands.

Graduates are required to develop personal goals outlining how they will use what they have learned to address real issues in their community.  Each person develops their goals based on their personal interests, organizations that they are involved with and the needs of their community.

Since 2001 graduates have provided almost 1,700 hours of volunteer service hosting workshops or gatherings on their land; writing articles for a newspaper, newsletter, or magazine; talking with woodland owners and woodland owner organizations about sustainable forest management; and participating in local government hearings or board meetings.

They have worked directly with almost 600 woodland owners of which over 260 have initiated contacts with forest management professionals or woodland owner organizations and 90 have taken the first steps toward practicing sustainable forest management on over 4,200 acres of forest land.

They have also been active participants and speakers talking to over 1,100 woodland owners at conferences and workshops and hosting nearly 20 workshops on their lands.  They have also been actively engaged in legislative issues and participating in over 140 legislative or local government hearings and board meetings.

This poster presentation will describe these accomplishment and some of the very exciting things that are planned for the future.

John G. DuPlissis
University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point
Daniel O. Trainer Natural Resources Building
University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point
Stevens Point, WI 54481-3897, USA
Phone:  715.346.4128
Fax:      715.346.4038
Email:   john.duplissis@uwsp.edu