Representing members of the State of Vermont.
Executive Committee Officers
Orang, VT
Chair
Bill Musson
Term: 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023
bill@redstartconsulting.com
Bill received a bachelor’s degree in Forestry Operations and a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) certificate from Paul Smith’s College in 2018. He has been a consulting forester for Redstart Natural Resource Management since 2016. Bill is a licensed forester in Vermont. In addition to his work, Bill enjoys carpentry, logging, landscaping with native plants, raising pigs, and playing hockey as much as possible. He lives in Orange, VT.
Vice Chair
Paul Szwedo
Term: 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023
paulszwedo@gmail.com
Paul is a State Lands Forester with the Department of Forest Parks and Recreation working in the Northeast Kingdom (District 5). Paul earned a Masters Degree in Forestry from the University of Maine, Orono, where his research focused on “Forest Sampling, Prescription, and Harvest Operations of Expanding Gap Silvicultural Systems in Central Maine”. Paul has special interests in silviculture and forest biometrics. Prior to his work with the state, Paul worked as a Graduate Research Assistant and a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the University of Maine Orono, and the USFS Penobscot Experimental Forest. From 2007-2012 Paul managed a hardwood sawmill in Burlington, CT with annual outputs ranging from 500mbf-1mmbf of graded hardwood lumber. Paul is a recipient of the University of Maine’s Ralph Griffin Award – presented to a meritorious graduate student in silviculture. Paul is a 2021 graduate of the Vermont Forest Business School. When Paul is not in the woods, he is busy on his family’s farm where he raises beef, lamb, pastured poultry, hay, and organic vegetables with his wife and son.
West Bolton, VT
Immediate Past Chair
Alexandra Kosiba
Term: 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023
Alexandra.Kosiba@uvm.edu
Ali is an Assistant Professor of Forestry and Extension Forester at the University of Vermont. She focuses on climate change, climate-adaptive management, forest carbon, and forest health. Prior to working at UVM, she was the Climate Forester at Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. Ali received her MS and PhD degrees in Forest Science from UVM.
NESAF Representative
Jess Wikle
Term: 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2024
jessica.wikle@uvm.edu
Jess is the manager of the Research Forests and member of the forestry faculty at UVM, where she is also a PhD candidate studying climate-adaptive silviculture. She has been an SAF member since 2007, and served on the leadership team of the Yale SAF student chapter, as well as attending the 2022 SAF Leadership Academy. Prior to UVM, she completed an MFS degree at the Yale Forest School, preceded by several years working as a consulting forester in CT and MA. She earned a BS in Forestry from UNH in 2009. She has been a licensed forester since 2012 and is also a member of the Forest Stewards Guild and New England Women Foresters Collaborative.
Montpelier, VT
Secretary
Virginia (Ginger) Anderson
Term: 1/1/2023 – 12/31/2023
quedav56@gmail.com
Virginia (Ginger) Anderson graduated from the University of Vermont in 1979. She joined SAF as a student member while at UVM. Ginger spent 8 years with the US Forest Service in the Pacific Northwest and Utah working on presale/timber sale activities. While in the West she also worked for Atterbury Consultants and for the Makah Tribal Council before returning to Vermont. Ginger worked for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation from 1990-2019. She retired from the Barre District Office as Forestry District Manager. Ginger lives in Berlin, Vermont with her husband Stephen Bushman. They have two grown daughters.
Treasurer
Sarah Ford
Term: 1/1/23 – 12/31/23
sarahf@forestcarbonworks.com
Sarah leads the Natural Resources division at Forest Carbon Works which includes field team activities, verification support, afforestation efforts, and landowner and partner outreach. She began her time at Forest Carbon Works in 2018 as a Forest Technician and transitioned to Regional Forester before her current role as Chief Forestry Officer. Prior to Forest Carbon Works, Sarah was a consulting forester for Butternut Mountain Farm in northern Vermont, managing private forest lands for the Vermont forest tax program and assisting with the company sugaring operations. She holds a Masters in Forestry and Natural Resources from the University of Vermont.
Burlington, VT
Policy Chair
Peter Clark
Term: 1/1/23 – 12/31/23
Peter.Clark@uvm.edu
Pete is Postdoctoral Associate in the Forestry Program at the University of Vermont where he conducts research on forest responses to climate change and works with foresters to evaluate management strategies to promote ecosystem resilience or adaptation. He earned a degree from Hampshire College where he studied old-growth ponderosa pine tree-rings, a master’s from West Virginia University evaluating cliff dwelling trees, and a PhD from UVM where he was awarded the RSENR Outstanding Dissertation award for his work on Northeastern forest response to global change and adaptive silvicultural strategies. He is interested in seedling propagation and species restoration, having planted thousands of his favorite species throughout the region including red spruce, American chestnut, and northern red oak. In his spare time, he enjoys woodworking and rock climbing with his partner Amelia and their two herding dogs.
Warren, VT
News Correspondent
Jas Smith
Term: 2023
jasssmith123@gmail.com
Jas is working as a consultant for UVM Extension in areas of both farming and forestry. He is learning about various business planning tools and resources that foster viability for natural-resource based businesses in Vermont. Included is the process of business planning
and one-on-one business strategy with farmers, loggers and landowners. Jas also works part-time for City Forest Credits, a non-profit carbon registry for urban forest projects. The work includes review and verification of all calculations and details for urban forestry carbon projects throughout the U.S. Jas has a background in Forest Policy through his 3-year term as member of the Committee
on Forest Policy with National SAF. He feels very fortunate to have served in this role and gained much knowledge of various disciplines within forestry through working on the broad range of Position Papers with advanced professionals throughout the country. He hopes to now to continue a focus on New England matters; he was the Policy Chair for NESAF from 2016-2017.
Downloads
| File | Description | File size |
|---|---|---|
 Green Mountain Division Bylaws 2005 | 124 KB | |
 GMD EC Minutes June 2022 | 15 KB | |
| GMD EC Minutes October 2022 | 14 KB | |
| GMD EC Minutes December 2022 | 16 KB | |
| 2023_GMD_LegislativeBreakfast | 314 KB | |
| GMD_EC_Minutes_February 2023 | 14 KB |