Wetland Naturalistat Kootenay Columbia Discovery Centre Society in Creston, BC
For the past couple months I’ve been working at the Kootenay-Columbia Discovery Centre Society (KCDCS) for my third Co-op work term. The Kootenay-Columbia Discovery Centre is part of the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area (CVWMA), which is one of the largest wetlands ecosystems in the province at 7,000 hectares. The Discovery Centre works alongside both the community and public to provide educational programs to both children and adults throughout the summer and fall. I assist a lot of day-to-day tasks with my coworkers, from performing school and summer programs, trail maintenance around the marsh, or even dismantling beaver dams. I also help with canoe tours, which take groups of people on the ponds of the wetland and explain the intricacies of the marsh ecosystems. The wonders and enthusiasm of working with this Discovery Centre is something that the Forestry Co-op really provides and I can’t wait for the excitement the second half of this summer work term will offer!
Resource Assistantat Ministry of Forests in Merritt, BC
Stewardship Resource Assistant with the Ministry of Forests in Merritt, BC. This summer I have been given the incredible opportunity to work with a hardworking and inspiring group of RPF’s, RFT’s, and other professionals.
Most of my work is wildfire related. For instance, I collect field data by using the line intersect fuel sampling method to accurately assess surface fuels (loading, type) for areas that are treated within the Wildfire Risk Reduction (WRR) program. The WRR program is administered through the Ministry of Forests. Program highlights include fuel management planning and treatment activities, prescribed burning, and risk reduction activities. Additionally, as part of my responsibilities within the WRR program, I am undertaking the task of creating a comprehensive maintenance spreadsheet which will identify and schedule necessary maintenance activities for WRR areas. Examples of maintenance activities include prescribed fire or thinning. Courses such as CONS 340 have allowed me to utilize ArcMap to create field maps. For instance, the field data collection sites were selected by overlaying a 100 m grid over the treatment area. I plan to continue to develop and grow my GIS skills when I return to school as they have proved crucial.
I am also contributing to the Forest and Range Evaluation program (FREP) by evaluating sites for values such as water quality, riparian, and stand level retention. FREP, which was established approximately 20 years ago, serves the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of the results-based Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA). In conclusion, I am incredibly grateful to be working with the Ministry of Forests this summer. This experience has broadened my skill set and enabled me to employ my academic knowledge in diverse and meaningful ways. I wholeheartedly recommend that fellow students consider participating in the co-op program to gain firsthand experience in the field of forestry.
Summer Studentat Lower North Thompson Community Forest Society in Barriere, BC
This co-op term I have been working in the Woodlands department of the Lower North Thompson Community Forest Society as a summer student. Throughout these four months, I have learned about some parts of what goes into managing and the management of a community forest. Some of the work I have done this summer include: conducting silviculture surveys for block development planning, conducting plot surveys for tree planting quality control, monitoring bark beetles using tunnel traps, and brushing for wildfire risk reduction and releasing coniferous crop trees from deciduous competition. This opportunity has allowed me to reinforce the knowledge I have learned in class as well as obtain a greater depth of understanding to how it is applied in the field work setting and how it can impact forest operations. I believe others should consider joining co-op to obtain different experiences in the industry to gain insight on their interests and the possible career options that align them.
Sustainability Internat Sanmar in Issaquah, Washington
This summer I have been working as a sustainability intern for SanMar, which is a global apparel company based out of Issaquah, Washington. The apparel industry accounts for roughly 2% of global GHG emissions each year, and SanMar along with 100’s of other apparel companies have set science based targets to reduce their emissions by 2030. I work with SanMar’s sustainability team to ensure they are on track to meet these targets, and while each day looks a little different I have had a couple projects that I’ve worked on over the course of my internship. One has been using the Higg Facilitily Environmental Module, which is a tool that allows companies to see how their facilities are performing in regard to their environmental management systems, energy use, water use, wastewater, emissions to air, waste management, and chemical management. I’ve also been working to calculate SanMar’s scope 3 GHG emissions. Doing this internship has given me valuable insight into what sustainability looks like at a corporate level. Working jobs such as this one and others offered by the co-op program allows you to apply skills gained from your degree into a workplace environment, and allows you to retain knowledge from your job that you can then go on to use in your classes. Personally, this is my second co-op term, and I would highly recommend any UBC forestry students enroll in the co-op program.
