HEARTWOOD 11th Annual Forest Council "Beyond the Borders"
May 25-28, 2001: Wesley Woods in Northwestern Pennsylvania.
Co-hosted by the Allegheny Defense Project
Heartwood's Forest Council is an annual event that seeks to bring together forest activists from throughout the eastern United States to share skills, learn about forest issues, and to support local forest protection efforts. Each year, the Forest Council is hosted by a different local forest protection group. The theme of this year's Forest Council recognizes the importance of all forests - public and private - and realizes that in order to truly maintain biodiversity of plants and animals we must have healthy contiguous forests, regardless of their classification.
The Forest Council will focus on how we can strengthen our work of protecting these forests and will offer practical training, as participants of various workshops will be able to visit the National, Private, and State Forests of Pennsylvania.
The weekend will feature hands-on "In the Woods" workshops and panel discussions on topics such as watersheds, federal lands monitoring, ATVs, state lands, and more. These sessions will be complemented by strategy sessions on restoration, sustainable private lands forestry, biomass, the chip industry, forest watch, and more, as well as skills workshops on activist self-care.
The Allegheny region has a long and varied history, from oil boom towns to logging camps, to the Kinzua Dam. This dam, built in the 1960's, submerged a third of the Seneca Reservation, just over the New York border, as well as one of the most beautiful stretches of the Allegheny River. Our keynote speaker, a Seneca elder, will address the building of this dam and its effects on his community and the river's life.
General Information: what to bring - bedding, towels, and camping gear, rain gear and clothing (spring can get cool in PA); items and $$ for our silent auction musical instruments, swimsuit (there is a lake nearby), information and merchandise from your organization; what not to bring - dogs (sorry, but our canine friends can get problematic when we gather in such large numbers) - the camp has a no alcohol policy.
Work exchange for registration fees are available at the rate of $7.50 per hour, but requests must be made in advance to qualify. Contact the ADP office at (814) 223-4996.
Schedule:
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Friday, May 25 |
6:00 Dinner 7:00 Welcome and introduction to Heartwood, Keynote Speaker Elder from Seneca Nation * 9:00 Informal music |
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Saturday, May 26 |
8:00 - 9:00 Breakfast 9:00 -10:00 Heartwood Circle Introductions 10:00 -11:00 Issues panel (State, Federal Lands and Certification) 11:15 - 12:15 Oil and Gas, Watershed, ATVs 12:30 - 2:00 Lunch 2:00 - 5:30 Field workshops: (Conducted at various field sites) - Certification, State Lands, ATVs Issues and Monitoring, Oil and Gas, Watershed Issues, Forest Watch on National Forests 6:00 - 7:30 Dinner 7:30 Auction 9:00 Music and Dancing |
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Sunday, May 27 |
8:00 - 9:30 Breakfast 9:30 -10:45 Taking Care of Ourselves: Yoga, Herbal Healing, Dances of Universal Peace, Massage 11:00 -12:15 Issue Workshops: Restoration, Sustainable Private Land Forestry, Chip mills and chip products, Biomass, Current Legislation 12:30 - 2:00 Lunch 2:00 - 5:30 Field workshops: (Conducted at various field sites) - Certification, State Lands, ATVs Issues and Monitoring, Oil and Gas, Watershed Issues, Forest Watch on National Forests 5:45 - 6:30 Closing circle 6:30 Dinner 8:00 Video of the dam, Heartwood music session |
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Monday, May 28 |
Public Outreach Event - Please plan to stay and help us draw attention to the outrageous Eastside Timber Sale, the largest timber sale on a National Forest in the Eastern United States. Please note that the schedule may be subject to change. |
*Keynote Speaker
Our keynote speaker, George D. Heron, is the former two-term president of the Seneca Nation of Indians during the Kinzua Dam controversy. The keynote address will be focused on the history of the dam in respect to its relationship to and impacts on the people of the Seneca Nation. George Heron has lectured in colleges and universities throughout Pennsylvania and New York on the issue.
About the camp: Wesley Woods is a camp situated northeast of the town of Titusville, less than 10 miles from the beautiful Allegheny National Forest. The camp is a short drive from two Wilderness Areas, and a patch of remnant old growth forest, as well as the Wild and Scenic Allegheny River. Find out more and see a map for directions at:
http://www.wesleywoods.com/.Registration: Registration includes lodging - either in bunkhouse cabins (first-come, first-served basis), or at campsites. On-site registration will be an additional $10. Please help us plan for the weekend by pre-registering by May 5, 2001. Non-members @ $35; Members @ $25; Single-day registration @ $15.
Full meal package (Friday dinner-Monday breakfast) @ $28;
Individual meal tickets @ $4 per meal. (Meal tickets will be available on-site for $5, but please note that they cannot be guaranteed for those who do not pre-register).