UBC Forestry & Environmental Stewardship wishes to congratulate Dimitrios Markou, Katarzyna Przystupa, Alan Verona, and Robin Hastings on being the 2023/24 recipients of the Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship!
MGEM – Dimitrios Markou
Dimitrios Markou
MGEM is delighted to announce Dimitrios Markou as this year’s Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship MGEM recipient. Dimitrios has consistently shown academic excellence and engagement in this years MGEM cohort. In addition to his exemplary grade point average, Dimitrios is a student who is quick to ask questions and help facilitate classroom discussions. He is an active member of this year’s social committee and has helped organize events that have brought the cohort together. Overall, Dimitrios represents what it means to be both a Binkley Scholar and top MGEM student.
MIF – Katarzyna Przystupa
Katarzyna Przystupa
MIF is delighted to announce Katarzyna Przystupa as this year’s Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship MIF recipient. Katarzyna has demonstrated strong academic performance, as well as engagement within class discussions. Katarzyna has also played an informal yet important leadership role in bridging the gap between domestic and international students in class. She has made an effort to learn a few phrases in Mandarin, and get to know the customs of other classmates, while teaching others about her own (Polish) culture and traditions. Having taught environmental sciences at the high school level for six years prior to joining the MIF program, Katarzyna brings an important perspective into the class, and we value her contributions.
MSFM – Alan Verona
Alan Verona
MSFM is delighted to announce Alan Verona as this year’s Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship MSFM recipient. Alan’s academic excellence and leadership are demonstrated by the quality of his work, dedication to the well-being of his classmates and active engagement in all program activities. Alan can always be relied upon to support discussion and inquiry that enriches course material and encourages peer participation. He exemplifies the qualities of a Binkley Award Winner.
MUFL – Robin Hastings
Robin Hastings
MUFL is delighted to announce Robin Hastings as this year’s Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship MUFL recipient. Robin demonstrates outstanding work in the classroom. He brings his extensive cross-sectoral experience as an arborist to his academic work, enriching discussions and challenging and supporting his colleagues to think critically. Robin’s passion for urban forestry has helped to build networks and enhance education in urban forestry locally and internationally, most prominently in his role as the Continuing Education Director for the PNW ISA Chapter.
Binkley Family Graduate Scholarship
This scholarship is made available through an endowment established by Dr. Clark S. Binkley, and is awarded to one outstanding graduate student in each of the Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Stewardship’s professional master’s programs (MGEM, MSFM, MIF, and MUFL). A scholarship is awarded to one student in each program with high academic standing (minimum 85% overall average at the end of Fall Term) and also demonstrating exceptional engagement and leadership within their cohort.
Where the wild bees are – and aren’t – impacts food supply
Dr. Matthew Mitchell
Honey bees—plump, fuzzy and famed for their honey-making—capture the popular imagination. Yet, wild bees are equally vital for pollination and, by some measures, outshine honey bees as pollinators. This is why UBC researcher Matthew Mitchell and his colleagues are deeply concerned about their declining populations.
Dr. Mitchell, a landscape ecologist in the faculties of forestry and land and food systems, sheds light on the link between diminishing numbers of wild pollinators and reduced farm productivity in a recent study published in Environmental Research Letters. In this Q&A, he delves into the research findings and proposes ways the public can contribute to protecting wild bees.
Where can we find wild pollinators, and why are they essential?
Native wild bees—which include mason bees, carpenter bees, sweat bees and bumble bees—and other wild pollinators like moths, wasps, beetles and flies, are found everywhere: in parks and fields, near farms and forests. There are more than 800 species of just native bees in Canada, not counting other pollinators.
Wild pollinators play a vital role in pollinating various crops, including fruits, vegetables, nuts and oilseeds. Blueberries, cranberries, buckwheat, canola and orchard crops rely heavily on wild pollinators. Wild pollinators also help preserve biodiversity by facilitating the reproduction of numerous plant species.
Native pollinator populations are declining from habitat destruction and fragmentation, widespread pesticide use, and the spread of parasites and pathogens like mites and viruses.
What would happen if all wild pollinators were to disappear?
We’d likely witness a loss of native plant species reliant on wild pollinators, and significant crop yield reductions where wild pollinators supplement or are the sole pollinators of crops. Farmers would face higher costs to cultivate pollinator-dependent crops, as reliance solely on European honey bees wouldn’t always be feasible given current honey bee capacity. In some cases, farmers might shift production away from pollinator-dependent crops, leading to increased costs to consumers or scarcity of fruits and vegetables in supermarkets.
