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University of Washington
College of Forest Resources Visiting Committee
Mission and Description

The Visiting Committee is dedicated to helping the College of Forest Resources maintain high quality and relevant programs while advancing College prominence in the rapidly-changing world of natural resources management. The Visiting Committee will represent a broad public and private sector perspective which the College can use to critique and advance its strategic initiatives.

The Visiting Committee Charge:

• Advance a policy of sustainability of natural resources in natural and managed urban and wild land environments, where ecological, economic, social values, and political interchange meet in productive discourse.
• Advise the Dean on strategic opportunities, challenges, and other issues as the Dean wishes to engage the Committee.
• Strive for continuing alignment of College objectives, strategies, programs, and collaborations with state of the art advances in science, technology, and policy.
• Reach out to other UW centers and colleges where appropriate to ensure intercollegiate collaboration that advances sustainable resource management.
• Advise and assist the College and Dean with funding opportunities that support strategic objectives.
• Act as Ambassadors to represent to various publics, policy and budget issues important to the College and its professions.
• Maintain productive relationships with regional institutions, public agencies, Native American tribes, and businesses.
• Actively assist the Dean and the capital campaign committee in fundraising activities necessary to achieve UW Capital Campaign goals.

Terms and Conditions:

• Members of the Visiting Committee will be drawn from diverse elements of the private, public, university, alumni, and other sectors. The College will make efforts to gain forest industry and non-industry Committee representation from family forests, urban forests, urban horticulture and public gardens, tribal forests, parks, environmental conservation and recreation interests and to gain expertise in management, research, education, public relations, politics, and fund-raising. It is not intended however that each of these perspectives will be represented by one person.
• The term of Committee appointment is three years.
• The Committee will meet at regular intervals, generally twice each year, or at the request of the Dean and Committee Chair.
• The Committee will, at its discretion, invite opportunities for faculty, student, and staff interaction and encourage such interaction.
• The Chair of the Committee will convene and lead all Committee meetings and appoint subommittees as needed.

Committee meetings will likely include topics such as:

• Progress and need for major research programs
• Updates on major changes in curriculum or degree programs
• Progress and need for outreach education, technology transfer, and policy assistance to Washington’s forest resources sector
• Major UW initiatives or situations that may affect the College
• Changes in federal or state laws or policies, markets, technologies, or forest conditions that might affect College programs
• Opportunities for strengthening collaborative work with private, tribal, state and federal forestry institutions
• Initiatives to further the attainment of UW Capital Campaign goals.

The College will provide an orientation and update for the Committee at meeting presentations and other communications. There will be opportunities to interact with College leadership and to share information and ideas. Staff will keep Committee members well-informed on current and pending broad issues as well as on specific decisions on which the Committee is expected to participate. These might include strategic plans for the College; providing perspectives on research, education and outreach; or assisting with issues. Agenda topics and materials will be available at least a week prior to the meeting.