The Yale Forest Forum (YFF) was established in 1994 by Professor John Gordon to engage a diverse group of leaders in forestry and on forest policy and management in the United States. The group’s initial work was to convene the Seventh American Forest Congress to collaboratively develop and articulate a common vision of forest management to diverse stakeholders. 

The Yale Forest Forum now serves as the special events hub of The Forest School of the Yale School of the Environment (YSE). YFF offers weekly lunch talks during the academic year, providing opportunities to hear from leaders in forest management, conservation, or policy in an informal setting. The YFF speaker series is the longest continuously-running speaker series at the Yale School of the Environment. Speakers come from a wide range of organizations and perspectives, including government, NGOs and businesses, working at scales from local to international. Click here for the current slate of speakers.

YFF is governed by a small group of TFS staff, faculty, and students to ensure that the programming is timely, cutting edge, and relevant to the work of the School.

Please note that the YFF website will temporarily serve as a hub for forest-centric news coming from The Forest School related to forestry faculty, research, education, students, Centers & Programs, alums, and stories about the history of the School.

The Forest School at the Yale School of the Environment is dedicated to education, research, and leadership in forestry and land conservation. Originally established in 1900 as “The Yale Forest School,” the School has over a dozen dedicated faculty and offers two master’s degree programs, the Master of Forestry (MF) and Master of Forest Science (MFS), and a doctoral degree program. The School also runs global programs in forest research, teaching, and outreach, and manages the nearly 11,000 acres of Yale Forests. The Forest School is home to six Centers & Programs, which engage in a range of professional, clinical, and research-based initiatives focused around forests and people.  

For more information regarding the reestablishment of The Forest School, please read Senior Associate Dean Mark Ashton’s essay featured in the Spring 2020 issue of Canopy magazine, and visit the broader YSE website for more information on the School and its degree programs, including Forestry.