NEWS RELEASES

WASHINGTON, D.C. and OTTAWA, ON—The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) is pleased to welcome new members to the SFI Board of Directors: Heather Slayton, State Forester and Assistant Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Agriculture; Phil Rigdon, Superintendent of Yakama Nation’s Department of Natural Resources; Caitlyn Pollihan, CEO and Executive Director of the International Society of Arboriculture; and Sam Cook, Executive Director of Forest Assets for North Carolina State University.

“We are excited to welcome Heather, Phil, Caitlyn, and Sam to our board,” says Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of SFI. “These four leaders bring sustainability experience at the local, regional, and international levels through land management, government action, traditional ecological knowledge, community outreach, career pathways and academic research. Together, we will further SFI’s mission of advancing sustainability through forest-focused collaboration.”

Sam Cook, Executive Director of Forest Assets, North Carolina State University & Vice President, Natural Resources Foundation—Sam oversees more than $150 million in foundation assets to provide funding support for an environmentally and economically sustainable natural resource sector. With a forestry career spanning more than four decades, Sam is deeply committed to ensuring that our forests are managed in a way that not only meets the needs of the present but also preserves these vital resources for future generations.

He has served on the SFI Resources Committee, the SFI-MANRRS Journeys of Black Professionals in Green Careers Advisory Committee, and is featured in Black Faces in Green Spaces: The Journeys of Black Professionals in Green Careers. Sam holds a B.S. in forestry from North Carolina State University. Sam is now a member of the SFI Board of Director’s Social Chamber.

Caitlyn Pollihan, CEO and Executive Director, International Society of Arboriculture—Caitlyn represents over 26,000 ISA members worldwide who support professional arboriculture and urban forestry. ISA is also the credentialing body for arboriculture and urban forestry professionals and has conferred over 57,000 individual credentials. The SFI Urban and Community Forest Sustainability Standard was released in May 2023, and developed in collaboration with ISA and other leading partners in this space. Grant funding is now available to assess forests against the SFI Standard to better understand strengths and opportunities to improve sustainability efforts.

Caitlyn participates in several coalitions and committees, including the Sustainable Urban Forest Coalition Steering Committee, the i-Tree Executive Committee, and the ASAE International Associations Council, and previously served on the National Advisory Committee for Implementation of the National Forest System Land Management Planning Rule. She holds a Master of Organizational Communication from the University of Missouri‐St. Louis and is a Certified Association Executive. Caitlyn is now a member of the SFI Board of Director’s Environmental Chamber.

Phil Rigdon, Superintendent, Yakama Nation Department of Natural Resources—As an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, Phil has worked for his community in natural resources in the Pacific Northwest throughout his career. His perspective on natural resource management is based on a commitment to generational forestry that maintains cultural priorities and ways of life. His Indigenous approach to forestry balances historical and societal traditions while also striving to meet the community’s economic needs. Yakama Nation is certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard and won the SFI President’s Award in 2019. Phil is also Vice President of the Intertribal Timber Council, a nonprofit nation-wide consortium of Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations, and individuals dedicated to improving the management of natural resources of importance to Native American communities.

Phil’s career shows his dedication to educational pursuits. He serves on the University of Washington’s EarthLab, the advisory committee for the University of Washington School of Environment and Forest Science, and the Yale School of Environment’s Alumni Board. He also stresses the importance of our learning from elders and other tribal leaders, who hold enormous amount of traditional knowledge. Phil holds a Master of Forestry from Yale University. He is now a member of the SFI Board of Director’s Economic Chamber.

Heather Slayton, Assistant Commissioner and State Forester, Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Division of Forestry—Heather oversees the state’s combined 14 million acres/5.7 million hectares of public (of which the Division’s own 167,000 acres in the state forest system are certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard) and privately-owned forested land. With 83% of forests in Tennessee owned privately, Heather is focused on helping landowners keep their forests as forests through active forest management, workforce development, and education. She is also responsible for directing wildland fire prevention and suppression, reforestation, landowner assistance programs, forest health initiatives, urban forestry programs, and forest inventory.

Before assuming her current role, Heather oversaw the major administrative functions of the division and provided executive leadership to the State Forest Unit, Reforestation Unit, Forest Health and Sustainability Unit, and the Forest Data and Analysis Unit. Prior to her state service, Heather worked as a consulting forester in Virginia, North Carolina, and East Tennessee. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Forestry from Virginia Tech and a Master of Science in Forestry from University of Tennessee. Heather is now a member of the SFI Board of Director’s Social Chamber.

The SFI Board of Directors sets the organization’s strategic direction and is responsible for overseeing and advancing SFI’s programs, standards, and strategies. The 18‑member board comprises three chambers representing environmental, social and economic sectors equally. SFI Board members include executive-level representatives of conservation organizations, academic institutions, educators, public officials, Black Americans, as well as those representing worker rights, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, forest owners, managers, and the forest products sector. This diversity reflects a variety of interests in the forestry community in support of a world that values and benefits from sustainably managed forests.

Sam Cook, Heather Slayton, Caitlyn Pollihan, and Phil Rigdon were elected to the SFI Board of Directors on October 9, 2024.