My SAF Experience

I am very glad that my classmates and I were fortunate enough to attend the 2009 SAF national convention in Orlando, Florida. The location was great and it was interesting to see a forest that is so different from what we have here in Minnesota. I have only recently begun seeing forests from the viewpoint of a forester and I enjoy seeing different forest types with this new found perspective.
My favorite part of convention was the technical sessions. These presented a great opportunity to take in a vast amount of information in a short amount of time. At any given time there were several sessions that interested me, so there was never a dull moment. The aspect of these sessions that I found to be most beneficial was the fact that presenters came from all across the country. In attending technical sessions delivered by foresters from so many different regions I feel that I was able to learn about many different management styles. By taking in all of this information I already feel as though I have become a more well-rounded forester. I greatly appreciate the fact that I had the opportunity to attend the national convention. It was a great learning experience.

My impressions of the Orlando SAF convention

I think that there were good things and a few disappointments about the convention. I am originally from Mississippi, so it was great to go back south and see magnolias, pines, and live oaks again. The convention had different topics to attend lectures on. Since it was in the south this year, there was a seminar series about Longleaf pine. I attended a lot of these. I learned a lot about Longleaf, but they reintroduced the ecology and range at each lecture so I feel that they wasted a lot of time that could have been used to go more in-depth on management and silviculture. The lectures in general seemed as if they were speaking to a public audience instead of folks with general forestry knowledge, they could have gone more specific many times. The poster symposium was very interesting. The posters were reseach presentations and many were much more applied. I feel that I took more away from these that I can bring to actual management practices.
The exhibition hall had several booths of interest, particularly schools. I am still debating grad school, so it was good to get some information about programs and be able to ask questions as opposed to playing email tag with a counselor. The alumni reception was interesting and helpful. We met Jim Karels who runs the Florida Division of Forestry. He helped us find a place in Florida to go and get out into the woods. We went to Withalacoochee state forest and dendro samples for Carl and bugs for our Entomology collections.

All in all it was a good experience and I learned a lot.

SAF National Convention 2009

The student chapter of the Society of American Foresters was fortunate enough to attend this past SAF National Convention in Orlando, Florida. Active undergraduates John Segari, Steve Rudolph, and myself Dan Ek represented the University at the convention. On September 30th, The evening of our arrival, The three us participated in the student quiz bowl. We unfortunately lost in the first round, but we put up a good fight, losing in double overtime. During the convention we got to attend and exposition and job fair. We also attended seminars on various forestry topics such as forest biology and management, landscape change and management, and much more. In the evening of October 1st the University of Minnesota held an alumni reception where we had the opportunity to network with professional in the field. On October 4th, we were able to rent a car and visit a nearby state forest. Overall, the convention was a great learning and networking experience!

Nagachiwanong, here we come

Next week is the annual MN SAF conference. This year it will be held at both the Cloquet Forestry Center and Black Bear Casino (hmm). A few students are planning to attend, around the same number as last year. I'll hopefully be taking some pictures throughout the conference, which I'll upload on here or through my travel blog.






















Gordy's, I miss you.

(image from http://flickr.com/photos/tcob/2922824669/)

One Traveler's Photos (This one's)

If you'd like to see some photos from our travels post-SAF convention, please visit http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Nevada/Lake-Tahoe/blog-344959.html

for some excitement and some pictures.

The convention's over and I'm back in Minnesota, but I'm still mulling things over in my mind.
Along with the Expo, quiz bowl, and Alumni dinner, I attended some of the technical sessions. I think the most interesting aspect of these sessions is watching forestry professionals discuss conflicting perspectives during the question\answer period at the end of each presentation. While the discussions proceeded in a civil manner, tension was a quite apparent. This is an aspect of science that is not effectively conveyed in the clinical format of a scientific journal.
Because I'll be graduating in December, the most beneficial aspect of the convention for me was the opportunity to meet professionals. There seems to be many aspects to the field of forestry and I'm still trying to figure out what would be the best fit for me. I had many opportunities to meet with people working for different agencies and get their perspective on things. And it didn't end at the convention doors...on my flight home I was seated next to Randy Kolka, a soil scientist at the Northern Research Station in Grand Rapids. He gladly filled me in on the aspects of his job and offered a lot of career advice.
Attending the convention in Reno was an extremely valuable experience and we couldn't have done it without the support of our sponsors. Thanks for making it possible.

Western environment rocks!

