Lassen National Forest’s second Biannual Partnership in Practice Symposium was held on April 16th.
“These Symposia, which will take place in the spring and fall each year, foster mutual understanding of the needs and requirements of us and our partners to increase trust, communication, and clear expectations for each partnership,” explains Forest Service spokesperson Amber Marshall.
“Partnerships are at the very core of how we do business in the Forest Service. Local organizations are critical to helping the Lassen National Forest plan and implement projects that we could not have accomplished on our own. Our partners’ commitment to advancing relationships is invaluable.”
Last October, Lassen National Forest Partnership Coordinator, Stephaney Cox, spearheaded the Forest Service’s first Biannual Partnership in Practice Symposium. The first meeting was an opportunity for partners and forest leadership to meet and share information on current projects, partnership processes, and to introduce upcoming funding and training opportunities.
“Led by feedback from partners about this first symposium, we have been working to develop new strategies and methods to match partners with large projects with the goal of increasing the pace and scale of forest management for fire resiliency and overall forest health.”
“We presented a new strategy to our partners during the Partnership in Practice Symposium this April called the Prime Partner Model. This model takes a cross-boundary approach to landscape-scale projects, working with a high-capacity partner (a Prime Partner) with a track record of success with implementing large projects using a collaborative approach and robust funding strategies.”
The Prime Partner will provide high-level project coordination, a collaborative implementation plan, and partner mentoring.
“We are dedicated to the relationships we have built with our local partners. We will continue to utilize tried and true strategies as we plan for future projects, and are also excited to try new strategies, especially ones that create opportunities for both us and our partners to mutually increase capacity to meet forest management challenges,” said Acting Forest Supervisor on the Lassen, Kathy Allen.
“By aligning our efforts with regional and national priorities, we not only enhance the impact of our work but also contribute to a larger coordinated effort.”
Stephaney Cox, Partnership Coordinator for LNF adds, “Our local partners have rich experience with land management on this landscape. This second Partnership in Practice Symposium has been a good faith effort to collaborate with partners on a project implementation strategy that is new to the Lassen National Forest, and to hear about our partners’ past experiences so that our future efforts are better informed. We look forward to the hard work ahead to accomplish our shared goals and improve the well-being of our forests and communities.”
Thank you to our symposium facilitators, Austin McInerny and Corin Choppin, from the California State University Sacramento Consensus and Collaboration Program, for helping make our spring symposium a success.
