forestry class almost every year, and we might have only one or two women in the class.” Matula believes recruiting more female foresters would “foster a diversity of ideas” when solving problems and “cultivate a stronger organization.” ROOTED IN PEOPLE SKILLS Matula’s passion for the outdoors developed during her childhood spent amid the forested landscape of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Seeking a career in natural resources, she sampled a variety of environmental disciplines at Northland College in Ashland. She worked as a seasonal timber marker for the U.S. Forest Service before taking a permanent forestry position in Michigan’s Ottawa National Forest. Later, she recalls being heavily outnumbered by men in her graduate school classes at UW-Eau Claire in the late 1980s. She overcame shyness by writing letters to professors and getting her name out there for project-based positions, leading
to her master’s degree and a decades-long career with the DNR. Her experience is part of why she believes young people interested in forestry should take classes in communications and sociology along with studying natural resources. “I think understanding people is very important to our work,” she said. “We might be able to understand how a tree grows and how to manage that species of trees, but most of the time we’re working with people as well.” PUSHING PAST BOUNDARIES As a former forest hydrologist, Carmen Hardin remembers finding great satisfaction in working with landowners and helping them manage their timber harvests. Now, as director of the DNR’s Applied Forestry Bureau, she is highly rewarded by overseeing large-scale programs relating to forest health, urban forestry, forest products, silviculture, forest research, forest hydrology and reforestation that have a broad impact on forestry in her state. MAGGIE AUGUSTA
Today, women in various roles enhance the workforce in the DNR’s Forestry Division, helping to sustainably manage the state’s 17 million acres of forestland. But there’s still work to do in creating a more inclusive forestry industry. As of June 2020, less than 20% of the DNR’s forestry staffers were women and less than 3% were nonwhite minorities. Nationwide, fewer than 3% of the country’s foresters and conservation scientists are Black, and only 19% are women, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The DNR is focused on advancing diversity across its workforce and programs to better meet the needs of the environment and the people it serves. “We’re trying to look at how, as an agency, we can reach out and get people interested in forestry, even down to the high school level,” explained Colleen Matula, a forest ecologist and silviculturist based in Ashland who has been with the DNR for more than 20 years. “We have a
‘(I’M MOTIVATED) TO BE A ROLE MODEL AND A POSITIVE INFLUENCE FOR OTHER WOMEN IN THE FIELD.’ ANGELA ROGERS, DNR FORESTER
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