During the luncheon Keynote, Arun Alexander, Canada’s Deputy Ambassador to the United States discussed the productive and mutually beneficial trade relationship between Canada and the USA, and how this benefits the forest sector. No two nations have a closer relationship, with $3.6 billion in trade crossing the border every day. Of that total, there is $37.7 billion worth of forest products traded annually. The ongoing softwood lumber dispute is a top issue for the Canadian embassy, as they continue to work towards a resolution. Alexander affirmed that the US needs Canadian lumber, as domestic supply only meets around 70% of demand. Canadian forest products can be counted on to support US construction and homebuilding, and bilateral trade with Canada adds to US prosperity. Susan Yurkovich, Senior Vice President of Global Business Development at Canfor moderated a Q&A with the Deputy Ambassador, where the two discussed the trajectory of the trade relationship. Looking at an election year, Alexander asserted that Canada will be prepared to engage with US leaders and decision-makers at the national, state and district levels to continue building on the strong trade levels. The US-Canada relationship is deeply integrated, with many US jobs requiring goods exported from Canada.

At COFI’s panel on “Wildfires, Biodiversity and Natural Disturbances: Building a More Resilient Forest Sector”, we were joined by Managing Director of Torchlight Resources, Jamie Stephen, Chair of the BC Forest Practices Board, Keith Atkinson, Wood Council Chairperson of United Steelworkers, Jeff Bromley, and VP, Sustainability & Chief Forester of Mosaic Forests, Molly Hudson with Advisor of Bioeconomy Initiatives of Foresight Canada, Sandy Ferguson moderating the session. The forest industry is constantly evolving, where forest planning must prepare for natural disturbances, account for Indigenous values, and maintain socio-economic benefits now and in the future. This panel was brought together to unpack those challenges, and discuss innovative solutions. The speakers covered areas such as the potential of bioenergy as an area for investment as a part of wildfire mitigation, and how industry can tap into carbon capture and storage initiatives. Science-based public audits were presented as a way to motivate companies to improve their forest practices, and there are important considerations for change as we look at the risk of another year of intense wildfires. The Forest sector is a strong economic and social pillar of BC, with innovation required to ensure a prosperous future for forestry workers. There are opportunities to be more creative with active forest management to respond to wildfire risk, and build on emerging opportunities to generate carbon credits for global markets. The panelists agreed that it is important to be out there communicating how the forest sector is actively working on solutions to these challenges, and managing the forests to protect communities from wildfire risks.

The last panel of the day looked to the role of forestry leadership, with President & CEO of West Fraser Timber, Sean McLaren, President & CEO of Western Forest Products, Steven Hofer, President of Nanwakolas Council, Dallas Smith, Former Chief Councillor, Huu-ay-aht First Nations, Robert Dennis Sr. and CEO of Gorman Group, Nick Arkle joining together on stage. President & CEO of the Business Council of BC, Laura Jones, moderated the session. With industry change at the forefront of today’s conversations, panelists agreed that industry stakeholders and community leaders need to work together to achieve a prosperous future. Forest companies need to be competitive in how they can build great teams, and invest in those teams. That requires a sense of stability in the future of the industry so that people want to commit towards building careers in the industry. When we are talking about an industry in transition, it is not a transition away from forestry, but a transformation of what forest practices look like, and the new partnerships coming together that can move things forward. By reenergizing stakeholders, building strategic partnerships and meaningful revenue sharing that aligns interest, we can gain momentum in meeting environmental, economic and social goals. This calls for individualized solutions that respect the uniqueness of each mill and each forest, to find ways to maximize economic benefits while balancing the ecological and social values. To go from surviving to thriving, it will take time, commitment and good listening skills.