Advisory Council

Our advisory council members are our presence in communities throughout the region. They serve as our eyes and ears, informing rural residents about the services we can provide and letting us know about information and services needed at the local level. Council members are selected to represent the region geographically and contribute a diverse mix of perspectives in regards to community forestry.

The council is augmented by a team of 5 technical advisors, who provide specific expertise and represent different segments of the forestry and rural development communities.

In addition to representing us on the ground in communities, council members provide guidance in three areas:

1. Prioritize research targets and products for the Center on an annual basis
2. Select communities to partner with in supporting participatory citizen-driven research and development
3. Provide feedback and guidance to Center staff in other areas of program development such as annual work plans and communications.

The Benefits of Advisory Council Membership:

Membership on the council provides an opportunity to network with others across the Northern Forest Region, learn about issues affecting Northern Forest communities, become familiar with a range of resources available to assist communities in addressing local and regional issues, and direct those resources to where they will do the most good. Council members also have a chance to learn about issues affecting forest communities in the Southeast, Southwest, and Pacific Northwest areas of the United States through information exchange with the Center's other branches. Two members of the council serve on the National Advisory Committee for the NCFC.

Nomination for Council Membership

Our council members serve one to three year terms, qualifications are as follows:

• residence in a rural community in the Northern Forest which includes the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Northern New York
• willingness to commit two to three years of your time (We estimate that participation will require 2-3 meetings per year with 3-4 intervening conference calls for a total of approximately 5-6 days per year)
• passion for forest-related issues and community well-being
• willingness to work and learn together as part of a diverse group

We encourage you to nominate yourself or others you feel are qualified and willing to serve by using the form found in the Who We Are section of this site, or by clicking here.

Advisory Council Bios

Maine: Don Cyr, Judy Merck, Richard Siliboy, Vite Vitale

New Hampshire: Spencer Laramie, Tom Thomson

New York:  James Allen, Irene Brown, Carl Golas, Ann Ruzow Holland 

Vermont: Josh Nicosia, Nancy Patch, William R. Sayre, Steve Kimball