|
|  |
CA Reforestation Bulletin
Spring 2026
| | |
In this edition:
- RPP Program Updates
- News, Readings and Resources
- Upcoming Events
- Job Openings
- Branching Off
| | |
Updates from the CA Reforestation Pipeline Partnership
'Twas not a winter for hibernation! In February, RPP went to Washington to participate in the Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition's 'DC Fly-in', during which the coalition advocated on the Hill for reforestation-enabling legislation including the Fix Our Forests Act and discussed rural economic development through the lens of the Stewardship Economy to unlock forest and wood products innovation while addressing management backlogs.
Several American Forests' California office staff members made it to the SAF California Forest Science Symposium for a chance to hear the latest forest research updates right from their sources. Presentations covered a wide range of topics, from wildfire dynamics in coast redwoods, using remote sensing to measure prescribed fire effects, when and where to plant after high-severity fire, to modeling cone ripeness phenology and more.
| RPP goes to Washington alongside Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition. Coalition members prepare for a meeting at Senator Steve Daines' (R-MT) office on February 10, 2026. Left to right: Laurel Harkness, Shelley Villalobos, Katie Riley, Vincent Vitale, Kathleen Riggs | American Forests' California crew & friends at the SAF California Science Symposium, February 19, 2026. Left to right: Kelli Oelrichs, Ruby Beauchamp, Kat Barton, John Mount, Kristin Weikel | Moving into March, American Forests attended and sponsored the Forestry Stewardship & Innovations (FSI) conference hosted by Calforests in Sacramento. One highlight was the opening keynote talk from USDA Forest Service Chief Tom Schulz, during which he shared that in 2025 the agency achieved 265,000 acres of reforestation nationwide, the most in a single year since 1999. He spoke about expanding cooperative federalism—that is, delegating responsibility for the management of some of the total 193 million acres of National Forest system lands to partners including States, Tribes and Counties, stating frankly to the room, "we can't do it alone." | | USDA Forest Service Chief Tom Schulz rehydrates after delivering the opening keynote on March 3, 2026 at Calforests' Forestry Stewardship & Innovation conference in Sacramento. | Next, the CA Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force meeting, held at the beautiful Chicken Ranch Resort and Casino in Jamestown on March 19, featured panels on achieving, sustaining and financing forest resilience to a crowd of more than 400 in-person attendees. The next day, RPP staff attended the ‘Rim Fire Reforestation’ field tour on the Stanislaus National Forest's Groveland Ranger District (also where Cone Corps member Reiley Allison is serving to assist with cone collection, reforestation implementation, botany surveys and more). Ryan Murdoff, Botanist and Natural Resources Officer for the Stanislaus National Forest, showed the group several sites that burned at high severity in the 2013 Rim Fire and where the Forest Service and partners from the Yosemite Rivers Alliance began replanting in 2021, with those trees now reaching heights of ~5 feet (see photo below). We were also encouraged to see that some areas are regenerating naturally – in some places to an extent where they’ll warrant consideration of some thinning for proactive future fuel management and stand health, according to Ryan. | Kirsten Meyer (Yosemite Rivers Alliance) & Ryan Murdoff (USDA Forest Service) show and tell about their work reforesting within the Rim Fire ('13) footprint on the Stanislaus National Forest. | | |
Behind the desk, we've been working through applications and interviews to fill the upcoming season's Cone Corps positions, as well as reconvening the huddles that bring together the best in current institutional and experiential knowledge from CAL FIRE Reforestation Services Program and USFS Region 5 Silviculture, Nursery & Genetics and non-agency partners to co-create Cone Camps, the 'CA Cone Observations' Survey 123 application, and update the California Cone Hunter's Pocket Guide from version 1 into an improved-and-expanded version 2 coming this year!
Cone Camp registration is now open for the three camps coming this summer, and we're pleased to invite you all to save the dates for October 20-22 for the RPP Fall Gathering, 'The Understory' where we'll change things up from our usual Sacramento-adjacent location(s) by bringing the event down to Tulare county, in the southern Sierra Nevada range. Notably, we're moving away from our quarterly in-person meeting cadence to a once-annual fall gathering in order to be able to dedicate more staff time to new and active RPP huddles (collaborative action centers!). One example is the Reforestation Science huddle, which offers virtual and in-person opportunities for learning and expert-led discussion, including an exciting two-part series on climate informed seed selection and deployment starting next week with USDA Forest Service research geneticist emeritus Jessica Wright, PhD to kick things off.
🌧️April showers bring...THEM ON🌷🌱!
-RPP Team
| | News, Readings and Resources | |
American Forests launches free platform to connect forest landowners with reforestation resources
After wildfire, insect damage, or other disturbances, restoring forestland can be complex and resource-intensive. Landowners and Tribal Nations often face a fragmented landscape of programs, funding sources, and technical guidance, making it difficult to identify the right support.
On April 6, American Forests launched ForestSupport.org, a free, centralized platform designed to simplify this process. The site connects landowners, Tribal Nations, and forestry professionals with vetted reforestation funding opportunities, technical assistance, and expert support.
ForestSupport.org demystifies reforestation processes, including connecting with technical and financial support programs. From initial reforestation planning and funding options to long-term stewardship, ForestSupport.org will help landowners and Tribal Nations navigate the complex planning decisions, significant costs and long-term commitments needed to bring their land back to health.
