John Gordon and Lynn Jungwirth

Series co-host Gary Dunning will be in conversation with John Gordon and Lynn Jungwirth to explore how community engagement with forests has evolved over the past 50 years. Drawing on Gordon and Jungwirth’s individual experiences, the speakers will reflect on key events and initiatives that expanded public participation in decisions about the future of forests. The conversation will consider the lasting impacts of broader public involvement on forest outcomes across the United States.

Speaker Biographies

John Gordon –Dean Emeritus, Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies (now the Yale School of the Environment)

John Gordon is Dean Emeritus and Pinchot Professor Emeritus of forestry and environmental studies at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, now the Yale School of the Environment. He previously served as dean of Yale Forestry and held faculty appointments at Oregon State University and Iowa State University. Now retired, Gordon led the third congressionally mandated national review of forest and forestry on Native American lands. He holds a doctorate from Iowa State University and has authored or co-authored several books and more than 100 publications on forestry and environmental leadership.

Lynn Jungwirth  – Founder, The Watershed Center

Lynn Jungwirth has been a leader in U.S. community forestry for more than 20 years. She founded The Watershed Center, a small local community-based organization, in 1994 and stepped down as executive director in 2009 to focus on policy and development. Jungwirth has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of federal land management and local community well-being. She has participated in numerous collaborative efforts, including serving on the National Network of Forest Practitioners board, the core group of the Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition, the National Fire Plan, and most recently, the Western Region Cohesive Wildfire Strategy working group.