Time to celebrate our forests!
For most people who live outside of Alberta, it may come as a surprise that more than 60% of our province is covered by forests. Besides the trees along the Rocky Mountains, vast areas of forests cover the west and northern parts of the province.
September 22 to 28 is National Forest Week when we celebrate everything that this valuable and renewable resource has provided to past, present and future generations.
This year’s theme is “Two-Eyed Seeing: Welcoming all knowledge to sustain our forests.” Two-Eyed Seeing brings together both Western and Indigenous knowledges and worldviews as a basis for viewing the world.
Etuaptmumk – Two-Eyed Seeing — refers to learning to see from one eye with the strengths of Indigenous knowledges and ways of knowing, and from the other eye with the strengths of Western knowledges and ways of knowing … and learning to use both these eyes together, for the benefit of all. (Institute of Integrative Science and Health)
Our forests give us so much. They benefit our rich ecosystem by preserving soils, cycling nutrients and supporting biodiversity. Trees, other forest plants, and forest soils also filter pollutants from air and water, acting as natural cleansers. They create prime recreational areas and provide habitat for a wonderful variety of flora and fauna, including threatened and endangered species such as grizzly bears, cutthroat trout and limber pine.
Alberta’s forestry industry is proud to play a pivotal role in the growth and renewal of our forests. The forest industry plants three times as many trees as harvested and planted more than 100 million trees last year alone. And every forestry company, including Vanderwell, works within a 200-year plan that outlines how we will maintain the future of our forests. For more information on that visit the (Alberta Forest Products Association).
On September 28, the Lesser Slave Forest Education Society invites everyone to come and celebrate National Forest Week at the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation. Check out the poster below for all the fun, family-friendly activities planned.
