faculty/staff « College of Forestry

*Photograph of Rajat Panwar at the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations*

As world leaders convened in September in New Delhi, India for the 2023 G20 Summit, they were handed policy briefs created by Think 20 (T20) Engagement group to inform their discussion and decisions, including one, led by Rajat Panwar, an associate professor at the College of Forestry.

“Essentially the work of the T20 is to provide scientific input to the world leaders for the G20,” Panwar said. “Each taskforce focuses on a different concern or issue relevant to this year’s G20, from climate change to global conflict, and synthesizes their research into a single policy brief and recommendations.”

Initiated in 2012, The T20 is independent from national governments and comprised of think tanks and academia from all over the world. The engagement group does not advocate or campaign around specific ideas, but instead generates insightful policy proposals, synthesized into policy briefs and presented to G20 working groups, ministerial meetings, and leaders to help the G20 deliver concrete policy measures.

As a lead author of one of the policy briefs produced by a T20 taskforce focused on Accelerating Sustainable Development Goals, Panwar worked in partnership with four other high-level experts for four months to produce the policy brief Aligning G20 Industrial Policies with Biodiversity Conservation. Though their work consisted of many drafts and multiple revisions, they were also asked to summarize their work into a sentence or two.

“Though we had so much to say,” said Panwar, “Our key conclusion was that biodiversity conservation cannot be left to markets. G20 countries must make biodiversity conservation a core priority in industrial policies related to investments and manufacturing.”

Panwar’s policy brief group included Nagesh Kumar, Director, Institute for Studies in Industrial Development, India, VB Mathur, Former Chairperson, National Biodiversity Authority, India, Maria Jose Murcia, Associate Professor, Austral University, Argentina and Jonatan Pinkse, Professor, The University of Manchester, UK.

In addition to his work for the G20, Panwar is the lead author for a chapter on business and biodiversity in the upcoming assessment by The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). He’s also the lead author for the “Bioeconomy Assessment for Latin America” conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. In 2022, he was co-author on the State of the World’s Forest report published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Dr. George Brown, the former dean of the College of Forestry, passed away peacefully on June 9 surrounded by his family.

George arrived at Oregon State University in 1964 as a Ph.D. graduate student studying forest hydrology and began his College of Forestry teaching and research career in 1966. In 1973, he was appointed head of the Forest Engineering Department and in 1986 he became Associate Dean for Research. In total, he was a faculty member or administrator at Oregon State University for 32 years, retiring in 1999 as Dean of the College of Forestry, a position he held for 10 years.

As Dean, George encouraged the kind of systems-based, collaborative and inter-disciplinary research the college continues today. He pushed faculty members to work across organizational and institutional boundaries and transformed the Oregon State College of Forestry into the leading recipient of grants and contracts among the nation’s forestry schools before his retirement. George was also actively involved in the Corvallis community, volunteering and fundraising for community service organizations including Community Outreach and the Boys and Girls Club. After retirement from the college, George stayed in regular contact with many in the community. The logging sports arena in the Peavy Arboretum is proudly named after him.

George Brown left an amazing legacy at the College of Forestry. The work and research we pursue on a daily basis is built on those who came before us, and George’s 32 years of incredible contributions are of immeasurable value.

George is survived by his wife Joan, daughters Christen Maier, Annie Brown Kurowski, son in law, Brad Maier, three grandchildren, sister Sally Presson, nieces Kim Blaes, Amy Presson and nephews Don and Matt Presson.

A celebration of life is scheduled for July 21st at 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church and is open to the public. The college will also hold a celebration of life for George in the fall.

The family suggests that memorials may be made to the Dean’s Fund for Excellence & Innovation in the College of Forestry or the George W Brown Scholarship Endowment through the Oregon State University Foundation. Donations also can be made online at fororegonstate.org. Please note “in memory of George W Brown” on the memo line or in the online giving form. The family also suggests memorials may be made to Community Outreach or the Corvallis First United Methodist Church Foundation.

Temesgen Hailemariam plays a key role in improving the productivity, health, and sustainability of intensively managed, planted forests in the Pacific Northwest

Temesgen Hailemariam has accomplished a lot in his 20 years at OSU’s College of Forestry – and he’s not done yet. In 2022, Temesgen was named the Giustina Professor of Forest Management and appointed as the director of the Center for Intensive Planted-forest Silviculture (CIPS), two prestigious roles that reflect his wealth of experience and expertise.

His new leadership position with CIPS will position him to play a key part in shaping the silviculture activities and research at OSU – and beyond. Their core mission is to improve the economic and environmental performance of the Pacific Northwest forests and to enhance the regional and global competitiveness of the Pacific Northwest producers in the forest products industry.

