Speakers – CWF Spring Meeting

Meet Our Speakers

Jess Kaknevicius

CEO Forests Canada

Presenting: Landowner Motivations for Forest Restoration and Long-term Impact.

Jess Kaknevicius

CEO Forests Canada

Jess is passionate about creating connections between people and forests. A graduate from University of Toronto’s Master of Forest Conservation program, Jessica (Jess) Kaknevicius has spent over 17 years in the non-profit sector, including over 11 years with Forests Canada. She has a critical leadership role overseeing philanthropic efforts and government agreements, governance, and supporting strategic planning and ommunications. She is a well-known advocate for the forest sector and co-founded Women in Wood, a networking group for women in the forest and wood-related sectors to share advice, information, and encouragement. _______________________________________________________________ Presenting: Landowner motivations for forest restoration and long-term impact _______________________________________________________________ Most landowners engage in restoration on their properties for future benefits - including contributions to wildlife and climate change. This session will provide a highlight of 20 years of Forests Canada planting projects and the impact of large-scale private land restoration efforts, including the lasting impacts to biodiversity on the landscape.

Yan Boulanger

Research scientist in forest ecology

Presenting: Increased wildfire activity could trigger strong changes in eastern Canada's forests and its forest sector.

Yan Boulanger

Research scientist in forest ecology

Yan Boulanger, PhD, is a forest ecology researcher at the Laurentian Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service, since 2013. His work focuses on climate change impacts on natural disturbances (fires, insect outbreaks, windthrows) and forest landscapes. He also studies the effects of climate change and logging on wildlife habitats. He holds a master's in Wildlife and Habitat Management and a PhD in Biology from UQAR. Dr. Boulanger is an adjunct professor at UQAR, Université Laval, and UQAT. __________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Increased Wildfire Activity Could Trigger Strong Changes in Eastern Canada's Forests and its Forest Sector. __________________________________________________________________ Climate change is expected to have significant impacts on eastern Canada's forest, compounding the effects of forestry practices and increased wildfire activity. As a result, Canadian forests as well as the forest sector could reach critical tipping points under strong anthropogenic climate forcing. Notably, the combined effects of logging and wildfires will lead to a significant decrease in landscape age and rise in regeneration failures, causing strong reduction in harvested wood volumes. Under these conditions, major changes in forestry practices will be required to ensure the long-term sustainability of timber supply. Adaptation strategies will need to be tailored to regionally-specific conditions .

Sean Greene

Forest Engineer/NL Forest Service, Dept. of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture

Presenting: Provincial Checkup - NL's Forest Sector.

Sean Greene

Forest Engineer/NL Forest Service, Dept. of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture

Sean was born and raised in Stephenville, Newfoundland, and attended UNB and completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Forest Engineering in 2003. Sean worked at various forestry jobs including tree planting in New Brunswick and forest engineering on Vancouver Island. Sean completed an Advanced Diploma in GIS at the Centre of Geographic Sciences in Nova Scotia in 2007. Sean has been working for the NL Forest Service since 2010. Sean lives in Corner Brook, on Newfoundland’s west coast, with his wife and four tween/teen daughters. __________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Provincial Checkup - NL's Forest Sector Newfoundland and Labrador’s forests play a critical role in the province’s economy, ecology, and culture. __________________________________________________________________ This session will provide an update on the state of the forest sector, covering key areas such as sustainable forest management, forest protection, and industry challenges.

Rakesh Mishra

Head of Research-Remote Sensing & AI / Northern Hardwoods Research Institute Inc.

Presenting: Modernizing Forest Inventories with AI and Remote Sensing

Rakesh Mishra

Head of Research-Remote Sensing & AI / Northern Hardwoods Research Institute Inc.

Dr. Rakesh Mishra, Head of Research-Remote Sensing & AI, is a leader in AI, remote sensing, and scientific research, with over 15 years of experience. He holds a Ph.D. in Remote Sensing & Photogrammetry from the University of New Brunswick (UNB). Dr. Mishra leads interdisciplinary research in AI, quantum computing, and satellite data analytics, tackling climate change, resource management, and forestry. Also an Adjunct Professor at UNB, he excels in fostering innovation, securing research funding, and collaborating with diverse stakeholders. His expertise spans AI modeling, machine learning, and geospatial analytics, with applications in precision forestry and environmental sustainability. _________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Modernizing Forest Inventories with AI and Remote Sensing _________________________________________________________________ New Brunswick’s forests are a vital part of the province’s economy, environment, and way of life. They provide jobs, support biodiversity, and offer essential ecosystem services like clean water and soil protection. However, managing these forests efficiently and sustainably has become increasingly challenging due to costly and outdated forest inventory methods. Traditional approaches rely on expensive and time-consuming field surveys, aerial photo interpretation, and expensive LiDAR acquisitions that quickly become obsolete as forests continue to grow, change, and respond to natural and human influences. This presentation will showcase NHRI’s precision digital forest inventories solutions (PFIS) initiative. The PFIS utilizes advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI), deep learning, machine learning, and remote sensing technologies, creating a faster, accurate, and cost-effective way to collect and analyze forest inventory data. This modernized approach empowers decision-makers at all levels—forestry professionals, policymakers, Indigenous communities, and small woodlot owners—by providing high-frequency and accurate insights into the types of cuts (clear cuts, partial cuts), regeneration characterization, tree species, basal area, tree vigor, and growth rates.

