Cultivating forest stewardship – integrating forest ecosystem management and student learning at the UBC South Campus Farm

TitleCultivating forest stewardship - integrating forest ecosystem management and student learning at the UBC South Campus Farm
Faculty/College/UnitForestry
StatusCompleted
Duration2 Year
Initiation04/01/2011
Completion03/31/2014
Funding Details
Year 1: Project YearYear 1
Year 1: Funding Year2011/2012
Year 1: Project TypeSmall TLEF
Year 1: Principal InvestigatorStephen Mitchell
Year 1: Funded Amount46,870
Year 1: Team Members

Stephen Mitchell, Forest Sciences, Faculty of Forestry
Allan Carroll, Faculty of Forestry
Rob Guy, Faculty of Forestry
Richard Hamelin, Faculty of Forestry
Suzie Lavallee, Faculty of Forestry
Kaylah Lewis, Student, Faculty of Forestry
Abby MacFarlane, Student, Faculty of Forestry
Andrea Morgan, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
John Nelson, Faculty of Forestry
Andrew Rushmere, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Tom Sullivan, Faculty of Forestry and Faculty of Land and Food Systems
John Worrall, Faculty of Forestry

Year 1: Summary

Students in the Faculty of Forestry have a broad range of academic and career interests. Competition for traditional jobs in the natural resources sector is high, but there are many new opportunities in conservation, ecosystem management, and community forestry. To round out their education, our students need to gain practical and professional experience during their time at UBC, and we would like to promote an entrepreneurial culture among our graduates. The UBC South Campus Farm provides a unique living laboratory for on-campus learning about ecological processes, principles and practices of land planning and resource management, designing and creating new products and services, interacting with consumers and meeting and discussing community needs and desires with local residents and community groups. Our goal in Cultivating Forest Stewardship is to enhance current and future course-based activities at the farm, and to develop a new directed studies course called Case Studies in Forest-Based Entrepreneurship.

Year 2: Project YearYear 2
Year 2: Funding Year2012/2013
Year 2: Project TypeSmall TLEF
Year 2: Principal InvestigatorStephen Mitchell
Year 2: Funded Amount45,000
Year 2: Team Members

Stephen Mitchell, Forest Sciences, Faculty of Forestry
Rob Guy, Faculty of Forestry
Richard Hamelin, Faculty of Forestry
Suzie Lavallee, Faculty of Forestry
John Nelson, Faculty of Forestry
Ionut Aron, UBC Research Forest
Kayleh Lewis, Student, Faculty of Forestry
Andrea Morgan, UBC Farm, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Andrew Rushmere, UBC Farm, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Eduardo Jovel, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Saeed Dyanatkar, Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology
Chris Crowley, Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology
Cyprien Lomas, LFS Learning Centre
Tom Sullivan, Faculty of Land and Food Systems and Faculty of Forestry
John Worrall, Faculty of Forestry

Year 2: Summary

The UBC South Campus Farm provides a unique living laboratory for on-campus learning about ecological processes, principles and practices of land planning and resource management, designing and creating new products and services, interacting with consumers and meeting and discussing community needs and desires with local residents and community groups. Cultivating Forest Stewardship was proposed as a 2-year project. In Year 1, we completed mapping of the farm ecosystems and assembled databases of historic aerial photographs, maps, and existing reports and built a herbarium, We refined the silviculture prescription module for FRST 305 and designed a new course, Forest Based Entrepreneurship. In Year 2 we will complete the synthesis of data assembled in 2011. We will set up an information management system and web hosting structure that enables instructors and students to access information on physical conditions, ecosystems and human activities at the Farm, including audio and video-clips.