Your study focused on the impact of wild pollinator numbers on food-production potential. What did you find?
In Canada, wild pollinators aid in pollinating crops that generate an annual farm income of nearly $2.8 billion and produce calories and nutrients that could feed the equivalent of around 24 million people (although not all these crops are directly consumed by people, as some go to livestock).
Collaborating with colleagues at the Nature Conservancy Canada, we analyzed publicly available data on crops, farm income and nearby pollinator habitats such as forests, wetlands and grasslands to estimate the potential food production and farm income that could be gained if wild pollination was increased.
In Saskatchewan and Alberta, the two provinces most affected by lack of pollinator habitat near croplands, increasing wild pollinator habitat and populations could potentially increase food production by the equivalent of 11.5 million and 4.3 million people fed, respectively, and increase farm income by approximately $1.6 billion for Saskatchewan and $597 million for Alberta.
What can be done to reverse the decline?
Solutions include targeted conservation efforts, such as restoring pollinator habitat in areas where crops depend most on wild pollinators. It’s also crucial to promote sustainable farming practices that restore and maintain wild pollinator habitats near croplands.
On an individual or community level, urban gardens, especially if they include pollinator-friendly plants, can greatly benefit wild bees. Advocating for sustainable farming and habitat conservation can influence policymakers.
If addressed, targeted increases in wild pollinator habitat in Canada could help provide additional nutrition for an equivalent of 30 million people annually and increase farmer income by up to $3 billion every year. We would ensure the long-term health of native pollinators and enhance the sustainability and stability of Canadian agriculture and food supply. Without these types of actions, farmers will instead have to use other, potentially more costly, ways to increase productivity or will have to rely on honey bees.
Please join our Urban Forestry Students are Presenting Posters in the FSC Atrium April 2 and 4, between 12 – 1:30 pm.
Please stop by and see the great work our BUF students are presenting while socializing with other students, faculty, staff, and community practitioners interested in the study of university neighborhoods as complex social-ecological systems. The BUF Program will be providing food and drinks for this casual and fun poster symposium and networking event!
What are the Bachelor of Urban Forestry (BUF) capstone (UFOR401) students working on?
The BUF Capstone students have been collaborating with SEEDS Sustainability Program, Campus and Community Planning, and the University Neighborhoods Association (UNA) on strategies and methods for measuring urban ecosystem structure, function, and services over time in order to inform decision-making at UBC. Specifically, our students engaged with different interest groups, practitioners, and residents involved with UBC’s new land use plan, and then developed projects to help inform the new Wesbrook Neighborhood plan amendment process that is now underway.
Students have been working in teams on intensive analyses of key themes identified by our community partners, and they also had the opportunity to develop individual projects which are meant to be a creative exploration for their own “portfolios” or visual resumes. Individual projects were designed by each student based on their interests and skills and will be presented in poster form on April 2 and April 4 in the FSC Atrium. Feel free to stop by and chat to students about urban forest research and management, landscape design, and thermal dynamics at UBC in between 12-130 pm in the atrium! If you are interested in watching their team presentations you are also welcome to stop by the classroom (West Mall Swing Space 205) from 11-2pm of Tuesday and Thursday the following week (April 9 and April 11).
Over 40 posters will be presented during the two-day symposium that consider a broad range of urban forestry themes. Below are a few examples of what are students are interested in:
Reimagining Green Network Planning and Management
A Comprehensive Toolkit for Studying Urban Heat at UBC: High-Resolution Landcover Classification and Land Surface Temperature Derivation Tools
Rooting for Success: a Decision Framework for Soil Cell Installation
A Time Series Analysis of Healthy Vegetation in Westbrook Village
Optimizing Urban Green Spaces: Evaluating Canopy Shapes and Tree Species for Shading Services in the Westbrook Neighbourhood
Mapping Cultural Ecosystem Services: Locating Landscape Values of Outdoor Spaces on the UBC Campus
In case you are also interested in the team presentations, below is a schedule of the teams and their themes! As a reminder, students are focusing on the Wesbrook Neighborhood on UBC’s Campus.