Maurice LeBlanc

Forsite Consultants

Presenting: Seeing the Trees for the Forest: Advances in Remote Sensing.

Maurice LeBlanc

Forsite Consultants

Maurice was born and raised in New Brunswick, where he continues to live today. His forestry experience spans industry, government, and consulting, covering key areas such as strategic and operational planning, remote sensing, artificial intelligence, forest stewardship certification, forest carbon, and forest inventories. As a leader in innovative forest inventories, Maurice is currently the Production Solution Specialist with Forsite Consultants. He ollaborates with clients to develop customized forest inventory solutions, integrating traditional methods with advanced forest inventory methods. ___________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Seeing the Trees for the Forest: Advances in Remote Sensing. ___________________________________________________________________ Description coming soon.

Jean-Martin Lussier

Research Scientist NRCAN-Canadian Forest Service

Presenting: Using Harvester Head Data to Predict the Yields of the Next Cut Block.

Jean-Martin Lussier

Research Scientist NRCAN-Canadian Forest Service

Jean-Martin Lussier is a forest engineer and research scientist in silviculture at the Canadian Forest Service since 1998. He works at the Laurentian Forestry Centre (Quebec City), and was a member of the former Canadian Wood Fibre Centre. Over the last 20 years, Jean-Martin's research was centered on the development of partial cutting systems adapted to hardwood, mixedwood and softwood stands. More recently, his focus is on the development of solutions to accelerate the digitalization of the forestry sector, for the optimisation of timber and bioenergy supply. Jean-Martin is an adjunct professor at Université Laval and Université de Moncton. ___________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Using Harvester Head Data to Predict the Yields of the Next Cut Block ___________________________________________________________________ Single-grip harvester are collecting data on the size of the bole and logs for every harvested trees. This is a unique source of forest inventory data, with rich information on tree taper and the volume of products per sorts. By combining this data with remote sensing (Lidar, multispectral satellite imagery and photo-interpretation), we are able to predict the volume per log sort for each cut block. Advanced machine learning techniques were developed and tested to push the limit of the precision of the predictions. We will present the first results of this project and discuss about its application in forest operations

Dennis Bedford

Owner/Operator D. Bedford Forestry Services Inc.

Presenting: Empowering the Next Generation of Forestry Operators.

Dennis Bedford

Owner/Operator D. Bedford Forestry Services Inc.

Dennis Bedford has been a leader in Nova Scotia’s forestry industry for nearly 30 years, specializing in silviculture, primarily pre-commercial thinning. As President of the Nova Scotia Forestry Contractors Association and a Board Member of the Forestry Sector Council, he is dedicated to strengthening the workforce and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the industry. With experience in both partnership and independent operations, Dennis is developing a living classroom—a hands-on training program designed to attract and support new brush-saw operators. ___________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Empowering the Next Generation of Forestry Operators ___________________________________________________________________ Having witnessed the decline in new operators and the lack of tailored training, Dennis developed a living classroom—a structured program that mentors inexperienced brush-saw operators and removes barriers to entry. By identifying ideal candidate profiles and fostering community relationships, he has created a sustainable workforce model that reduces attrition and builds long-term industry success. In this session, Dennis shares how his innovative approach is contributing to the future of forestry training in Nova Scotia

Blake Brunsdon

Retired Forester

Presenting: Regulating the Practice of Professional Forestry in New Brunswick.

Blake Brunsdon

Retired Forester

Blake Brunsdon is a registered professional forester who retired after a 39 year career with J.D., Irving, Limited in 2018. He now spends most of his time around his woodlot and home in Hampton, New Brunswick. ___________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Regulating the Practice of Professional Forestry in New Brunswick ___________________________________________________________________ Over the past four years, the Association of Register Professional Foresters of New Brunswick (ARPFNB) and the New Brunswick Forest Technician's Association (NBFTA) have been working on an initiative to regulate professional forestry practitioners in New Brunswick. The presentation will provide an overview of our proposed legislation, its benefits and impact on forestry practitioners, and an update regarding our progress and timelines.

Dr. Lucas Roscoe

Research Scientist, Natural Resources Canada

Presenting: Hemlock Woolly Adelgid: A New and Important Threat to Atlantic Canada's Hemlock.

Dr. Lucas Roscoe

Research Scientist, Natural Resources Canada

Dr. Lucas Roscoe is a Research Scientist with the Canadian Forest Service of Natural Resources Canada. Based at the Atlantic Forestry Center in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Dr. Roscoe's interests include invasive insects, forest entomology, and chemical ecology. His current research projects include long-term management of the hemlock woolly adelgid, and the natural enemy complex of the beech leaf mining weevil in Nova Scotia. ___________________________________________________________________ Presenting: Hemlock Woolly Adelgid: A New and Important Threat to Atlantic Canada's Hemlock. ___________________________________________________________________ The hemlock woolly adelgid is a serious invasive pest of hemlock trees in Atlantic Canada. Since its discovery in 2017 in Nova Scotia, the adelgid has spread to large range in that province in which it has killed or damaged many hemlock trees. In this presentation, Dr. Roscoe will discuss what this insect it, the threat it exerts on hemlock trees, and the efforts by multiple partners and people to manage it.

More speaker profiles coming soon.