Being stuck in a hotel for 3 days made the scenic trip to Sacramento ten times more beautiful. The variation in trees is a welcome sight. On our way to the hostel, we made pit stops near lake Tahoe and throughout El Dorado national park. We encountered new species of cedar, maple, and pine that none of us had seen before. We collected many samples to stuff in our suitcases. With luck, we will get through airport customs without a hitch and bring these samples to the UMN dendrology professor. These will be a great benefit in educating the rest of the students who were unable to attend this terrific convention! Tomorrow we fly back to lower temperatures and familiar landscapes. I miss the variation in elevation already.

Sacramento hello

We have reached Sacramento, and we are in the hostel that we are staying at for the night. They are having an art show on the premises tonight, which may or may not be worth its hype. Silk dresses? $500 ceramic pots? Three-piece band combo of drums, guitar, and saxophone? You be the judge. Today we finally (!) left Reno and drove through mountain passes to reach Lake Tahoe, and eventually, California. These excited students scampered around at the many stops made, collecting tree samples, and taking pictures. The pictures have not yet been uploaded, and since my computer is out of memory, will wait to be uploaded on mine until a few days from now. Until then, use your imaginations, and enjoy our trip's mascot: a pop-tart!

We will be back home in under 24 hours...

Alumni dinner and the local scene

Last night we had the opportunity to meet alumni from the U of M at the alumni dinner. We met for drinks, dinner, door prizes and conversation. I got a chance to speak with a geographer from Seattle who earned his PhD from the U of M in remote sensing in the early 90's. Another alumnus, Fritz, now living in Southern California, took a brief break from telling stories to several of us students to win a University sweatshirt. Those of us that listened to Fritz really enjoyed his professional and life stories. I think I can safely say that all of the people that attended the dinner enjoyed the fellowship it provided.

Following the dinner, some of us students had to teach others about the casino culture of the state of Nevada. Each of us received a $10 voucher with the room to use in the casino. A couple of us students might have ended up ahead on the slot machines, but I think most of us lost our free $10. Regardless, it was an entertaining learning experience.

Later today I plan on attending sessions that deal with forestry's role solving the human caused climate change.

Breakfast with the Chief

This morning I went to a breakfast with the Chief of the US Forest Service, Gail Kimbell. She spoke about current issues facing the Forest Service, before opening up the floor to questions and comments. I was either the only student in attendance, or one of the only. I could see myself working for the Forest Service in the future, so it was, I think, beneficial of me to attend. Within 20 seconds of walking through the door, I was basically offered a job by a regional forester in Colorado. While I don't want to be a "forester", it was a nice gesture and I will keep his business card just in case. I was impressed that paying $30 for an hour-long breakfast and speech opened the door for networking in such a quick and efficient manner. SAF members seem to really enjoy the student counterpart of the organization; everyone that I have spoken to has been genuinely appreciative of my interest (for the future) in ecology and silviculture.

I took a couple of pictures at the breakfast, but my camera's lack of flash allows the pictures a 

slight fuzziness.

After completing our first day at the convention we have witnessed the keynote address and participated in the student orientations. Our quiz bowl team valiantly fought in the quiz bowl competition. Unfortunately the question delivery system and background music hindered the ability of our team to properly hear the questions. They did a great job with the given constraints. The topics that have been discussed this far include carbon credits, their allocation, and the role of forestry in a changing climate. Today we will be attending our scientific session in smaller group settings. The alumni dinner is going to be tonight as well. We are excited to interact with former University students who are professionals in the field. Thanks again to the Minnesota Society of American Foresters for providing us with the opportunity to expand our knowledge and abilities.

GRANTS!

We have graciously been given $2000 from the Student Unions and Activities at the University of Minnesota. $1000 is an administrative grant, and the second $1000 is from the Coca-Cola Academic Initiative. To receive these grants, we filled out a lengthy application which described our event, who will be attending, and how it will be academically enriching. A big thank you to SUA for making this convention financially feasible!

Introduction

Thanks to the support from the Minnesota chapter of SAF, CocaCola, and the University of Minnesota, 9 lucky students are traveling to Reno in order to attend the SAF National Conference! Our trip begins at 6 a.m. on Wednesday November 5th and we return to Minnesota Sunday November 9th at 8 p.m. All of us have different reasons for attending this convention, but they all involve obtaining knowledge and relationships for the future.

This blog will be updated during our trip so that others will learn about our experiences. Our group attending will include the following people:
EMMA SCHULTZ
DAVIN SHOKES
ERIN BAUMGART
ZACH HYLINSKI
DAN EK
JAMES REESE
CASSANDRA KURTZ
JOE NORCROSS
NATE ANDERSON

It will be a very exciting week!