Tuesday, April 9
11:10 am: The Forest Spirits: Nick Mantegna, Jiahou Lyu, Ximing Lin, Ziheng Niu, presenting on Urban Structure
11:30 am: Climate Crafters: Samantha Huang, Molly Kim, Rose Ren, Rebecca Liu presenting on Ecosystem Service Assessment of Water Features
Break: 11:50 – 12:10
12:10 pm: Tree Trackers: Thomas Huen, Luke Baes, Anson Pao, Shichun Wu, Yuhan Chen presenting on Tree Inventory
12:30 pm: Shrubbies: Tessa Black, Lucila Gonzalez, Larry Liu, Tingting Zhang presenting on Shrub Inventory
12:50 pm: Ecopolis: Sophie Damian, Shane Hunt, Johnny Zhen, Max Garvey presenting on Assessment of Biodiversity, Resilience, and Cooling
Thursday, April 11
11:10 am: Giraffe GIS: Madeleine Martin, Troy Sgro, Xiaofan Shen, Naomi Sun presenting on Land Use and Land Cover Mapping
11:30 am: Thermal Toasters: Daniel Shen, Charise Pelan-Maclean, Ashley Zhu, Gavin Lyu presenting on Temporal Surface Temperature Changes
11:50 pm: SALA: Sierra Wheeler, April Liu, Angellet Soh, Liam Sullivan presenting on Hot Spot Analysis
Break: 12:10 – 12:30 –
12:30 pm: Pavement to Park Professionals: Tyler Blackwell, Heather Bylsma, Mark Fillo, Helen He presenting on Open Space Typology
12:50 pm: Open Space Innovators: Fernanda Navarro, Saara Tanha, Youquan Gong, Malli Granby, Hana Kimura presenting on Observational Assessment of Greenspace Use
1:10 pm: ABGD Co.: Bernadette Uy, Alerik Wang, Damian Augustyn, Gavin Zeng presenting on Interactive Mapping of Perceptions of Thermal Comfort
Coordinates the digital marketing for the annual online photo contest, preparing the digital social media promotions, digital online email promotions, outreach to photo clubs and nature groups, assist with the volunteer recruitment, on-boarding and coordinating volunteer schedules. The candidate with also assist with the day to day processing of incoming telephone calls, email and mail correspondence from our members, donors and general photo contest inquiries. The candidate will also be tasked with research, outreach and recruitment of youth from diverse backgrounds to participate in our Women for Nature mentorships; and research and outreach to professional women to recruit as mentors for our Women for Nature Mentorship gender-equity based program. They will assist with communications around young nature leaders. They will also research and compile digital resources and research and recruit speakers for our gender-equity based leadership capacity webinars to strengthen the capacity and diversity of young women working in the conservation sector.
The Student Services team in the Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Stewardship is responsible for the programming and advising services that support the academic, professional and personal development and success of students throughout their experience into, through and out of the Faculty. Within Student Services, the Student Engagement portfolio serves to enhance student life by helping students find and connect with experiential learning, leadership and career development opportunities that are meaningful to them.
The Student Engagement Assistant will play a key role in enhancing the student experience as part of the Student Services team within the Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Stewardship, as well as fostering and strengthening the connections between the Faculty, campus, and community. This is carried out through providing valuable contributions to a number of programs offered by Forestry Student Services, including the Forestry Tri-Mentoring Program, the Forestry Digest, the Orientation and Transition Program and the Peer-Assisted Study Session Program.
Deadline to apply extended to Thursday, April 18th.
On behalf of UBC Forestry & Environmental Stewardship, congratulations to Jessica Quinton, PhD Candidate in the Department of Forest and Resources Management, on receiving a UBC Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Award!
About Jessica’s Research
Jessica Quinton
Jessica’s research focuses on the link between urban greening initiatives and gentrification in Canada. She is interested in learning about the impact that urban forestry and urban greening has on cities and their residents. Jessica is also part of a wider SSHRC-funded product, led by Dr. Lorien Nesbitt, studying green gentrification and urban forest governance in Vancouver and Toronto, Canada.
About the UBC Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Award
In recognition of the valuable role that Graduate Teaching Assistants play in our programs, UBC annually awards nineteen Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Awards. Each award includes a Certificate and $1,000. These awards are intended to recognize teaching excellence within our institution and to underscore the importance and value that UBC places on high-quality teaching.
UBC Forestry & Environmental Stewardship wishes to congratulate Dr. Suborna Ahmed, Assistant Professor in the Department of Forest Resources Management, on being the recipient of the UBC Open Education Resources (OER) Excellence and Impact Individual Award.
About Suborna’s Research
Dr. Suborna Ahmed
As a dedicated educator, Suborna has focused on developing multiple free and openly licensed educational resources, including creating new open textbooks, practice quizzes, and other OERs in areas such as computing in natural resources, forest biometrics, statistics, and geospatial data analysis. She continuously fosters a collaborative environment for OER development by mentoring students.
