The LWVWA Environment Affinity Group will hold a one-hour webinar on Thursday, July 11 at 7:00 PM to discuss forest management on public lands in Washington State. Attendees are asked to register for the webinar here.

The webinar aims to educate League members, at the public, on forests management so policy can be evaluated for the protection of mature forests. Dr. Paula Swedeen, Senior Policy Director at Conservation Northwest, will be the speaker. Dr. Swedeen will also talk about the work of Conservation Northwest and answer questions from the audience.

Dr. Swedeen's work at Conservation Northwest spans beyond her role as Senior Policy Director and also includes serving as the organization's point person at the WA State Capitol; directing their State Forest Lands and Cascades to Olympics conservation programs; and working on the recovery of marbled murrelets and wolves. Dr. Swedeen also serves on WA State's Wolf Advisory Group.

The LWVWA has resolved to protect mature forests on public lands in Washington, based on positions from the LWVWA Program in Action 2021-2023 (pg. 32-33).Conservation Northwest was founded in Bellingham, Washington in 1998 to conserve local wildlands and wildlife. Their mission is to protect, connect, and restore wildlands and wildlife from the Washington Coast to the British Columbian Rockies. The organization works closely with the WA State Department of Natural Resources, WA State Department of Fish and Wildlife, forestry companies, and other organizations to promote ecological management and resilience on state forest lands, including State Trust Lands.

Dr. Paula Swedeen, Ph.D, has worked on habitat conservation issues around the Pacific Northwest for 24 years, and even previously served on Conservation Northwest's Board in the early 90's. She worked for 12 years as a wildlife biologist and endangered species policy analyst with the WA Department of Fish and Wildlife and the WA Department of Natural Resources. Her recent work involves creating markets and ecosystem service payments to incentivize better habitat conditions on private lands where regulatory reach is limited. Dr. Swedeen has a B.S. in Biology from Indiana University, Masters degrees in Environmental Studies and Political Science from Western Washington University, and a Ph.D in Interdisciplinary Studies, with an emphasis on Ecological Economics, from the Union Institute.