“As a land-grant university, we have a responsibility to Oregonians and to the public,” he said. “And we also have a responsibility to promote economic and environmental sustainability in the Pacific Northwest. The Center for Intensive Planted-forest Silviculture brings all of those objectives together and I’m honored to be able to contribute to sustainable forestry management, conservation, and economics through this role.”

He says it’s an especially critical time for this work, with both climate change and economic stressors impacting the forest industry. His goal will be to increase the profitability of the forest industry while also finding ways to mitigate climate change through forest management. He’ll be collaborating with stakeholders to implement sustainable forest management and restoration, provide opportunities for youth, and advance the forestry sector into the 21st century.

Temesgen first joined the College of Forestry faculty in 2003, as an assistant professor in forest biometrics and measurements. Since then, he’s taught hundreds of students, published more than 100 peer-reviewed publications, secured more than $4 million in research funding, and conducted work in Vietnam, Ethiopia, Canada, Germany, the United States, Chile, and South Korea. One of his greatest joys as a faculty member is mentoring students and he says he’s honored to have trained 5 postdoctoral scholars, 7 doctoral and 15 master’s degree students while at OSU.

His research highlights include developing a method to estimate the amount of carbon sequestered by a tree or by a forest, developing biomass and carbon equations, integrating airborne LiDAR and ground data to estimate status, change, and trends within a forest, and using advanced statistics to estimate the productivity of a forest.

It was not a direct path that led Temesgen to Corvallis. He studied and conducted research on three different continents before he made his way to Oregon. He was born and raised in Ethiopia, where he first developed an interest in the natural environment and forestry and decided he wanted to study biometrics and pursue work in forestry statistics. He got his first degree in Ethiopia and then headed to Ontario for his master’s degree before hopping across Canada to finish his Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He also did a stint in Germany as a visiting scientist at the Institute of Forest Management and Yield studies at the University of Göttingen.

He brought all of this global experience and perspective to OSU, where he’s now happily settled with his family. One of his sons is attending OSU and the other is a high school senior.

“Our challenges are global, and our views should be as well. My journey to OSU has shaped my views and prepared me to tackle future challenges,” he said.

Jim Rivers, an animal ecologist in the OSU College of Forestry, is among the American Ornithological Society’s 2023 honorees, receiving the Marion Jenkinson Service Award in recognition of his “sustained and generous contributions of time, energy, mentorship, and leadership in the AOS.”

The Marion Jenkinson Service Award goes to an early- or mid-career ornithologist “who has performed continued extensive service” to the society.

The award carries an honorarium of $1,000 and is expected to be formally presented in August at the society’s annual conference in London, Ontario.

Rivers has served on multiple AOS committees, including as chair of the Student Affairs Committee shortly after its establishment.

“In addition to being an enduring advocate for students and early professionals in our society, Dr. Rivers has contributed directly to several AOS conferences, has helped develop new awards to recognize significant contributions, and continues to serve as an associate editor for (the journal) Ornithology,” the society notes.

The 2022 Dean’s Award recipients and retirees were recently honored with an awards ceremony and celebration. Since 1990, the Dean’s Awards for Outstanding Achievement have recognized outstanding contributions by our community members that significantly advanced the mission of the College.

Kerry Menn and Jim Kiser were recognized for outstanding achievement in fostering undergraduate student success. Nominators noted “Kerry takes great care to ensure that our students are well supported while they pursue international internships or opportunities to study abroad. She is always “there” for them, and this literally means, that wherever they are (or she is), she will always reach out promptly with useful information, and directly intervene to remove obstacles and streamline processes.” Collegues noted that Jim teaches a large proportion of the undergraduate forestry and forest engineering course credit hours, spanning a vast array of FERM, CoF, and university majors. During academic year 20-21, Jim taught 20% of the total FERM teaching load!

Jessica Blunn was awarded outstanding achievement in contributions as a student worker in Jeff Hatten’s lab. Nominators noted “Jessica pursues everything she does in the lab with the same enthusiasm and focus—regardless of whether it is weighing hundreds of soil samples, to complicated and painstaking wet lab analyses. The work she produces and supports is of the highest caliber and the College has been made a much better and more supportive place because of her dedication.”

Mark Kerstens was recognized for outstanding achievement in graduate student leadership. Mark has been involved in FERM as a graduate student since fall 2019, when he started M.S. thesis work focused on assessing the extent to which the vital rates of the Black-backed Woodpecker differ between unburned (green) forests and recently burned forests. Despite being here for just over two years, Mark has achieved remarkable accomplishments that demonstrate his leadership, particularly in the areas of research and service.

