By SFLRP Director Alton Perry
The Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project is hosting its annual Forest Landowner Conference October 23-24, 2024, at the Rocky Mount (NC) Event Center. We look forward to this opportunity each year to bring together African- American forest landowners and landowners of all demographics to network, engage with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state agencies, forest industry, and other forestry and conservation organizations.
As someone said “this conference has a family atmosphere.” It is so rewarding to see landowners networking with one another. The conference is a great conduit for those who already have engaged with agencies and implemented forest management practices to share their knowledge with a landowner who may be embarking on forest management for the first time.
This year’s conference will highlight the next generation of forest owners, as the current owners prepare them to be good stewards of the land and sustain their forests and family legacies. Additionally, the conference will share the resources available through the assistance of consulting foresters and forestry industry foresters. Both have a wealth of experience and resources to assist forest landowners with timber sales, reforestation, and experience with many forest management and other conservation activities.
Our forests here in northeastern North Carolina and across the state are vital to our community’s economy, environment, and a key solution component in tackling our climate change challenges. Whether you are a forest landowner who owns 10 acres or 1,000 acres of woodland, attending the conference – it’s free by the way – will provide you with important information on the technical and financial assistance available to you as a forest landowner. The goal of the conference and SFLRP will always be to engage, inform and empower forest landowners to sustain our forests and family legacies, while ensuring the health, productivity and resilience of our forests. I hope you will join us in October. Registration is now open. Here’s the link where you can view some videos and presentations from last year’s conference, and access the link for this year’s registration: https://www.roanokecooperative.com/roanoke-sustainable-forestry/events/forest-landowner-conference/.