Master Woodland Manager

Extension Master Woodland Managers Program

Website:  http://extension.oregonstate.edu/mwm/

Who is a MWM?   

MWM’s are qualified family forest land owners who receive specialized training by OSU Forestry Extension to be effective volunteers and community leaders.  In return for approximately 80 hours of free instruction in subject areas that range from management planning, ecology, and forest inventory methods, MWM’s provide an in-kind service through various volunteer activities.

One of the most important functions of an MWM is to assist neighbors with basic forestry planning and decision-making processes, offering guidance and pointing them to local sources of assistance. Besides working with neighboring landowners, MWM’s have optimized their own strengths and skills to complete their service in a variety of ways, such as:

Assisting OSU Forestry Extension with tours and demonstrations,

Taking leadership roles in local organizations and community government,

Providing education to youth groups, and

Speaking to non-forestry audiences regarding the importance of forestry

The OSU Extension Forestry Team offers trainings at different locations around the state each year and the last one in our area was in 2006 when we graduated 15 new MWMs.  The training is a 6-month commitment and covers a broad range of forestry-related topics.  Here is an outline of our 2006 training:

Training Schedule

Month 1, Day 1         

8 hrs: Introduction to MWM, leadership training, extension methods

Month 1, Day 2         

4 hrs: Management Planning and 4 hrs: Applied Ecology

Month 2, Day 1         

8 hrs: Timber Inventory

Month 2, Day 2         

8 hrs: Silviculture

Month 3, Day 1         

6 hrs: Wildlife and 2 hrs: Forestry Issues and Policies

Month 3, Day 2         

6 hrs: Watershed Concepts and Principles/Ponds/Riparian and Stream Protectionand 2 hrs: Wildlife

Month 4, Day 1         

4 hrs: Logging, Marketing, Access and 4 hrs: Business Management

Month 5, Day 1Friday, August 11   Baker City    

8 hrs: Reforestation

Month 6, Day 1         

8 hrs: Forest Protection

Month 7         

4 hrs: Graduation and Dinner

For more information on the MWM program, go to their website at:  http://extension.oregonstate.edu/mwm/.