from California State Board of Forestry:
NEWS RELEASE: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Board of Forestry and Fire Protection
CONTACT: Matt Dias, Board Staff, RELEASE DATE: August 5, 2014
University of California, Berkeley Forestry to be Honored for Outstanding Contributions to California Forestry
Sacramento - The California State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection will present the University of California (UC), Berkeley Forestry Program with its highest honor, the “Francis H. Raymond Award for Outstanding Contributions to California Forestry.” The presentation will be made during the Board Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, August 27, 2014 in the first floor auditorium of the Resources Building located at 1416 9th Street in downtown Sacramento.
UC Berkeley Forestry represents a strong cadre of Cal Foresters that today are well-represented as leaders in the management, conservation, regulation and research of California's vast forestlands. Academic contributions of the program have positively impacted forest management and policy throughout the world since the program started a century ago, in 1914. Some of the notable achievements include: developing the underpinnings for modern remote sensing, the first milling studies of second growth redwood and giant sequoia, research on seedling physiology that revolutionized seedling production, and ecological investigation on the role of fire in forested environments. Over the past century, the UC Berkeley Forestry program has provided opportunities for students with an interest in forest management, science, and policy with the skills to succeed in their academic careers. The UC Berkeley Forestry program is responsible for producing many of the Registered Professional Foresters within the state.
Additionally, the UC Berkeley Forestry program, through the Blodgett Research Forest Station in the Sierra Nevada, continues to work diligently at promoting forest stewardship through demonstration and research and annually extends informative tours to local and state elected representatives as a means of informing policy makers on the art and science of sound forest management. The UC Berkeley Forestry program is a well deserving of this prestigious award given the breadth of involvement and influence on forestry in California over the past 100 years.
The award is named for Francis H. Raymond, who was the Director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection from 1953 to 1970. Mr. Raymond was one of the primary advocates for the passage of the Professional Foresters Law in 1973. Since 1987 it has been awarded to a group or individual who has achieved excellence in forestry in California.
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