In the development of OER materials, Suborna focuses on incorporating accessibility best practices to create resources with universal design principles, ensuring that they are usable and inclusive for a diverse range of learners. For instance, she designs interactive tools and digital textbooks with screen-reader compatibility and user-friendly interfaces. Suborna’s commitment to accessibility, as well as her attention to incorporating inclusive language and diverse examples, underscores her dedication to creating equitable learning environments through OERs.
About the UBC Open Education Resources (OER) Excellence and Impact Awards
The OER Excellence and Impact Awards recognize outstanding work by faculty who materially advance the use and impact of open educational resources in credit courses at UBC.
Recipients are selected based on their overall excellence in creating, revising or using OER in teaching and learning; the impact of their OER work on students, including addressing the affordability of educational materials; and their contribution to the greater open education community at UBC.
A prescribed, revitalizing “good fire” gets under way at West Vaseux Lake in the Okanagan to restore ecosystems and biodiversity
The 2024 wildfire season has started – here’s what we need to know
Last year’s wildfire season marked B.C.’s most destructive on record: 2.8 million hectares burned, more than double any previous year. UBC researchers Dr. Lori Daniels and Dr. Mathieu Bourbonnais actively work on projects enhancing wildfire resilience, collaborating with community, government, private-sector and academic partners, and First Nations.
Dr. Daniels is the Koerner Chair in the Centre for Wildfire Coexistence at UBC, focusing on proactive management to increase ecosystem and community resilience to climate change and wildfires. Dr. Bourbonnais is co-director of the centre, a former wildland firefighter, and now assistant professor at UBC Okanagan who employs advanced technologies to study wildfire risk and behaviour.
We spoke with Drs. Daniels and Bourbonnais about the outlook for wildfire season, and how communities can prepare for a challenging year.
What should we expect in terms of wildfire magnitude and severity this year?
Dr. Lori Daniels
LD: Predicting the fire season is challenging, but we are hoping for spring rains after the dry winter. Most of the province is in a multiyear drought, which contributed to the severe 2023 fire season. This persistent drought has primed us for another intense summer. Almost a hundred fires from last season are still burning in northeast B.C., with new wildfires breaking out. Now is the time to start thinking about how to be “FireSmart” and prepared!
What progress has been made so far to help communities reduce their wildfire risk?
LD: In B.C., there’s a significant effort to assess forest fuels surrounding communities—particularly in warm, dry, fire-prone regions—then proactively thin the forest, removing small trees while preserving larger ones for shade, wildlife habitat and biodiversity. Reducing forest fuels aims to alter fire behaviour, slowing a fast-spreading crown fire and shifting it to a less intense surface fire. This enhances firefighters’ ability to contain fire before it reaches homes. Successes include the 2021 Tremont fire near Logan Lake and the 2020 Christie Mountain fire near Penticton.
There are extra benefits when forest thinning treatments are combined with controlled burns in the understory, whether through prescribed fires or Indigenous-led cultural burns. One example of success is from the ?aq’am First Nation in southeast B.C.
Dr. Mathieu Bourbonnais
MB: From a community protection standpoint, years or decades may pass before fuel treatments face a real test. In the case of ?aq’am First Nation, timely implementation of fuel treatments prevented potential devastation and helped save critical infrastructure, including many homes and the Cranbrook International Airport during the St. Mary’s River fire in July 2023. We are seeing more fuel treatments tested by wildfires throughout the province, including Logan Lake and West Kelowna, and in all cases the outcomes would have been far worse if fuel mitigation work had not been completed.
The success of these initiatives owes much to partnerships among First Nations, communities, BC Wildfire Services, private contractors and funding agencies. While these plans require years of planning with a narrow implementation window, their effective execution can protect communities and restore wildlife habitat and cultural resources.
How is technology shaping wildfire management
MB: Drones, satellite imagery and related tech have the potential to contribute significantly to wildfire management, offering insights into landscape fuels and forest health. For example, drones with thermal cameras can detect hotspots at night when aircraft can’t operate. My team is working with Rogers Communications to develop a cost-effective, AI-driven forest monitoring system, tracking real-time conditions for fire risk prediction and firefighting efficiency.
As wildfire management grows more challenging due to extreme conditions, pre-emptive mitigation is essential. We analyze factors like fuel types and condition, weather and wind speeds to accurately anticipate fire risk and behaviour.
What roles do you play in advancing these efforts?
LD: I study wildfire-forest interactions using tree rings, field data and fire behaviour models, while Mathieu focuses on wildfire risk by monitoring microclimate changes and their impact on fuel dynamics across landscapes. Together, these approaches help us understand how proactive management may affect wildfire risk. For example, while reducing tree cover may increase dryness and risk, it also reduces fuel availability and mitigates fire intensity. Our combined research can verify complex effects, to avoid unforeseen consequences.
