Stories from Women in Wood

When people ask me how I ended up with a career in forestry, I always say “it was never my plan, but I am so happy I ended up here”. Although I grew up in Toronto, my childhood was filled with nature. Being outside was always one of my favourite things. My family and I spent nearly three weeks camping every summer, we did multiple month-long road trips across Canada and the United States, I backpacked and hiked in some beautiful places, and dedicated lots of time to our famil

Kia ora! My name is Phoebe, and I am a Woman in Wood. I am a forester from New Zealand, in Ontario as part of the Young Professional Foresters Exchange Program. This industry initiative is designed to foster international forestry connections and is facilitated by the Institutes of Forestry in New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. As a participant, I have spent March through May working with the Ontario Woodlot Association (OWA), contributing to their current

Long before I knew forestry was more than lumberjacks and big machines, I felt drawn to nature. Growing up in Toronto, this wasn’t something instilled in me by family, it was more like a gaping hole in my heart that I didn’t know how to fill. I spent my teenage years trying to fill that void with relationships, substances, and anger, but nothing worked. It turns out people need to be shown how to enjoy spending time outdoors. As a young adult, life got even harder for me. I l

My journey into forestry began with a passion for the outdoors and a deep respect for nature. Growing up just north of Muskoka, Ontario, I spent my days biking, canoeing, hiking and swimming. By the time I finished high school, I was unsure what career path to embark upon. After one semester at university pursuing environmental studies, I realized it wasn’t the right direction. At that time, I didn’t even know that exciting outdoor careers existed. Leaving university, I worke

I did not start out as an arborist thinking I wanted to have a woman owned and operated business, I started because I love this industry and taking care of trees. I bought Texas Tree Surgeons in 2010 after working/managing the company for 3 years. Before I was hired at the company, I did not even know “tree care” was a job. I was 30 and had graduated college with a degree in psychology, taught middle school, been a paramedic for a 911 system, waited tables, was a wanderer and

It took me a bit of time to find my love for trees, which is surprising given that both my father and grandfather were foresters. My maternal grandfather was a forester working in the Black Forest region of Germany and was seconded to teach in southern Chile, where he me met my father, one of his students. After my father made a good impression by helping with some translation work (his father was a German immigrant that landed in Chile in 1908), my grandfather introduced him

In April 2023 I attended my first Women in Wood (WiW) session at the Ontario Professional Foresters Association (OPFA) annual conference in Peterborough, Ontario. This was a fireside chat that took place during some social time just before the banquet. For me this was one of the most rewarding experiences of the conference. I have been intrigued by the WiW organization for quite awhile but up to this point I have been on the sidelines, partly since I thought it was mostly fo

From road and harvesting operations, to silvicultural operations and annual planning, I’ve had the pleasure of working in several positions within the forestry industry. My name is Donald Mumby, and I am a registered professional forester. For clarification towards the context of this article, I identify as a cisgender gay male. My passion for the outdoors began the same as for most people, in my childhood. I became filled with curiosity and excitement when I was brought camp

The United Nations’ theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is, ‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’. The theme serves to spotlight the importance of protecting the rights of women and girls in digital spaces. While the theme is largely dedicated to transformative technology and digital education, it also seems particularly relevant given the digital transformation many of us have experienced professionally and personally over the last ~3 years. T

My name is Hollee Janusitis and I am a student in the Environmental Technology program at Georgian College in Barrie. Spending time outdoors makes me feel connected to our world, and inspires a sense of awe and wonder. So, choosing a profession that involved nature was an easy choice. There is so much to learn from nature and it teaches us great lessons. As a teenager, my Aunt took me on ‘Wild Women’ expeditions, where I had the opportunity to learn about wilderness survival

I, Kirsten Campbell, was very fortunate to grow up in rural Cape Breton, Nova Scotia with 2 fabulous siblings on a couple hundred acres with beef cows, a strawberry patch, veggie garden and 2 hard working parents that also had jobs outside the home. If you were in the house, mom had you cleaning when she was home…this is probably where my love for the woods started! We’d spend hours in the woods, climbing trees, building things, catching frogs, bugs, fish, helping with hay or

Let me explain. I, Sarah A. Namiiro, come from Uganda, a tropical country in Eastern Africa. And life here like mostly everywhere else is uncertain and busy with all the changes in the world. I stumbled into forestry, sheer luck I must say when I was given a scholarship by the state to do a Bachelor of Science in Forest Conservation and Forest Technology at Makerere University eight years ago (2016). I say stumble because I had always dreamed of being a doctor or a pharmacist

My name is Cassandra Bananish, and I am a bilingual Indigenous woman with a passion for the forest. I am from Longlac 58 First Nation and am currently living and studying in Ottawa, Ontario. I am in my second year of college in a three-year program at La Cité in the Forestry and Fauna Program. I always had an affinity for the outdoors and most of my favourite memories were spent outside. I especially enjoy going fishing and hunting with my grandpa or going on hikes and campi

The forest industry is well aware of the importance of diversity when it comes to forest management through the general understanding of the importance of having a diversity of trees, species, and habitat types. However, when it comes to diversity in the workplace, this has been an evolving conversation in our sector. While there has been great strides in creating a more inclusive environment for women and individuals from many different backgrounds and ethnicities, it seems

Well, another year has come and gone and the Women in Wood community continues to grow and support one another. More than 2,500 women across the globe have joined the Facebook network – an increase of 25% since last year! These women continue to step up to support one another, offer advice, share job opportunities, encourage newcomers and share a laugh. Although most members are in North America, there are women tuning in from further afoot, including Australia, New Zealand,

Rookie, greener, newbie. Maybe these words apply to you, or they are a throwback to your first job. Either way, being a beginner is a hurdle everyone must overcome at some point in their career. Starting a career is intimidating, like any major change it brings uncertainties and challenges you haven’t faced before. Personally, I experienced many different emotions transitioning from school to the workplace this past year and reflecting on it has made me realize how much I hav

Jess Sheppey is a Woman in Wood who started out in the resort and ski industry across Canada before pursuing a career in forestry. Jess graduated from the Forestry Technician Program at Algonquin College in 2018 and has been working as a forest technician in the Ottawa Valley ever since. She is currently on maternity leave with her little future WIW. While working in an office or at home has its perks when it comes to lunch time like a fridge, microwave, and proximity to rest

My name is Catherine Langille and I am a young Indigenous woman from Seine River First Nation who currently resides in Thunder Bay Ontario. I am in my first-year college studying environmental science & natural resources at Fleming College with an end goal of a master’s degree. I have a unique pathway into forestry. I initially started as an Outland Youth Employment Program Participant (OYEP). During that time, I started looking up to those who could handle heat, cold, weathe

My name is Shania Johnston, I am 25 years old; I currently operate a grapple skidder and am new to the logging/ forestry world. I graduated from Fleming College with a Law and Justice Diploma. However, I recently made some big changes in my life and chose to pursue two new employment opportunities. One being in an industry outside my element as a Skidder Operator, the other as a Volunteer Fire Fighter. I enjoy a challenge, being part of a team, and the outdoors. Harvesting wo

Hi Women in Wood! My name is Natalie, and I am an Urban Forester! There....I said it! When I was attending University, urban forestry was not a “thing”. I grew up in New Brunswick where trees were just a part of our lives and did not require a lot of work to keep them healthy and thriving. In deciding on my career path, I had it narrowed down to two choices...physiotherapy or forestry. Physiotherapy would have fed my compassion for people and forestry was something I felt. I