Silviculture Resources
Growing Resilient Forests
Forests are the single greatest tool we have to sequester carbon on a large scale to mitigate the effects of climate change. But, what if forests are themselves not able to cope with the effects of climate change?
The Wabanaki-Acadian Forest Region has been extensively degraded through centuries of intensive land-use and forestry practices. Over the years, these practices have yielded a landscape that is patchy, relatively young and suffers from a lack of diversity. A degraded forest’s lack of diversity reduces its ability to securely sequester carbon and can become a source of emissions, rather than reductions — that’s why Community Forests International is helping restore more resilient forests.
Our Changing Forest
Series Trailer
What does climate change mean for our forests? Join us as we talk with climate researchers, ecologists, and forestry professionals to understand the projected changes, the associated risks, and how to manage for healthy forest now and into the future.
Understanding Change
Understanding Change
Learn how the climate is expected to change in the Maritimes and how these changes will affect the unique Wabanaki-Acadian Forest.
Assessing Your Forest
Assessing Your Forest
Come into the forest with us and explore which tree species and forest types are at risk in a changing climate.
Managing for the Future
Managing for the Future
Follow forestry professionals as they discuss different climate-smart management for 3 typical forest stand types in our region.
Common Ground Events & Workshops
Over 80,000 rural forest owners in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island collectively manage over 4.2 million hectares (40%) of Canada’s critically endangered Wabanaki-Acadian Forest. Together, we believe these citizen forest owners can achieve globally significant greenhouse gas reductions and locally significant climate adaptation outcomes.
We know that many family forest owners face several barriers to taking climate action with forests including access to knowledge, expert and community role models, and practical tools. That’s where we come in.
Check out our upcoming events & workshops
Change in the Acadian Forest
As climates in the Wabanaki-Acadian Forest Region become generally warmer and wetter, so too do growing conditions for tree species. Many cold-adapted boreal species will no longer find this region hospitable. As Wabanaki forests have been transformed to be more like the Boreal Forest, the Maritimes’ forests are less resilient to these changes and will suffer further.
Community Forests International is working to protect the remaining Wabanaki-Acadian forests, restore climate change-resilient species, and adapt these forests for long-term community and climate benefits. Through sharing our learnings and resources, we hope to inspire and support others to do the same.
Megan de Graaf
Megan, our Forest Ecologist and Forest Program Director, leads our climate-adaptive silviculture work. She works tirelessly to support other forestry professionals and organizations across New Brunswick to integrate climate adaptation into their forest management.
Dani Miller
Our Forest Program Coordinator, Dani, is developing our forest ecological database while developing tools and resources to support the 80,000 family forest owners across the Maritimes to adopt climate-smart forest management practices on their lands.
Craig Tupper
Our Forest Program Manager, Craig, is a Registered Professional Forester in Nova Scotia and has worked in several roles across government, industry, and private woodlot stewardship for close to two decades, including most recently in forest operations, planning, and landowner engagement. He has been deeply involved in many advocacy, landowner, and professional organizations throughout the forestry sector.
Tools & Resources
In collaboration with silviculturalist Gareth Davies and the New Brunswick Federation of Woodlot Owners, we have created a series of tools and resources to support forestry professionals to manage forests to prioritize climate change resilient forests. Check out the resources developed to date:
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Our Changing Forest
“Our Changing Forest” is a three-part video series on climate change in the Acadian Forest Region. The series was produced in partnership with the New Brunswick Federation of Woodlot Owners and with the financial support of Natural Resources Canada.
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Additional Video Resources
In 2019, we hosted a 1-day workshop in Fredericton that included presentations on climate change and introduced the first edition of new silviculture prescription guidelines that consider climate change impacts. You can watch the presentations from the workshop here.
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Forests & Floods
Our new report, Forests and Floods: Natural Infrastructure for a Green Recovery, highlights the important role that forests could play in reducing flood-risk in New Brunswick and similarly impacted regions in Canada. The report helps to establish a clear economic case for protecting forests for the valuable ecosystem services they provide.
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Silviculture Prescriptions
Increase the resilience of your forest with our climate change adaptive silviculture guide, delivered in collaboration with silviculturalist Gareth Davies. Check out the latest edition of the silviculture decision tree, companion document, and glossary.
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Climate Change Resilience in the Acadian Forest: A Review
A 2018 report by Megan de Graaf, MScF, examining the Acadian Forest Region’s risks from climate change and the need for climate-adaptive silviculture and widespread forest conservation. The report is available in English et en français.