Mathieu and I coordinate research efforts across UBC’s Vancouver and Okanagan campuses. We gather data to support proactive mitigation in collaboration with multiple agencies including the BC Community Forest Association, BC Wildfire Service and local experts from multiple Indigenous communities.
How can B.C. and Canada better manage wildfires?
LD: Wildfire management is becoming more challenging in B.C., across Canada and around the world due to climate change. Transforming forest and fire management is critical for our society to adapt and be ready for future fire seasons.
Across B.C., the forest industry must adapt, shifting focus from timber production to landscape resilience. We need to reduce the amount of waste wood, currently burned in piles, by investing in the bioeconomy to invent new ways to use small trees. Other innovations include reintroducing prescribed fire as part of reforestation, using partial harvesting to retain protective tree cover in drought-prone environments, creating strategically located cut-blocks and regenerating fire-resistant species to redirect wildfire spread across landscapes. Diversifying our forests and their management will also diversify the jobs held by forest professionals.
Equally important are the proactive fuel treatments in forests surrounding communities: thinning, prescribed and cultural burning. Public education by engaging homeowners through the FireSmart program is also high priority. However, we need greater government commitment and increased funding to support these local initiatives.
MB: Public and commercial interest in wildfire has surged recently and with that it’s important to show successes and failures in adaptation and mitigation and to change perceptions around prescribed fire. Yet, the current $30-million mitigation budget falls short compared to the billion dollars that firefighting cost B.C. last year. We have to increase the commitment to ensure sustainable support for proactive community fuel treatment programs. While there has been progress in B.C. and Canada, we can learn from other regions—for example the U.S. and Australia—that actively use fire to mitigate risk.
How do individuals and businesses adapt to increasing wildfire risk?
LD: Each of us has a role in coexisting with fire. We encourage homeowners to “FireSmart” their homes and yards this spring, perhaps starting this Easter long weekend, in advance of fire season. Check roofs, clean gutters, and clear yard clutter. Opt for non-flammable landscaping when planning gardens and avoid cedar hedges and junipers. In apartments or townhouses with wood siding, suggest safer landscaping options like rock gardens if your home is currently surrounded by wood chips.
Spring has arrived early in B.C.’s southern interior, prompting outdoor activities. Be sure campfires are fully extinguished, be aware that motorbike and ATV engines can spark grass fires in dry areas, and refrain from discarding burning cigarettes.
MB: Over the short and long term, we must intensify our efforts to reduce wildfire risk around communities. The landscapes and forests near our towns are increasingly susceptible to fires, making containment harder and causing greater destruction. Strategies such as mechanical thinning to remove biomass from the forest and expanding the use of prescribed fires are important, and we should support communities and First Nations that are leading these initiatives.
Residents should actively inquire about community wildfire plans and engage in discussions on risk management. Businesses like Rogers can also play a significant role in advancing technological research. Messaging efforts, such as tourism bodies promoting the acceptance of wildfires as part of the landscape, can help drive public awareness and engagement.
Long-term planning and proactive management are essential. Each season that passes without implementing these measures means we miss opportunities to enhance resilience and learn to coexist with wildfire.
DWB is hiring! We are currently seeking applications for all levels of Forest Technicians in our Burns Lake, Smithers and Chetwynd offices. Positions are available for May start. DWB can offer you a solid foundation to launch or grow your forestry career. As these are field positions, you must be ready to show your tough side. You will be working long hours in remote locations, in all weather conditions. The work is physically and mentally demanding, but you will learn a lot about yourself and how to work in a team environment. We promise, working in the field will provide you with stories to share around many campfires!
For more information about this job posting and how to apply please see the link below.
Career Opportunity: to join a diverse team of professionals who enjoy their jobs and the outdoors. We recognize the importance of teamwork in these challenging and rewarding positions, while enjoying a balance of work with personal life.
Sidley Mountain Forestry Consultants Ltd. is an established resource management and forest development company providing full phase Forest Development services with a focus on Safety, Quality and Productivity for over 27 years. Our base of operations is located between Osoyoos and Rock Creek, B.C. in the beautiful Boundary/South Okanagan. We provide services in a variety of geographic locations within our region, so our staff have the flexibility of choosing to live and work in one of many local communities. We are looking for Forest Development staff with a variety of training and experience. Individuals with a strong commitment to safety, quality work and efficiency in all work activities.
For more information about this job posting please see the link below.