The Pauline Barto Award for Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion went to the Rootstock & Food Drive Committees. Adrienne Wonhof, Allison Culver, Amy Riley, Brooke Harrington, Christina Fierro, Jessica Fitzmorris, Juliet Sutton, Madison Dudley, Nicole Kent, Terralyn Vandetta, Ann Van Zee, Cathy Knock, Hilary McMillan, Jen Elston, Misty Magers, Tunde Jordan and Jenna Baker were honored, as well as Beth Thompson, Irene Schoppy and Julia Lont for their support of the committees.

Juliet Sutton was recognized for outstanding achievement in the mentorship of graduate students. One of the 30+ nominators said “Juliet does an excellent job making graduate students feel like a significant part of the college, even though some of them are remote E-Campus students living far away. She always has each student’s best interests in mind and provides a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for students to thrive.”

Madison Dudley and Woody Chung were recognized for outstanding achievement in distinction to the college. Nominators noted that Madison is the heart and soul of the graduate degree program in FERM, and Woody’s service and groundbreaking research has brought international recognition to our college.

2022 retirees Fred Kamke, Mike Bondi, Jon Souder and Brad Withrow-Robinson, and 2023 retiree Sandy Jameson were recognized for their service to the college. Sandy started working at OSU in 1988 and for the last 10 years, she has advised students in forestry, forest engineering, and forest-civil engineering. She was instrumental in implementing the pro-school model for the FERM department. Mike Bondi retired in 2020 after a 42-year career with OSU Extension and the College of Forestry. Mike developed one of the best forestry Extension programs in the nation while advancing his academic rank to achieve full professor in the College of Forestry. Brad Withrow-Robinson worked for OSU Extension for over 20 years, most recently as the extension forester for Benton, Linn, and Polk Counties. Fred Kamke and Jon Souder were unable to attend the ceremony.

*Professors Matt Betts and Mark Needham*

Mark Needham, professor in the department of forest ecosystems and society, was one of the program leaders in our faculty-led summer trip to Borneo. Oil Palms and Orangutans: Forest Conservation in Malaysian Borneo introduced students to the major conservation challenges facing Borneo while traveling around the Malaysian state of Sabah.

How long were you in Borneo? Was all the time devoted to the program or did you do some other sightseeing while you were there?
The program lasted two weeks in June 2022. All of my time was devoted to the program and I did minimal extra sightseeing. There were 17 undergraduate and graduate students from various programs across campus (e.g., natural resources; fish and wildlife; tourism, recreation, and adventure leadership). This course focused on intersections among forest management, wildlife conservation, ecotourism, community well-being, and poverty alleviation. The students observed many animal species (e.g., orangutans, sun bears, pygmy elephants), engaged with local communities and organizations (e.g., palm oil plantation companies, community-based ecotourism enterprises, government agencies, non-governmental organizations), engaged in various experiences (e.g., tree planting, cooking local foods, playing local music), and participated in daily discussions and debates as well as working on their assignments. Through this immersive and experience-based learning opportunity, the students gained a wide understanding and appreciation for these issues and the local cultures. It also broadened their perspectives on various topics.

What is one memory from the program that sticks out?
Seeing my first orangutans and first sun bears in the wild; the variety and diversity of wildlife species in Borneo are incredible! I will also never forget how thoughtful, engaged, and kind all of the students were. This was the first multi-week study abroad course that I led and it impacted me more than I ever imagined. I was energized by the student enthusiasm and passion. I was encouraged by the student thoughtfulness and appreciation for the complexity of the issues discussed. And, I was touched by the student compassion and caring for their fellow students and the local community members.

What advice do you have for students interested in this program?
Just do it! Step out of your comfort zone and go for it! Traveling internationally in developing regions and with a class group can be difficult and challenge you in various ways, but the experiences, relationships, and knowledge gained are priceless, and you will never forget it.

I know you love photography, how many pictures did you take in Borneo?
Yes, I am a professional wildlife photographer. I took more than 2,000 images of wildlife in Borneo. I am only now just starting to sort through and process (i.e., digitally develop) some of them, as right after Borneo, I traveled straight to South Africa, then Botswana, then New Zealand, and then Australia, so this summer has been a whirlwind of amazing places and adventures!

Anything else you would like to share?
At the end of the course, many of the students said things such as “this trip changed my life,” “it solidified my choice to study natural resources and all of the complexities associated with managing these resources and the people who depend on them,” and “I now want to study these issues in much more depth, perhaps by continuing on with a graduate degree.” This feedback is awesome and so gratifying!

