What is the Forest Health Management Micro-Certificate?
The Faculty of Forestry’s Forest Health Micro-Certificate (FHM) is a flexible 8-week online program that provides professionals with the basic knowledge on how to detect and diagnose forest health issues, and how to mitigate their impact. The course covers forest health issues caused by biotic agents such as insects and pathogens. By the end of the program, we expect the participants to be able to recognize the most important biotic agents causing outbreaks in BC and to be able to prescribe mitigation solutions.
Why choose the Forest Health Management Micro-Certificate?
Forest health is an important component of natural resource management. Forest pest and disease outbreaks are increasingly driven by climate change and globalization. They can impact natural, planted and urban trees and affect tree growth and in some cases cause mortality. Some of the deadliest pests and pathogens can impact large forested areas and require interventions. These interventions are best conducted early on during the outbreaks. This certificate addresses the critical need to be able to detect forest health issues at an early stage and to be able to predict outcomes. The Forest Health Management Micro-Certificate offers a unique opportunity for professionals working for governments, companies and NGOs to learn the latest approaches in forest health.
Professional foresters and forest practitioners who want to improve their skills in recognizing and mitigating forest health challenges will benefit from taking this course. At present, many of the skills taught in this program are only available in lengthy or expensive graduate programs that entail a time commitment and residency requirement that precludes broad participation. The certificate offers an affordable, online, and primarily asynchronous applied learning experience that is accessible to learners with limited time and professional development budgets.
What will you learn?
Course 1: Forest Insect Biology, Ecology and Population Dynamics
- Basic entomology: feeding, development, reproduction, dispersal
- Insect-tree interactions
- Population dynamics: changes in insect abundance in space and time
- Forest insect disturbances in changing environments: influence of environmental variables on insect populations with emphasis on climate change
Course 2: Forest Disease Biology, Ecology and Epidemiology
- Basic biology of pathogens, host-pathogen interactions, reproduction, spread
- Pathogen dissemination, hosts and tree parts impacted by pathogens
- Epidemiology of tree diseases, outbreak prediction
- Forest disease disturbances in changing environments: influence of environmental variables on disease outbreaks with emphasis on climate change
Course 3: Forest Insect Identification and Management
- Insect taxonomy and diversity
- Identification of the insects that are important in BC
- Recognition and identification of impacts caused by forest insect species at the tree, stand and landscape scale
- Integrated pest management strategies and tactics to mitigate impacts of the most important forest insect pests in BC
Course 4: Forest Disease Identification and Management
- Pathogen taxonomy, diversity, classification
- Identification of the most important tree diseases in BC
- Recognition and identification of impacts caused by forest diseases at the tree, stand and landscape scale
- Integrated pest management strategies and tactics to mitigate impacts of the most important forest diseases in BC
Forest Professionals of B.C. Competencies
IMPORTANT: If you are working to gain these competencies with the FPBC you must complete all courses of the micro-certificate.
- Standard 4: Trees and Stands
- 4.3 Explain past, current and possible future stand conditions and the processes that lead to them.
- Standard 5: Forested Landscapes
- 5.1 Identify the components, characteristics and processes in forested ecosystems and how they interact.
- 5.2 Apply ecological classification systems in a regional context.
- 5.3 Apply knowledge of the influences and interactions of agents of change in the management of forested landscapes.
- Standard 8A: Forest Management (FORM)
- 8A.1 Discuss the forest management process, and its requirements and levels.
Who should apply?
The micro-certificate will be of interest to professionals in the private, public, or non-profit sectors whose job entails working on sustainable forest management. The program is also open to those considering new careers in forest management and seeking to develop core competencies in this field.
Employment Opportunities
- Government (professional foresters)
- Private sector (forest managers)
- Consulting (sustainability consultant, sustainability project manager)
- Non-profit
- Academia
