GREEN JOB YOUTH SPOTLIGHTS
Following My Family’s Footsteps Into the ForestApril 08, 2020 Will Vukovic worked as a Silviculture Technician for Mosaic Forest Management last summer. This photo was taken at Jump Lake near Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. By Will Vukovic It feels like my whole family is part of the forest sector. My dad is a forester, my mum worked as one, and I have an uncle who works for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. Their careers are a big part of why I pursued a Forestry Technology diploma from Vancouver Island University. Through them, I saw how hard people in the sector have worked to put environmental responsibility at the heart of the forestry. I want to keep that tradition going. Spreading the word that forestry jobs are green jobsI see myself and others in green jobs building on my family’s legacy and changing how the world sees forestry. More and more people are waking up to the fact that forestry jobs are green jobs. Last summer, I worked as a Silviculture Technician for Mosaic Forest Management. I noticed first-hand how much that company values sustainability. Mosaic is committed to being carbon neutral and is SFI-certified. Organizations that are SFI-certified have to meet high sustainability standards in their operations. As a Silviculture Technician, I helped with reforestation by surveying and flagging trees and boundaries. I also got to work with foresters and did many other things to ensure the sustainable management of the forest. From the forest to the classroomBeing a Silviculture Technician for Mosaic included lots of responsibility. I had to make decisions on my own about how to approach my work almost every day. I was also able to gain real work experience that I could take back with me to the classroom. In my studies, I need to apply ecological concepts and understand biodiversity – the same kinds of things I got to practice while working for Mosaic. My goal right now is to stay in school and become a Forest Engineer. Forest Engineers help to design, build, and evaluate forest operations. They do things like build new roads that meet environmental standards and design sustainable harvesting plans. Becoming an Area Engineer would be my dream job. They get to lead teams and design and build road networks. Plus, their name gets put on all the important documents and plans—it’s real on-the-ground responsibility. A career pathway through the outdoorsBasically, I know that wherever my career takes me, it’s going to be outside in a green job. I really can’t do without the outdoors. When I’m not in school or working, I’m camping, fishing, hiking, skiing—anything to get me outside. PLT Canada’s Green Jobs program is supported in large part by our employer networks at the Canadian Parks Council and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative. | MORE SPOTLIGHTS
A NEED FOR SPEED AND BEING OUTDOORSBy Emily Prouse Designing and building mountain bike trails as part of my Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT Canada) Green Job brought together my passion for the outdoors and my love of biking down mountains. The fact that I got paid to build trails in the beautiful forests outside my hometown of Quesnel, BC, felt like a green “dream” job. It’s the kind of dream scenario that I hope will help motivate my future students when I finish my Bachelor…
Working to Make Ottawa a Greener CityBy Emilie Grenier I’m passionate about everything relating to the outdoors and sustainability. Since my early childhood, growing up outside Montreal, I have spent most of my free time climbing, running, skiing, paddling, and camping. My travels and volunteer work have taken me to the Caribbean, South America, Africa, and Asia. Spending time in different natural environments and in the communities that depend on them got me thinking about how I could have a positive impact. Today, I’m mitigating the…
Growing Trees and Helping Ontario Fight Invasive SpeciesBaker Forestry Services is growing a few hundred different species of trees and shrubs, but they all have one important thing in common—they are all native species in Ontario. According to the Government of Ontario, there are about 1,200 alien plant species in the province. These plants were introduced by people into areas beyond their natural range. I was part of a team at Baker Forestry Services that helped grow native trees and shrubs so landowners can support healthy, diverse…
Combining Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Western Science to Teach YouthBy Nicole Boyde I was in high school the first time I had the privilege of learning about the environment from Indigenous Elders. Today, my Green Job gives me the opportunity to continue learning from Elders and to use the insights I’ve gained to expand understanding of the natural world among K-12 students. We work with schools in and around Fort St. John in northeastern British Columbia. My role as an Education Assistant with the Chuntoh Education Society takes me… |
