During the past two decades, land managers and community leaders in the West have adopted sustainable land management methods to make forests healthier, and to maintain profitable local businesses that are beneficial to their communities. However their efforts were often siloed and were not making a big enough impact to offset the vast threat of wildfire and the effects of climate change that are increasingly pressing the region. Nor were these singular efforts being presented to federal lawmakers or agencies that have the need and ability to implement policies to replicate these successes and ensure lasting change. The core goal of the DFZ project was to bring these innovations to others facing similar challenges, to share learning and methods with other land stewards, lawmakers, and agencies, and to expand the important innovations to new forest regions.
Program UOEW, Northwest S, Center W, Resources W. Stewarding Forests and Communities: Final Report of the Dry Forest Zone Project. University of Oregon Ecosystem Workforce Program; 2014.