The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization says that investing in sustainable forest management, sustainable forest management can not only address climate issues, but also offset job losses caused by the economic downturn, by creating ten million new green jobs.  Forests and trees are vital storehouses of carbon, so such an investment could also make a major contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts.

According to a recent study by the International Labour Organization, unemployment worldwide could increase from 179 million in 2007 to 198 million in 2009 under the best case scenario; under the worst case scenario, it could go as high as 230 million.  Increased investment in forestry could provide jobs in forest management, agroforestry and farm forestry, improved fire management, development and management of trails and recreation sites, expansion of urban green spaces, restoring degraded forests and planting new ones.   The United States, Korea, India and a few other countries have included forestry in their economic stimulus plans.

This was the focus of the World Forest Week and the  FAO’s Committee on Forestry meeting that was held last month in March.  It emphasized the critical role of forests in society’s response to the challenges posed by climate change.

If you are interested in exploring a career in forestry, the National Association of Professional Forestry Schools and Colleges has a list of forestry schools and programs across the United States.  The Society of American Foresters web site is also a great starting point for exploring a career in forestry.

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Author: Tracey de Morsella (323 Articles)

Tracey de Morsella started her career working as an editor for US Technology Magazine. She used that experience to launch Delaware Valley Network, a publication for professionals in the Greater Philadelphia area. Years later, she used the contacts and resources she acquired to work in executive search specializing in technical and diversity recruitment. She has conducted recruitment training seminars for Wachovia Bank, the Department of Interior and the US Postal Service. During this time, she also created a diversity portal called The Multicultural Advantage and published the Diversity Recruitment Advertising Toolkit, a directory of recruiting resources for human resources professionals. Her career and recruitment articles have appeared in numerous publications and web portals including Woman Engineer Magazine, Monster.com, About.com Job Search Channel, Workplace Diversity Magazine, Society for Human Resource Management web site, NSBE Engineering Magazine, HR.com, and Human Resource Consultants Association Newsletter. Her work with technology professionals drew her to pursuing training and work in web development, which led to a stint at Merrill Lynch as an Intranet Manager. In March, she decided to combine her technical and career management expertise with her passion for the environment, and with her husband, launched The Green Economy Post, a blog providing green career information and covering the impact of the environment, sustainable building, cleantech and renewable energy on the US economy. Her sustainability articles have appeared on Industrial Maintenance & Plant Operation, Chem.Info,FastCompany and CleanTechies.