Youth Climate Corp Crew Memberat Wildsight in Kimberley, BC
For my second co-op term, I have been working as a Climate Action Technician for Wildsight as a part of the Youth Climate Corps program. So far this summer I have been doing lots of field work in Wildfire Risk Reduction. This work includes clearing deadfall and limbing trees which are then piled to be burned in the winter. This project not only removed excess fire fuel from a forest stand but also made the forest stand a better migration corridor for the local Rocky Mountain sheep population. Along with this work I participate in fire fuel data collection in forests that will have a prescribed burn in the future and collect post fire data in a recent prescribed burn. It has been very insightful to see different stages of fire treatment plans as well as seeing the risk reduction work benefit my local communities. So far in this co-op term I have gained valuable field work experience and helped me discover the type of work I am passionate about.
This summer, I had the excellent opportunity of working at the City of Surrey as a groundskeeper for their shade tree watering program. I was responsible for tree inventory coordination, contractor supervision and direction, responding to public inquiries, performing tree health inspections, preparing reports, and maintaining records. The UBC Forestry & Environmental Stewardship Co-op program has provided me with the resources to develop my professional skills in the field of urban forestry. Additionally, my experience working for the City of Surrey has helped me expand my knowledge of shade tree management in parks, streets, and residential areas. My work has contributed to Surrey’s Urban Forest Management Strategy to achieve a 30% tree canopy by 2038.
This summer, I’ve been working for the City of Coquitlam as a labourer in the roads department. Our big project this work term has been cleaning the medians on all the roads in the city. Some other tasks I have been assigned to include concrete spill removal, tree pruning, and walkway maintenance, which consists of cutting grass/weeds as well as trimming overgrown hedges/branches. Co op has given me the experience to work for municipal government positions such as this which have allowed me to see how municipal government/public works sectors function in our cities. It has also afforded me many networking opportunities which will be beneficial in pursuing a future career in the government.
Quality Control/Process Assistantat West Fraser in 100 Mile House, BC
This summer I have been completing my first Co-op term in 100 Mile House working for West Fraser. Here at 100 Mille I am working as the Quality Control Assistant at the sawmill, but I have had a chance to also try out working at the planer and even out in the forest for a couple days.
The reason I joined the co-op program was to help me answer the question, “what comes next?” and this summer has helped me get closer to that answer. By being placed in a real work environment I have had the chance to apply my skills and knowledge I got at UBC for real practical purposes, and the biggest advantage of this experience is the opportunity to learn from people in the industry by working alongside them and as a result get a deeper understanding of what skills their work requires.
Quality Control/Process Assistantat West Fraser in Mitsue, AB
Quality Control/ Process Assitant at West Fraser Slave lake Veneer Mill. I have been working on various projects and QC duties. One of my main projects i am working on is getting optimal conditioning for our logs by doing multiple trials and analysis in regards to our ponds, i have also created a VBA code, which i will convert it to PLC for optimal conditioning time and temperature in regards to the ambient temperature. I have been working on other various projects such as energy management, improving veneer quality, making both lathe lines run efficiently, programming the NV4G system, and so much more. Coop means a lot to me, i got to experience the life outside of school, make more connections with people in the industry, and helping West Fraser achieve targets .
Forest Pathology Research Assistantat UBC Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Stewardship in Vancouver, BC
This summer I have been working in the Forest Pathology Lab at UBC. In this role, my main responsibility is to help a master’s student collect data for his thesis on Hemlock Dwarf Mistletoe where he is measuring the spread of this parasitic plant from mature forests into regenerating cutblocks. At the beginning of the summer, I used GIS to help identify potential study sites. And, when I had a bit of extra time, helped out with the lab’s annual Swiss Needle Cast counts. Currently, I am helping with data collection where I am learning and honing a variety of skills including stem mapping, dwarf mistletoe rating, drone piloting, orienteering and, more broadly, problem solving. We will continue to collect data at sites all throughout southwestern British Columbia until the end of the summer. So far, this Co-op position has provided me with valuable exposure to new experimental techniques and has shown me what research at an academic institution really looks like.
