SBIR-STTR Award

Rural communities are increasingly involved in strategic planning for economic development. However, knowledge about the forest resource base and opportunities and constraints facing forest-based industries is often lacking among community economic development planners. Communities who are well-educated concerning their forests will be better able to work effectively with the public, private, and non-profit sectors to create appropriate formal and informal economic opportunities while protecting environmental quality. The objective of this project is to produce a workbook and training design that will help rural communities in the United States strategically plan for forest stewardship and forest-based economic development. The project will develop practical tools to optimize economic and environmental community benefits from forests. Phase I will include: 1) creating a workbook and training design tailored to Vermont communities and 2) conducting market research in two additional States and among forest-based development organizations in different regions of the country to determine demand for a similar approach customized for the States in question. The workbook and training design will be developed in collaboration with two rural Vermont communities to insure its practicality.

Anticipated Results/Potential Commercial Applications of Research:
: Rural communities will gain greater awareness and access to resources for forest-based stewardship and economic development; and increased capacity to integrate the forestry sector into community-based economic development planning. The workbook and training program would be an essential, practical tool to achieve the USDA Forest Service Rural Community Assistance Program's focus on collaborative stewardship. Federal Resource and Conservation District program staff, State level forest development practitioners, cooperative extension services, community-based conservation commissions and economic development groups are all potential end users. The National Network of Forest Practitioners, a 300 member alliance of forest-based rural community development practitioners, of which YWA is a member, will serve as an initial test market.

Many forested rural communities underestimate or simply ignore the value of their forests as social, environmental, and economic assets for the community. Communities who are well educated concerning their forests will be better able to work effectively with the public, private and non-profit sectors to create appropriate economic opportunities while protecting environmental quality. During Phase I of this project, Yellow Wood Associates worked in cooperation with two Vermont communities to design and deliver See the Forest, a 5 module training program with practical tools to optimize community economic and environmental benefits from forests. We then conducted market research in two additional states and among forest based development organizations nationwide to determine demand for a similar program customized for other states. During Phase II of the project we propose 1) working with partners in up to six additional states to adapt the prototype for use by communities in those states, and 2) testing a model for funding and delivery of See the Forest to communities by forming relationships with sponsors who raise money for program delivery.

Anticipated Results/Potential Commercial Applications of Research:
: At the conclusion of Phase II, we will have tested See the Forest in six more states. We will be able to provide accurate cost information regarding program adaptation and delivery to potential sponsors. We will market See the Forest extensively in the states for which the program is developed. We anticipate an increase in demand for See the Forest over the next decade as the value of the forest resource rises, awareness of forest benefits increase, and foundations and the U.S. Forest Service continue to promote the importance of community involvement in forest management.