Our faculty led programs offer students the opportunity to study special topics for academic credit with College of Forestry faculty. These programs are both led and conceived by our faculty, and may incorporate study with international students and instructors. They are often shorter than the length of a term and may take place during spring break, winter break, or the first or last few weeks of summer term.

October 24, 1932 – August 30, 2022

It is with great sadness that we share that Mike Newton, Professor Emeritus in the department of forest engineering, resources and management, passed away August 30, 2022.

Mike earned both his master’s and Ph.D. at Oregon State and was a faculty member at the College of Forestry for 40 years. During that time he conducted extensive research on the use of herbicides to control weeds in a wide array of forest settings, with the ultimate aim of determining the ideal environment for reforestation initiatives.

Over the course of his OSU career, Mike led significant investigations into competition between trees, shrubs and weeds in areas of differing rainfall and soil type and oversaw a major program in silviculture, with specific focus on the response of trees to different managed competition environments. In the latter stages of his tenure on the OSU faculty, Mike turned his attention to tree growth in cold weather climates. He also oversaw a mature forest study, which attempted to model the ideal regeneration of segments of forestland based on planned thinning and harvesting schedules. Mike was likewise involved in stream temperature studies during this period, working to determine the ideal types of riparian cover to maintain water temperatures that are optimum for healthy freshwater fish populations.

Although Mike retired from the College over 20 years ago, several folks shared memories of him. Jeff Hatten remembered how welcoming Mike was to both him and Ben Leshchinsky shortly after being hired at OSU. Jeff recalled Mike inviting them to come out to his forestland and spend the day on multiple occasions and share his knowledge from his forty years with OSU.

John Sessions, a close friend of Mike’s, shared a favorite memory of Mike. He said a number of years ago he was on a tour where Mike was explaining his work on conifer restoration in riparian zones in the Coast Range. One of the audience members challenged Mike by asking, “How do you know conifers grew here?” Mike replied, “I am standing on a conifer stump.” John said he was proud to call Mike a friend.

Mike retired from OSU in 1999, but remained very active as a scholar and mentor. Over the course of his career, Mike supervised 66 graduate students hailing from 11 different countries and published over 400 papers on forest science. To learn more Mike’s career and his contributions to the College of Forestry, please visit the Oregon State Oral History Project. To learn more about Mike’s life, family, and legacy please visit his obituary.

Mike is survived by his children, Dan and (Kathy), children and great grandchildren, Linda & (Mike), and children, Tom and (April) and children.

A Celebration of Life will be Saturday, October 29th, 2022 at 11:00 am at the First Presbyterian Church of Corvallis, Dennis Hall: 114 SW 8th St. Corvallis, OR. Memorials are welcome to Oregon Small Woodland Association or Community Outreach, Inc. of Corvallis.

Ashley D’Antonio is an Associate Professor of Nature-Based Recreation Management. She does research focused on recreation ecology and outdoor recreation management, and teaches undergraduate courses on similar topics. This summer, she continued work on an ongoing research project just outside Falls City, Oregon on land managed by the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) called Black Rock Mountain Biking Area.

Describe an average day
Most days we would pick up our field gear at Richardson Hall around 9 am and then drive out to the trailhead (about 50 minutes away). On a typical day, we’d do one of two types of data collection. Some days we head into the trail system to download data from automatic trail counters that we’ve installed throughout the mountain biking trail system. These automatic counters estimate how many people are using the trails. We also are conducting visitor surveys as people wrap up their visit – these surveys help us understand who is using Black Rock Mountain Biking Area, why they are using the area, and what changes they may like to see to the area. When doing surveys, we spend quite a bit of time waiting at the trailhead for folks to finish mountain biking, it can get really busy, but it’s also good to have a book to read during downtime between visitors.

Describe a non-average day
Part of this project is also to help ODF think about how they might monitor recreation use at other recreation sites they manage. So, I did have one non-average day when our fieldwork was a guided tour of the Tillamook State Forest. We were able to see the varied types of recreation offered by ODF including OHV use, hiking trails, and campgrounds. It was great to meet with ODF managers and spend time with my project collaborators from the University of Washington in the field.

Describe your field crew/other entities you worked with
This project would not be possible without the amazing field crew of students that have been helping! Skyler Cristelli, a Natural Resources student in the College of Forestry, has been leading the fieldwork on this project. Last winter and spring terms, Opal Christian – a recent TRAL grad – helped Skye will all of the data collection until she graduated. And then this summer, a new Masters of Natural Resources student, Jon Anderegg, joined the project. We’re out there working at least 4 days a month for an entire year, so student help has been essential. We are also collaborating with Spencer Wood and Sama Winder at the University of Washington’s Outdoor Recreation and Data Lab. They are using remote methods (social media and a chatbot) to monitor use at Black Rock Mountain Biking Area and we’ll be comparing our data to see which approaches will be best for ODF broadly.

