Casey is the general manager of the Wells Gray Community Forest in Clearwater. He was the registrar of the Forestry Profession (FPBC / ABCFP) from 2014-2025 where he helped guide the implementation of the Professional Governance Act and evolve FPBC’s programs in registration, discipline and unlawful practice. As an outspoken advocate of forest stewardship and community well-being, Casey wants more honest and open dialogue about the current state of forest management – leading to policy change that better recognises the health of forest ecosystems and the renewal of BC’s rural economies.
Presentation Abstract: Food For Thought on the Drive Home
Reconciling a Flawed Legacy with a Brighter Future
The forest sector is going through structural upheaval. Compared to historic market cycles, this phase is different because of the state of timber supply and the culmination of impacts on forest ecosystems. This should rightfully be the end of the era of sustained yield policy. Further, the provincial government and the industry are both shrinking their budgets, investments and workforce. The next decade is going to be challenging for business and resource communities. Foresters, working with communities (both Indigenous and non-indigenous) are ideally positioned to be mediators and facilitators in a transition to better-informed policies and practices. But we need to go through a process of self-examination first.
What would reconciliation with our historic approach to forest management look like? Through a process of unpacking our mistakes and sharing ideas, I believe we can construct a better model for forest and land stewardship. We don’t lack ideas or intelligence; we lack the honesty, facilitation and to some degree, the power to make changes. I would like to explore a systems-based approach to evolving forest management; one that makes use of our strengths and better respects the wealth of values, rights and perspectives that are critical to our collective success. This work is based on a series of ongoing, short essays that I have been publishing.