Forest education and research in the United States of America

Abstract

The United States of America has 303 million hectares of forest land and invests roughly $550 million annually in forest research, or about $1.80 per hectare per year. These figures have been relatively static in recent years. They do not account for the increasing complexity of the problems to be solved or for the increasing costs of doing cutting‐edge science. Static investment levels in forestry research are compounded by issues in forestry education. The recent downward trends in enrollment levels and degrees awarded in forestry are inconsistent with projected increases in the number of jobs available in forestry and conservation in the U.S. in the near future. The situation is exacerbated by the imbalance in age‐class structure of forest scientists in the U.S. ‐ there are a large number of older, senior scientists on the verge of retirement. If a significant wave of retirements occurs in the next 5 to 10 years and if the current enrollment levels in forestry schools do not increase substantially in the next few years, there may not be enough graduates available to fill all the positions vacated. A host of potential impacts would ensue, including the loss of a significant amount of expertise and research capacity as retirees have too few replacements available to mentor and to pass on their accumulated wisdom.