Stories from Women in Wood

Growing up half my life on the sugar bush-covered St. Joseph’s Island, Ontario and the other half in the heart of the log-driven Ottawa Valley, drilled into my entire being were the benefits of forests and the importance of protecting them. I had spent my childhood exploring the bush, four-wheeling, hiking and [trying] to climb the biggest trees. Eventually I knew that I wanted to work in an industry that would allow me to give back to forests what they have given to me (an

“I expected you to have an accent, but you spoke the clearest out of all the speakers” We often think of people in forestry as two units “women vs men”, but undermine the importance of heterogeneity and diversity within genders. Diversity is a complex term that also includes race, and age. Having a diverse group within a field brings forth different experiences and perspectives towards a common good. As a young woman of a minority group, getting into forestry was a surprise

Fiona is a Communications Specialist with Conifex Timber Inc. She has over 5 years experience communicating about the forest sector, holding roles at the Forest Products Association of Canada, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, and currently as Communications Specialist at Conifex Timber Inc. Fiona lives in Vancouver, BC and spends her free time hiking, bird watching, and drinking wine with her cat, Nacho. I grew up outside. Camping, kayaking, bird watching – I had a passio

Reprinted from City Trees, the magazine of the Society of Municipal Arborists” As part of my postdoctoral research through the University of British Columbia (UBC) Faculty of Forestry, I’m currently examining the role of women in arboriculture and urban forestry in North America to understand the barriers they face and the strategies they use to overcome them. This research and sharing progresses the goal of improved labour and education practices in urban forestry and arbor

Lindsey is an arborist in London, Ontario and the creator of Arb_comics on Instagram. She graduated from Humber College’s Arborist Apprenticeship program in 2018. I stumbled into Arboriculture much the same way Julie Tucker did, as she explained in her blog. I was trying to get in to Adventure Tourism, but had a hard time finding a job (at least one that paid well). I was searching through a job board and found a posting for an Arborist Pre-Apprenticeship program. I’d heard o