Endowment Releases Comprehensive Report on USDA Forest Service Partnership
U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, Greenville, SCFor IMMEDIATE RELEASE (September 4, 2015)
“Anyone who has spent the night in a tent with a mosquito can attest to the impact that a small organism can have on a larger one.” That’s the analogy that Vicki Christiansen, Associate Deputy Chief, State & Private Forestry, USDA Forest Service, used when speaking of the relationship between the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities (Endowment) and her agency. Though a small organization, theEndowment’s work with the Forest Service has resulted in significant successes for our nation’s forests.
A report released today highlights this partnership, one between the grandfather of federal natural resources agencies and a small non-profit that has existed for less than a decade. Mosquito in the Tentreviews the reach of the partnership between the two organizations, looking at what they are doing together to advance both Endowment goals and three of four of the Forest Service’s strategic priorities.
“As we approach our tenth anniversary, our partnerships and collaborations with the USDA Forest Servicestand as some of the Endowment’s most significant achievements,” said Endowment President CarltonOwen. “The alignment of our missions and the breath and depth of our work to date make this report a shining example of how a government agency and a not-for-profit organization can partner to achievemore together than either could accomplish alone.”
Mosquito in the Tent takes a broad look at areas of collaboration between the Forest Service and the Endowment and does a deeper dive on twelve initiatives that highlight the strength of partnerships between government agencies and not-for-profit organizations.
The jointly funded Forest Health Initiative, for example, leveraged funding from multiple parties to develop a blight-resistant American chestnut tree to test the potential of modern biotechnology to address burgeoning forest health threats from pests. In just the first three years, the initiative showcased the potential with scientific progress in a tenth of the time of traditional greenhouse breeding techniques. Among the advances: a map of the entire Chinese chestnut genome and 27 identified genes with potential to confer disease resistance.
Switching scope from microscopic genomes to entire landscapes, the Partnership for Southern Forestland Conservation brought together government, conservation, and industry interests to protect the South’slargest blocks of working forests for jobs, wildlife, and ecosystem services. Out of this Partnership, hundreds of thousands of acres of forests have been protected through conservation easements and an additional 20,000 acres are in the pipeline now via a partnership with the Department of Defense—the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program.
“We can’t say enough good things about the dedicated men and women of the Forest Service,” remarked Owen. “They have been with us from the start as we charted our early direction and have continued to collaborate as we have sought solutions to some of the nation’s most challenging forest retention andmanagement issues.”
Mosquito in the Tent notes that by mid-year 2015, $13 million in USFS funding and $25 million from the Endowment had been leveraged to amass $105 million to advance and transfer knowledge, sustain and conserve forests, and deliver economic and environmental benefits, allowing the Forest Service to mark significant progress towards its core goals.
The report and a companion video—along with more information about each of the collaborative efforts—can be found on our website, Mosquito in the Tent.
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For more information contact:
Carlton N. Owen, President & CEO, 864-233-7646, carlton@usendowment.org
The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities (the Endowment) is a not-for-profit public charity working collaboratively with partners in the public and private sectors to advance systemic, transformative, and sustainable change for the health and vitality of the nation’s working forests andforest-reliant communities – www.usendowment.org