ForestSupport.org is currently available in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington.
Visit ForestSupport.org to get started
| | |
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service will move its headquarters to Salt Lake City and begin a sweeping restructuring of the agency
According to a press release dated March 31, the Forest Service is realigning its organizational structure to strengthen local leadership, streamline operations, and improve mission delivery. The changes include moving headquarters to Salt Lake City, transitioning to a state-based leadership model, building a network of Operations Service Centers, and unifying the agency’s research program.
Read the Press Release...
| | | |
State’s first-ever Tribal Stewardship Policy establishes statewide framework for tribal access, collaboration, and ancestral land return
On March 17, the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) launched the state’s first-ever Tribal Stewardship Policy, establishing a statewide goal of expanding tribal stewardship over at least 7.5 million acres of lands and coastal waters in California.
Read more
| | | |
CAL FIRE Reforestation Services Program launches new Service Access Portal, is now accepting seedling orders for 2027 growing season
The CAL FIRE Reforestation Services Program (RSP) recently launched its new Services Application Portal (SAP). The portal improves access to three key program areas: Seed and seedling requests (including overrun and research), Cones as Goods program vendor registration, and Reforestation Because of You program signup. The RSP is now accepting new seedling orders for the 2027 growing season. Seedlings will be sown in early 2027 and will be available for pickup in late November 2027 through May 2028.
Go to the new Services Access Portal
| | |
Now - May 31 | Good Fire: Tending Native Lands Museum Exhibit (Oakland)
May 2 | UC ANR Tree School (Eureka)
May 6 - 8 | Western Cone & Seed Summit (Bend, OR)
May 18-20 | Reforestation Camp (Meadow Valley)
May 19 | RPP Reforestation Science Huddle (Virtual, 1-2:30 pm)
June 5 | CA Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force meeting (Sacramento)
June 8 - 11 | National Indian Timber Symposium (Keshena, WI)
June 9- 11 | Cone Camp North (Weaverville)
June 16 | RPP Reforestation Science Huddle (Virtual, 1-2:30 pm)
June 17-18 | CA Forest Pest Council - Weed Tour (Burney)
June 23-25 | Cone Camp Southern Sierras (Mountain Home DSF)
July 7 - 10 | IUFRO International Conference on Reforestation Under Drought (Independence, OR)
July 14-16 | Cone Camp Central Sierras (El Dorado county)
Aug 18 | RPP Reforestation Science Huddle (Virtual, 1-2:30 pm)
Sept 15 | RPP Reforestation Science Huddle (Virtual, 1-2:30 pm)
Oct 1-2 | CA Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force (Fortuna)
Oct 6-9 | Society of American Foresters (SAF) National Convention (Tacoma, WA)
Oct 20 - 22 | The Understory - Fall Gathering of the California Reforestation Pipeline Partnership (Tulare County, CA)
Nov 17 | RPP Reforestation Science Huddle (Virtual, 1-2:30 pm)
| | |
The inaugural Western Cone & Seed Summit (WCSS) is being hosted May 6-8, 2026, in Bend, Oregon. Practitioners spanning academia, private industry, Tribal nations, nonprofits, and public agencies are invited to contribute their knowledge in addressing the complex sourcing and supply chain of native tree seed, primarily conifers, for reforestation in western North America.
WCSS will focus on building coalitions, sharing active solutions, and connecting marketplaces that can support a specialized workforce and weather the variability of seed production years across geographies. This event hopes to be an incubator of ideas and processes that support a sustainable and resilient supply chain.
Stakeholders in attendance will be called upon to identify solutions their role and organizations are able to take part in and how those solutions can fit into the larger seed supply chain. A target outcome of this event is for the connections made between compatible entities to yield effective and efficient solutions in the years ahead.
| | |
Job Openings
Click on any image to learn more.
| | |
On winning even without our best stuff
Pro golfer Rory McIlroy won the Masters April 12, 2026 to become just the fourth repeat winner in the tournament’s history. Rory didn’t play the best golf of his career—the jaw-dropping chips and putts were few—but he played just well enough to nab another green jacket. And while it’s not flashy or dramatic, there’s something extra impressive in someone winning even without their best stuff.
Athlete Mindset Media reported that McIlroy works with his sports psychologist on visualizing the feeling (e.g. joy, freedom, adaptability) he wants to experience on the course and focusing on ‘process over prize.’ This is so that when he focuses on maintaining that feeling, rather than the outcome or prize, he is less likely to be thrown off by a bad putt or an unexpected bogey.
What would it look like for us, then, to apply this principle in our roles, as we chip away at a huge disturbance-driven statewide backlog of reforestation acres without the comprehensive conditions, knowledge, teams, funding, and tools to do it perfectly? How do we ‘win without our best stuff’?
🤔What feeling can you focus on maintaining day-to-day that keeps you experiencing some enjoyment in your work, and so as not to become discouraged by unexpected weather, less-than-hoped-for seedling survival, etc.?
| | | |
✨California's growing reforestation community is on Slack!
With 190 members and counting from government agencies, non-profits, Tribes, and the private sector, it's the virtual space to be for sharing updates, asking questions, posting opportunities, & more.
It's free and easy to use. Join the conversation!
| | |
Want to see your work or news featured in the next CA Reforestation Bulletin?
| | | | |