What happens now with this research?
We’re still collecting data on this project for a few more months. After that, we’ll be collaborating with the University of Washington to write-up a project report for ODF. We hope the work helps them to better understand and manage use at Black Rock Mountain Biking Area. And also, the overall project will help inform ODF about approaches for monitoring recreation use at other recreation destinations that they manage.

Anything else you want us to know?
I don’t mountain bike (I am too risk adverse, ha!), but Black Rock Mountain Biking Area is an amazing location! The folks that ride there are so nice and friendly, and the trail system is pretty unique. I’ve had some of my most positive experience surveying folks about outdoor recreation at this site this past summer.

What I did this summer is a profile series of students, faculty and staff in the College of Forestry. Did you have a great job, vacation, or field research experience? Contact CoFThisWeek@oregonstate.edu and we will be in touch!

It is our pleasure to announce that Professor Temesgen Hailemariam has been appointed as the N.B. and Jacqueline Giustina Professor of Forest Management and the Director of the Center for Intensive Planted-forest Silviculture.

Temesgen earned his Ph.D. in Forest Biometrics from the University of British Columbia in 1999 and has been with the College of Forestry since 2003. Temesgen has a prolific career in growth and yield modeling, silviculture, forest operations, carbon estimation, and climate change issues. His work has resulted in over 90 peer-reviewed publications and $4 million in funding. Importantly, he has trained 7 Ph.D. and 15 M.Sc. students that have gone on to distinguished careers in academia, agencies, consulting, and private industry. Over his career, Temesgen has been honored with several awards including the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Mentorship of Graduate Students (2019), the Xi Sigma Pi Mentor award (2008), and the Emerging Scholar Faculty Award of the OSU chapter of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (2007).

The Giustina Professor of Forest Management endowment honors Nat, ’41, and his wife Jacqueline Giustina. Their son, Larry Giustina, ‘71 and his wife Carolyn Keen Giustina, ’71, generously supported this endowed professorship. Larry, an OSU Lifetime Trustee, founding chair of the College of Forestry Board of Visitors, and an OSU College of Business alum, was a staunch advocate and friend of the College of Forestry .

Congratulations Temesgen!

It is with great pleasure that we share that Dr. Cristina Eisenberg will be joining the College as the Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence and Director of Tribal Initiatives in the College of Forestry. After a nationwide competitive search process culminating in the interview of three outstanding candidates, we identified Dr. Eisenberg as an excellent match for our needs and hopes for this new position within the College.

In this role, Dr. Eisenberg will direct a new Office for Tribal Initiatives in the College, serve as our primary liaison with the nine Tribes of Oregon and with Tribal Nations throughout the Northwest, oversee the execution of the College’s DEI strategic plan, and work closely with our new Director of Student Success to improve recruitment, retention and completion of under-served student populations and help advance the College as a program dedicated to diversity, equity, justice and inclusion. Dr. Eisenberg is a first-generation Latinix and Native American (Apache and Rarámuri) scholar who comes to us with years of experience in Traditional Ecological Knowledge, restoration ecology and wildlife biology. She has previously served as the Chief Scientist at Earthwatch Institute at Harvard University, as Director at Large on the Board of the Society for Ecological Restoration and Director of the Traditional Ecological Working Group, as a member of the Board of Trustees of Prescott College, and as a member of the Board of Directors of Sustainable Northwest. She has conducted extensive work as an independent scientist and researcher. Dr. Eisenberg holds a PhD from Oregon State University, a MA from Prescott College, and a BFA from the University of California-Long Beach and was previously courtesy faculty in the department of forest ecosystems and society. Dr. Eisenberg will start in early September.

College of Forestry

At Oregon State University

Category Archives: faculty/staff

College of Forestry professor Rajat Panwar contributes to India G20 thought leadership

Emeritus Dean George Brown leaves amazing legacy

Temesgen Hailemariam: a leader in sustainable forestry

Jim Rivers honored by American Ornithological Society

2022 Dean’s Awards and Retiree Recognition

What I did this summer: Mark Needham

In memory of Mike Newton

What I did this summer: Ashley D’Antonio

Temesgen Hailemariam appointed as the Giustina Professor of Forest Management

Dr. Cristina Eisenberg named the new Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence and Director of Tribal Initiatives

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