This is who we are (TIWWA) — The Forest Service mission, purpose, and values
How Is The Forest Service Unique In Having A Centralized Global Mission?
The Forest Service commitment
The Forest Service — created to manage forest reserves
Gone are the personnel officers, IT specialists, and clerks who once worked for workers in the national forest or forestry. Much of the work done has been handed over to each field employee, who now has to spend time learning the intricacies of online forms for reporting travel expenses, overtime, and so on. [Sources: 0]
Agency staff work in professional areas ranging from forest and pasture management, wildfires, timber production and public recreation to ecosystem care, wildlife and the public interest, as well as business administration, security forces, order and research.
The Forest Service was created to manage forest reserves and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was created to manage mining rights and pasture leases, but both agencies have joined forces to deal with increasingly similar tasks and often collaborate with each other on projects with overlapping jurisdictions. Merging BLM and the Forest Service and possibly all federal land agencies together could lead to more consistent management with less duplication and waste. [Sources: 3, 8]
In this mega-merger scenario, the National Park Service would become the predominant public lands agency, absorbing BLM and the Forest Service, as well as the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and other federal public lands.
The National Forest would still be managed under existing regulations as a National Forest, but Forest Service officers would be renamed Park Service Officers and all federal land managers would work in a theoretically cohesive agency. Congress established the management of outdoor recreation, pasture, timber, watershed, and wildlife as several uses of the national forests. [Sources: 2, 3]
In 2005, the United States had 155 National Forests, 20 National Grasslands, and 222 Research and Experimental Forests, as well as other Areas of Special Interest covering over 192 million acres of public land. As the lead federal natural resource agency, the Forest Service provides a leading role in the protection, management, and use of the nation’s forests, rangelands, and aquatic ecosystems.
The mission of the Forest Service
The mission of the National Forest System is to protect and manage forest lands so that they best demonstrate the concept of sustainable management with multiple uses, using an ecological approach to meet the various needs of people.
Whether it be Hispanic or Latino — the mission of the USDA Forest Service is to maintain the health, diversity, and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. [Sources: 2, 6, 10]
After World War I, as automobiles became more affordable and accessible to American families, forest service leaders recognized a growing public interest in recreational activities on the National Timberlands. In 1946, the Cattle Grazing Service and the General Land Administration were merged into the Land Administration Administration.
In February 2009, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) assessed whether the Forest Service should be moved from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to the Department of the Interior, which already included the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Land Management, which manage approximately 438 million acres (1 770,000 km2) of public land. [Sources: 2, 6]
The Takeaway — The global reach of the US Forest Service and other federal agencies
The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) currently works overseas with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Forest Service, the National Park Service, and other federal agencies while operating its own National Wildlife Refuge.
Although USDA service centers operate primarily on public forests and private lands, they are designed as a unique place where clients can access services provided by agricultural service agencies, conservation services, and rural development agencies. The US Forest Service manages 193 million acres (78 million hectares) of federal land in 43 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USDA FS 2018). [Sources: 3, 8, 10]
The Forest Service works closely with other agencies such as USAID, the Department of State, and the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as non-profit development organizations, wildlife organizations, universities, and international aid organizations. The agency is committed to maintaining the health, diversity, and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands. [Sources: 6, 10]
The importance of nature conservation and preservation of historical memory
Source 9 shares information pertaining to the National Museum of Forest Service History (NMFSH) to build the National Conservation Legacy and Education Center in Missoula, Montana. In the Center, NMFSH will fulfill its mission and realize its vision of national education in the field of nature conservation and the preservation of historical memory. In the winter of 2020–2021, the US Forest Service restarted safety engagements under the new cultural slogan “This is who we are — TIWWA” (USDA FS 2019, Christiansen 2020). [Sources: 8, 9]
This is Who We Are (TIWWA)
These all-employee safety engagements, now called “national learning sessions” or more commonly called “This Is Who We Are” (TIWWA) (USDA FS 2019, Christiansen, 2020) are an attempt to instill in every Forest Service employee:
“The Forest Service commitment to live as a values-based, purpose-driven, and relationship-focused organization” (Weldon, p.1).” [Source: 8]
Source 11 is a PDF document that provides details concerning the TIWWA engagement learning sessions. Throughout 2021, thousands of Forest Service personnel engaged in impactful discussions about the agency’s mission, purpose, and values, to include the core values and the agency’s code and commitments through the day-long TIWWA virtual engagements. [Sources 11, 12]
Robert Bergstrom, TIWWA ambassador and administrative review coordinator in Forest Service Region 8, summed up the engagement learning sessions very succinctly:
“It’s been quite refreshing to discover that no matter our tenure, position, or experiences, we are more alike than not. When we leverage these similarities by investing in relationships, we achieve greater success in everything we do.” [Source: 12]
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Sources
[0]: https://mountainjournal.org/morale-plummets-in-forest-service
[1]: https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/news/release/fs-research-bridging-gender-gap
[2]: https://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1602.html
[3]: https://thomasjelpel.wordpress.com/tag/blm-vs-forest-service/
[4]: https://www.nap.edu/read/1860/chapter/16
[6]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Forest_Service
[8]: https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/119/5/506/6270759
[9]: https://forestservicemuseum.org/our-mission/
[10]: https://mautic-server.de/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/fqnfcp/usda-forest-service-jobs-new-york.html
[11]:
https://www.wildernessstewardship.org/sites/default/files/custom/TIWWA%20Booklet.pdf
[12]:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/inside-fs/out-and-about/learn-whats-possible-join-who-we-are-engagement
