New RFS President focuses on learning

The new President of the Royal Forestry Society (RFS), Anthony Bosanquet, has pledged to keep learning at the forefront of everything the charity does.

His comments come as the RFS prepares to expand its Learning and Continuous Professional Development programme with a series of Special Focus Days in 2010 and a Tree Disease Conference being held in conjunction with the Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) in April 2010.

Mr Bosanquet, who took over the role of President on 1 October, when the two-year term of office for John Besent came to an end, has also welcomed the opportunities that woodfuel offers to woodland owners.

A former President of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), Mr Bosanquet’s own family estate at Dingestow, Monmouth, includes a number of woodlands. He says: “These times are no less challenging for foresters and woodland owners than they are for many other sections of society – market returns are low, and the future uncertain.

“At a time when the construction industry, certainly as far as new building is concerned, is in the doldrums, the strength of the firewood, woodchip and pellet markets offers some consolation. A strong and well co-ordinated woodfuel sector could present significant opportunities, both as a source of income and also as an incentive to manage our woodlands better, especially in the early stages of a rotation.

“One of the main benefits that the RFS offers to its members is to keep them in touch with developments, through the Quarterly Journal of Forestry and E-news service and also through Field Meetings where members can learn first-hand about matters that crucially affect both the well-being and the profitability of woodlands. Outreach, such as the RFS’s education programmes, must be a core function. So too must be the provision of continuous professional development.”

Mr Bosanquet praised the work of out-going President John Besent who, during his two years as President, has overseen the 125th anniversary of the RFS, the 50th anniversary of its ownership of the Leighton Redwoods, the launch of the Excellence in Forestry Awards and a re-vamped website with the RFS’s Discovery Zone – the organisation’s first interactive resource for Primary School children.

Nicholas Halsey has been elected Vice President of the RFS, with Andrew Woods re-elected as Management Committee Chairman.