Collaboration:

Bringing people together from different perspectives – conservation and

environmentalism, forest industry, recreation, wildlife and community -- to

collaboratively develop active management and restoration solutions for the O&C Lands

is at the heart of how we work. Collaboration boosts creativity and, when facilitated

well, effectively bridges differences through consensus, setting people on a unified path

towards a common goal.

Partnership:

We form authentic, transparent, and mutually beneficial partnerships with

organizations, associations, businesses, governments, Tribal nations, universities,

funders, and the general public (in the form of Friends of Forest Bridges). Through these

partnerships we can share ideas and resources and take collective action, resulting in

greater voice and impact than when each group stands alone.

Trust:

Forest Bridges earns the trust of its stakeholders and partners by providing a safe,

reliable, transparent and inclusive platform -- the Forest Bridges’ bridge – where ideas

can be shared openly and genuinely, and where people know they are heard and

respected. Even though not all ideas may change our fundamental principles or

proposals for managing the O&C Lands, the bridge supports free-thinking and dialogue.

And the Forest Bridges Board responds with timely and clear rationale for the ideas it

takes under consideration and the final decisions it makes.

Diversity and Inclusion:

Forest Bridges recognizes that the historical legacy and persistence of discrimination

based on race, ethnicity, gender, class and other differences makes a proactive

approach to promoting a culture of inclusiveness an important component of creating

an equitable society. This is particularly true in rural Western Oregon where many

ethnic groups were historically excluded. Inclusion puts the concept and practice of

diversity into action by creating spaces that support equal and active participation, and

mutual respect and connection.

Forest Bridges’ strength comes from the inclusion and engagement of a broad spectrum

of people, organizations, nations and viewpoints in its organization. In all of its outreach,

Forest Bridges strives to be inclusive, to hear every voice, and to not exclude any voice

or point of view, with an affinity toward those who embrace the Forest Bridges

Principles and Agreements [imbed link]. We welcome and value diversity in its broadest

possible view, going beyond visible differences to affirm the essence that makes each

person who they are and encourage an organizational culture that can be an example to

our partners and the citizens of western Oregon and beyond.

In our hiring; Board, Council of Advisors and Friends of Forest Bridges recruitment;

partnership development; and public engagement, we embrace all people regardless of

their age; ethnicity; gender; gender identity; language; nationality; parental status;

physical, mental and developmental abilities; race; religion; sexual orientation; skin

color; socioeconomic status; education; work and behavioral styles; the perspectives of

each individual shaped by their nation, experiences and culture; and more.

Equity and Social Justice:

Forest Bridges believes that improving equity is to promote justice, impartiality and

fairness within the procedures, processes, and distribution of resources by institutions

or systems. It means sharing power, influence, resources and a commitment to the

eradication of all forms of social oppression. Achieving equity requires both an

understanding of existing disparities and their root causes, and thoughtful action to

break down barriers, share power and resources, and address imbalances.

Within the context of the ownership history of the O&C lands, which were first

indigenous and then private, prior to becoming public lands, governed by federal law, FB

believes in equal, fair and just distribution of power and resources. Equity transcends

fairness, creating an environment that ensures equal access and opportunity for

everyone – especially those who have suffered the most from pollution, environmental

degradation and systemic oppression and exclusion.

Forest Bridges strives for the O&C Lands, and for those who have suffered most, to

mitigate and/or restore the loss of historic diversity of habitats, the loss of structurally

complex and early seral moist forests, the loss of fire-resiliency, the loss of jobs

(including job alternatives), the loss of O&C county revenues, the loss of access and

enjoyment, the loss of Tribal cultural use and lands management, and the loss of the

ability of the land management agencies to manage efficiently. We also strive to

mitigate the health, environmental and smoke effects and losses created by destructive

wildfire and climate change by promoting the use of beneficial prescribed

fire/Indigenous cultural burning together with other fuel reduction methods as active

forest management approaches to fostering a balance of forest habitats and

sustainability of native species and cultures on the O&C Lands.

Accountability:

Forest Bridges holds itself accountable to bring together people, often of opposing

viewpoints, to generate active management and restoration solutions that finally break

through decades of polarization on how best to manage lands in Western Oregon. In

line with our mission, we are especially committed to this shift on the O&C Lands in the

context of the organic O&C Act of 1937.

We take responsibility for our commitments and performance in all of our decisions and

actions. We manage our finances according to the highest accountability standards.

Integrity:

The Forest Bridges Board, with input from its advisors, makes decisions in a transparent

and well-intended manner, such as when it reviews feedback from people, organizations

and nations -- or identifies useful information through its scientific literature reviews –

as part of honing its Principles of Agreement and proposals for active management and

removal of barriers to management and public access on the O&C Lands.

Innovation:

To tackle the multi-dimensional challenges affecting the O&C Lands, Forest Bridges

studies and analyzes the best of forest science, Indigenous wisdom and practice and

practitioner experience to arrive at its Principles of Agreement and management

proposals. We believe that meaningful, productive change comes by looking at complex

challenges from a new perspective, exercising our intellectual curiosity and mobilizing

the wisdom of an insightful and diverse collaborative group.

Active Conservation:

We promote an active, metered management – or active conservation – approach to

the O&C Lands designed to sustainably provide timber, wildlife habitat, watershed

protection, recreational opportunities, rural jobs, county revenues, and many other

benefits. Our approach integrates western science, Traditional Ecological Knowledge

and field practitioner experience to identify sustainable forest management solutions.

We are passionate about helping to shift the paradigm at a time when climate change

and increased