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Sustainable Forestry

Forest of Birch Trees

CDS has been involved with the development of over sustainable forest owner cooperatives and associations since January of 1998, providing:

  • organizational structure development
  • business planning
  • grant and loan procurement
  • member equity structuring
  • other technical assistance

These entities provide a range of services to members, including: land stewardship education, development of woodland management plans, sustainable harvesting, processing, and marketing, among others. These organizations strive to provide their members with a return equal to or greater than what they would get from a traditional timber buyer, while at the same time maintaining or improving the ecological and aesthetic condition of their woods.

CDS is a founding partner in WoodWorks, a national network of co-op development organizations whose mission is to provide educational, technical assistance, and alliance-building services to forest owner and agroforestry cooperatives and associations—both directly and through national, regional, state-level and sub-state partnerships.

Contact us for more information.

Sustainable Forestry Projects

The Blandin Foundation - Grand Rapids, MN

By 2015, the Blandin Foundation of Grand Rapids, Minnesota hopes to increase the state’s family-owned forest land from its current 1.3 million acres to 2.3 million acres. CDS completed a research study in 2005 identifying best practices for family forest landowners which served as a catalyst for a 2006 conference sponsored by the Foundation addressing Family Forest Stewardship. CDS consultants helped develop the conference program and participated in presentations.