The Future of Victoria's Native Forests - A Public Symposium (Day Two)
Channel: The Royal Society of Victoria
Date: 26/10/2023

On the 23rd of May this year, the Victorian Government announced that commercial logging of native forests would cease in Victoria at the end of 2023 – six years ahead of the scheduled close. The native forest areas that will no longer be available for logging cover 1.8 million hectares (18,000 km2) confined to the eastern regions of Victoria, roughly equivalent to the entire Goulburn River catchment, or twice the area of metropolitan Melbourne.

This public symposium explores options and issues for securing the future of these forests. We convene scientists, land managers and First Nations expertise to explore and discuss perspectives informed by scholarship, cultural practices and ecological values. These scholars, policy makers and knowledge holders address bushfire prevention, recovering threatened species, sustaining human health and wellbeing, and adapting to the regional impacts of climate change. We seek to understand how the end of logging operations will change the way native forests are managed, the challenges of future management, and the opportunities that this land-use change provides.

Day One Program:
Welcome and Acknowledgement of Country from Mr Rob Gell AM 

Session Five: Ecosystem Services, Forest Values and Wellbeing
Dr Katherine Trebeck – Introduction to a Wellbeing Economy: a lens on our forest commons
Mr Jim Binney – Measuring Multiple Forest Values
Dr Kate Dooley – Enhancing Carbon Values in Public Forests
Dr Shane Haydon – Forests and Water Supply for Melbourne: A tale of two forests

Session Six: Outdoor Values and Land Management
Dr Jennifer Mason – Dhudhuroa Perspectives on Forest Country
Mr Matt Ruchel – A Future for the Forest: Managing Victoria’s forests for all their (non-extractive) values
Mr Andrew Knight – Commercial Recreation in Forests
Mr Peter Jacobs – The Major Invasive Species of Victoria’s Eastern Forests

Mr Rob Gell AM – Reflections and Symposium Close

Presented by the Alluvium Foundation in partnership with the Royal Society of Victoria, the Victorian National Parks Association, and Friends of the Earth Melbourne. Note these livestreamed proceedings are very compressed due to live transmission, and high quality videos of each presentation will be circulated in the weeks ahead.

The livestream recording of Day One is available at https://youtube.com/live/YbUzYcL2Gs4.