{"id":15746,"date":"2012-03-12T15:01:49","date_gmt":"2012-03-12T15:01:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/162.217.168.59\/?p=15746"},"modified":"2023-03-22T16:18:44","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T20:18:44","slug":"walkem-elected-to-sfi-board","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forests.org\/fr\/walkem-elected-to-sfi-board\/","title":{"rendered":"Chief David Walkem Elected to SFI Board"},"content":{"rendered":"

MERRITT, British Columbia<\/strong> \u2013 David Walkem, Chief of Cooks Ferry Band and President of Stuwix Resources Joint Venture, has been elected to the independent Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc.\u00ae (SFI\u00ae) Board of Directors.<\/p>\n

Stuwix Resources is the only First Nations company in the British Columbia Interior to hold a replaceable forest licence, and the 112,000 hectares\/277,000 acres it manages are independently certified to the SFI 2010-2014 Standard. Walkem was the first status Indian in British Columbia to become a Registered Professional Forester.<\/p>\n

\u201cSFI certification addresses much that is important to First Nation communities \u2013 from recognizing indigenous people\u2019s rights and traditional knowledge to environmental values such as wildlife habitat to social and economic values such as stable jobs and markets,\u201d Walkem said today. \u201cI welcome the chance to help shape the SFI program to make this link even stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over two million hectares\/five million acres of lands held by or managed for indigenous communities are certified to the SFI forest management standard \u2013 more than any other third-party certification standard in North America.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that indigenous land managers are choosing SFI certification shows how well it complements and supports their commitment to conservation and sustainable forest management,\u201d said SFI President and CEO Kathy Abusow. \u201cDavid Walkem brings a fresh perspective to the board, as well as valuable professional and cultural expertise.\u201d<\/p>\n

The three-chamber SFI board represents environmental, economic and social interests equally, and members include representatives of environmental, professional and academic groups, independent loggers, family forest landowners, public officials, labour and the forest products sector.<\/p>\n

Walkem joins Craig Blair, President and CEO, Resource Management Service LLC, who was also elected to the SFI board\u2019s economic chamber. They replace Daniel S. Fulton, President and CEO, Weyerhaeuser Company, and Rick R. Holley, President and CEO, Plum Creek Timber Company Ltd.<\/p>\n

SFI Inc. is a registered charitable organization responsible for the largest single forest certification standard in the world. The SFI program works with a wide array of partners to improve forest management in Canada and the United States, and sourcing worldwide.<\/p>\n

Backgrounder: David Walkem<\/strong><\/p>\n

David Walkem is President of SFI-certified Stuwix Resources Joint Venture, a forest management enterprise that manages a forest licence for eight shareholder Indian Bands in the Interior of British Columbia.<\/p>\n

He has been the Chief of the Cooks Ferry Indian Band since 1990, and is the Vice-Chair of the Nicola Similkameen Innovative Forestry Society, which oversees the planning for six Innovative Forestry Practices Agreements held by major licencees in the Merritt Timber Supply Area.<\/p>\n

In 1985, Walkem became the first status Indian in British Columbia to become a Registered Professional Forester. He was the founding President of the First Nations Forestry Council, appointed to provide policy direction for First Nations participation in forest resource management in British Columbia and to implement the First Nations response to the province\u2019s mountain pine beetle epidemic.<\/p>\n

Walkem has an MBA from the University of Western Ontario and a Bachelor of Science in Forestry from the University of British Columbia. He received the Forester of the Year award from the Association of BC Professional Foresters in 2001, and an award from the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards Foundation in 2007 for his achievements in the environment and forestry.<\/p>\n

Backgrounder: SFI Inc. Board of Directors<\/strong>
\nMarch 2012<\/p>\n

Board members representing the environmental sector, which includes non-profit environmental or conservation organizations:<\/p>\n

Larry Selzer, (Vice-Chair) President and CEO, The Conservation Fund
\nGeorge Finney, President, Bird Studies Canada
\nTom Franklin, Senior Director of Science and Policy, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
\nJohn M. Hagan III, President, Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences
\nRoger Sedjo, Senior Fellow, Resources for the Future
\nMike Zagata, President and CEO, Ruffed Grouse Society<\/p>\n

Board members representing the social sector, which includes community or social interest groups such as universities, labour, family forest owners or government agencies:<\/p>\n

Richard W. (Dick) Brinker (Secretary-Treasurer), Dean Emeritus, School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, Auburn University
\nStewart Hardacre, President and CEO, Habitat for Humanity Canada
\nSteven W. Koehn, Director\/State Forester, Maryland Department of Natural Resources
\nCharles Tattersall (Tat) Smith Jr., Former Dean and Professor, Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto
\nWilliam V. (Bill) Street Jr., Director, Woodworkers Department, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
\nBoard members representing the economic sector, which includes the forest, paper and wood products industry or other for-profit forest ownership or management entities:<\/p>\n

Robert A. (Bob) Luoto (Chair), representing independent professional loggers and the American Loggers Council
\nCraig Blair, President and CEO, Resource Management Service LLC
\nJohn B. Crowe, Chairman and CEO, Buckeye Technologies Inc.
\nMatthew Donegan, Co-President, Forest Capital Partners LLC
\nHenry H. (Hank) Ketcham, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.
\nDavid Walkem, Chief of the Cooks Ferry Indian Band, Merritt, British Columbia, and President, Stuwix Resources Joint Venture<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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