10 VIRGINIA FORESTS Richard “Carbo” Carbonetti delivered the keynote session on Thursday morning at the Virginia Forestry Summit. His presentation was made to an attentive and engaged audience, as he shared his experiences and insights gained over more than four decades as a consulting forester, forest policy advocate, and business owner. Carbo acknowledged that most foresters are passionate about their work and want to make a difference. But, he noted, that taking on the responsibility in a career to care for such an important resource is not just a job; it also requires a commitment to excellence, science, and the ability to communicate about the complexities of the resource that forestry professionals manage and sustain. One important facet of the profession is licensing, which validates the training and expertise required within the industry. Foresters are highly trained scientists that must be knowledgeable and develop a foundation of experience across a broad range of disciplines. Forestry is complex and challenging, but far too often, he says, “I hear foresters asked a question, and they quickly respond, ‘That’s easy’ or ‘Sure, that won’t take long.’ Have you ever heard an attorney say something will be easy and cheap?” It’s vital to forestry professionals to earn respect and demonstrate value for the important, and complex work they perform. Consulting foresters in particular must be scientists, fiduciaries, communicators, educators, and conservationists who are engaged in service for the public. All those working in forestry should not only be patient and thoughtful listeners, but also confident speakers who can make complex forestry concepts easier to understand and explain how our forestry practices will serve to achieve the interested parties’ desired outcomes. The decisions made and implemented are not easily reversed and often at a minimum have decades-long impacts. Forests are important to the public. Understanding public reactions to forest management practices, especially harvesting, is a key factor in being able to navigate the minefield of all the varying opinions and demands of those outside, or even within the profession. It is what people perceive and what they hear that ultimately matters, he noted. “We fail far too often to appreciate that despite the brilliance of our presentations unless the audience is willing, or if we have not thoughtfully presented our case, our words will fall on deaf ears.” Forestry is a dynamic, ever-evolving science. Building forests that are resilient to stresses and maintain a sustainable condition takes care, thoughtful decision making, and ongoing education. With experience, observations and new research and training to support the implementation of effective and impactful forest management, healthy and vigorous forests are better able to meet the challenges brought by our ever-changing world. Climate change and carbon are examples of opportunities, despite the political and personal concerns and factors that drive opinions on these issues, Carbo explained. Forests provide a vast and complex set of values to the owners and to the public, and there is an ever-increasing desire to maintain and enhance what are bundled today as ecosystem services. There is a growing recognition that these services require landowners to be compensated, which can offer business and economic opportunities. The development of ecosystem markets has enormous potential benefits for landowners. Workforce development challenges and changing landowner demographics further illustrate change and the need for adaptability by forest professionals and within the industry. “We need to understand and be prepared for those alterations in behavior and expectations,” he said. There may be no other profession that receives more scrutiny from such a broad number and range of interested parties than forestry, Carbo told the audience. “We must all remember that and gauge and modify our behavior, understanding that the actions of each of us impact our profession and our industry.” Our words matter, and using effective messages that clearly demonstrate the value and importance of forestry is key—and these messages must be based on facts and not opinions. “We will never avoid scrutiny,” he said, “but we can certainly improve how we tell the positive story we all know and appreciate.” Ultimately, those who are working as foresters may find enormous satisfaction in their work, Carbo concludes. “Very few individuals just get up to go to work in forestry. They view it as a gift. But no one said this would be easy.” THE EVOLUTION OF FORESTRY CONSULTING FROM ITS ROOTS TO TODAY Virginia Forestry Summit Keynote
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