USDA Blog

By David Cleaves, U.S. Forest Service Climate Change Advisor “Sound climate science is the foundation for an effective management response.” These were Chief Tidwell’s words to the participants of a Forest Service workshop on climate change adaptation this past April. Using science to help us deal...

By David Cleaves, U.S. Forest Service Climate Change Advisor This update is one way we are trying to connect people inside and outside the Forest Service around the issues and the lessons we are learning in this changing climate. In implementing the Department’s new Strategic Plan (described in the...

Bristlecone pines are a small group of trees that reach an age believed by many scientists to be far greater than that of any other living organism known to man -- up to nearly 5,000 years.

On May 30, the double-hulled voyaging canoe Hōkūle‘a set sail from the Hawaiian Islands on a more than 50,000-mile, 26-country journey around the world. The crew’s mission: to spread the word about the importance of world conservation. The dual-masted, 62-foot Hōkūle‘a, along with her escort the...

The Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests in Georgia receive 2.2 million visitors each year, and their primary activity is use of 850 miles of designated system trails. But it’s not only hikers that take advantage of the recreation opportunities which these trails provide. Cyclists, hunters, anglers...

Forest restoration would be a lot easier if people who lived a couple of centuries ago could just tell us about the forest as they knew it. For Melissa Thomas-Van Gundy, a U.S. Forest Service scientist, using original land deeds from colonial America is as close as you can get to actually being...

Roads and bridges are vital links that connect communities to their national forests. For residents living near the Bankhead and Talladega National Forests, their drive to the woods is now safer while also protecting natural resources thanks to recent construction projects for two forest bridges...

Law enforcement officers with the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests joined forces with about 70 other professionals recently to showcase their careers at Clarkesville Elementary School in Clarkesville, Ga. The Forest Service is a regular participant in the school’s career day. Captain Stuart...

A few years ago, Iris Estes’ shyness served her well. After all, it didn’t matter to her because she didn’t have to give speeches or talk to groups. Then Estes landed a job on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in Central Arizona as a customer relations specialist. That was the easy part. Her new...

Of all the places I expected to have a life-changing experience, I would never have guessed it would involve a moving train on a transcontinental journey with other young professional millennials. But somewhere between Whitefish, Montana, and St. Paul, Minnesota, I realized that this journey would...