Following this autumn’s enriching Northeastern Old Growth Conference, a board member asked me how the Center for Northern Woodlands Education fits into the wide range of advocacy groups and scientific organizations in attendance. I answered that we fit right in the center. I didn’t mean it in the sense of assuming some unobjectionable “middle” position when it comes to forest conservation and stewardship; in fact, advocacy, no matter how moderate, compromises our ability to educate. For us, the center means a place to come together – not the answer to the problems our forests face but rather the gathering area where information is shared and possible solutions are discussed.
That place can be the physical headquarters (yes, “the Center”), where staff members meet, where we hold workshops in and around our native perennial garden, open houses, our holiday gift shop, and summits for regional landowners and forest stewards. That place is also, of course, in the magazine: people of diverse perspectives, disciplines, and backgrounds inhabit these volumes, just as the unique, varied snowflakes photographed by Brent Haglund share the sky they fall through, the ground they fall on, and pages 12 and 13 of this issue. Advocacy and activism matter more than ever, but parties with differing approaches and objectives require a neutral place to encounter one another and to evolve as a result.
We’re pleased to announce another coming together: the return of our Northern Woodlands Conference, which will take place at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Highland Center in the White Mountains. This gathering will bring the Northern Woodlands table of contents to life, with stewardship stories, natural history, ecological findings, science writing, conservation highlights, poetry, and art. Please look for more details in early 2026 regarding registration and exciting speakers, and mark your calendars for October 23–25.
Yet another coming together: starting on page 48 of this issue, you’ll find a list of 888 individuals, families, and organizations who have supported the nonprofit financially this past fiscal year; 155 of those listed gave for the first time, and it brings great joy to see them alongside longtime supporters of what we do. If you’d like to see your name on these pages in the next Winter issue, we welcome you to join the others by making a contribution to finish up the calendar year and to send us into 2026 with confidence. Your help will further our educational mission by funding even more in-depth environmental storytelling and programming.
Although the caliber of this work should need little evidence beyond the very magazine you hold in your hands, our organization has news of a thrilling recent recognition: Between the time I write this and when the magazine ships, Editor Meghan McCarthy McPhaul will have received the Society of American Foresters’ Outstanding Forestry Journalism Award at their yearly convention, in Hartford, Connecticut. The award is a testament to Meghan’s efforts to bring stories, solutions, and science to the public through well-wrought journalism.
Congratulations, Meghan, and welcome, readers, to yet another fantastic issue she has curated.