End UW's Involvement in Native Forest Destruction!
Dan Brown, Vice-Chair of the Board of Natural Resources and Director of the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington
What's at Stake?
Every month, Washington State's Board of Natural Resources determines the fate of our public lands by approving timber sales proposed by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Many of these sales threaten naturally regenerated forests which, unlike industrial tree farms, are exceptionally biodiverse, carbon-rich, fire-resilient, and culturally significant.
The UW Connection
The board's vice-chair, Dan Brown, is also Director of the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington. Since joining the board in 2018, Brown has had hundreds of opportunities at monthly meetings to challenge DNR's logging of native and structurally complex forests. Instead, despite representing one of the Pacific Northwest's leading environmental institutions, Brown has consistently voted in favor of clearcutting these vital ecosystems. It's time to change that.
Take Action!
Ready to make an impact for the old growth of tomorrow? Join fellow UW students and staff in urging Dan Brown to vote NO on all future timber sales targeting our state's imperiled native forests!
Sponsored by
To:
Dan Brown, Vice-Chair of the Board of Natural Resources and Director of the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington
From:
[Your Name]
Dan Brown:
We, the undersigned University of Washington students, staff, and organizations, call for an immediate moratorium on the logging of native and structurally complex forests on state lands managed by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
These increasingly rare native forests are irreplaceable. Unlike industrial tree farms, they play an outsized role in carbon sequestration, wildfire resilience, flood mitigation, biodiversity support, and watershed health. They also hold deep cultural significance for Washington’s tribes and provide wide-ranging opportunities for recreation, tourism, and scientific research. Each one is worth far more standing.
The ongoing destruction of native forests is at odds with the University of Washington’s public identity as a global climate and sustainability leader. It also fails to provide any meaningful material benefit to the University. From 2015 to 2024, DNR timber revenue accounted for less than 0.05% of the total revenue UW received from all sources. Such a negligible return is not worth the cost to our public lands and climate.
There are alternatives to logging what little remains of Western Washington’s unplanted forests. To meet its fiduciary obligations to trust beneficiaries, DNR can prioritize harvesting timber from younger tree farms instead of older, naturally regenerated stands. Longterm, we encourage the implementation of mechanisms for conserving forests that are both ecologically and economically viable (e.g. inclusion in the 2025 Forest Forward plan, Trust Land Transfer, Natural Climate Solutions funding, carbon credit and ecosystem service programs, etc).
Until the DNR develops a longterm management plan—one that recognizes the value of biodiverse forest ecosystems beyond timber revenue—it is up to the Board of Natural Resources to prevent further loss of these vanishing forests. Superintendent Reykdal and Dean Khosla are already using their positions to oppose many of DNR’s worst logging proposals; it is time for you as Vice-Chair to follow suit.
As University of Washington community members, we respectfully urge you to take meaningful action before it's too late. Please protect the old growth of tomorrow by voting against all DNR timber sales that threaten native and structurally complex forests—for biodiversity, the climate, and future generations.