Polly Dyer – Seattle • Entered by Penelope Peterson on December 31, 2023
Broadband Meeting
November 16, 2023 – November 16, 2023
Participants and Hours
| Pre Planning hours | 5 |
| Post Admin hours | 1.5 |
| Activity Hours | 3 |
| Participants | 1 |
| Total Hours | 9.5 |
Key Issue: Multiple apply
Activity Type: Broadband Meeting (prep, implementation & follow up)
Key Partners: Polly Dyer Seattle Broads
Short Description of Activity
On November 16th at noon, we met at my home in the Madrona neighborhood of Seattle for a pre-Thanksgiving celebration, which I called, “A Gratitude Potluck,” followed by a short business meeting. Everyone brought a dish to share. Here is the agenda for our meeting:
Agenda for Polly Dyer Seattle Broadband Meeting
November 16, 2023 at noon at Penelope’s home in Madrona
1.Fun
Introductions and sharing of our thoughts on gratitude
2. Advocacy Issues
A. Support and protect urban forests
Report on the Urban Forest Symposium at the University of Washington, Nov. 2nd (Genia and Nora)
B. Preserve Legacy Forests in Washington (Genia)
Discuss and vote on this draft advocacy statement below by Janka and Genia. Then decide on next steps.
Polly Dyer Seattle Broads WA State Legacy Forest Draft Advocacy Statement
We strongly support the preservation of forest stands with “old growth” and “legacy forest” characteristics. These are forest stands that retain the character of mature native forests. For those that have been logged, the tree cutting mostly occurred before the advent of modern power equipment – generally around 1945.
These forests are structurally complex, naturally regenerated, and exhibit genetic and biological diversity. These forest stands are not only refuge for bio-diverse organisms, they are exceptionally effective carbon sinks. They also promote groundwater recharge and regulation, are fire resistant, and help to moderate the climate.
Washington State manages 1.7 million acres of forest lands in Western Washington. Only about 77,000 acres of these are unprotected legacy stands. These forest stands are significantly more valuable standing than turned into board feet. We are not trying to stop logging in Washington State. However, time is now for us to preserve our few remaining wild forests.
Upcoming Events
January 11, 2024 at 7 pm via Zoom, Book Club discussion of, Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food from Sustainable to Suicidal by Mark Bittman. Let Penelope know if you are not a regular Book Club participant but would like to attend so she can send you the Zoom link.
January 18, 2024 at 7 pm via Zoom, presentation by and discussion of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by Great Old Broads Advocacy Manager, Audrey Glendenning.
Save the date for our Regional Broadwalk on June 24-27th, 2024, at Cornet Bay Retreat Center, Whidbey Island. Barb Muirhead has reserved this site for us. Cabins, tent sites, and RV sites will be available. Barb, Susan Kostick, and Penelope constitute the program committee and will organize hikes, stewardship activities, speakers, and food. If you have suggestions, please send them to the program committee. Online registration will be available in January.
Reflection/Evaluation
We had a fantastic turn-out of seventeen members including one new Broad and one new Bro. We began with introductions because we had two new members, including our first bro. Then I asked each person to share what she or he was thankful for. The sharing of thoughts on gratitude served to make everyone hopeful for the future. After that, we shared the food that each of us had brought and enjoyed a yummy lunch followed by amazing desserts. We then had a brief business meeting focused primarily on discussion and adoption of an advocacy statement on “Protecting Legacy Forests.”Everyone enjoyed the good food that people brought.
In the business meeting we had a good discussion of the advocacy statement on legacy forests drafted by Janka and Genia. At the October meeting, I had argued for such a written statement as I thought we needed such a statement both to clarify our thinking as well as to suggest further actions. At this meeting, we voted unanimously to adopt the following advocacy statement on Legacy Forests:
We strongly support the preservation of forest stands with “old growth” and “legacy forest” characteristics. These are forest stands that retain the character of mature native forests. For those that have been logged, the tree cutting mostly occurred before the advent of modern power equipment – generally around 1945.
These forests are structurally complex, naturally regenerated, and exhibit genetic and biological diversity. These forest stands are not only refuge for bio-diverse organisms, but they are also exceptionally effective carbon sinks. They also promote groundwater recharge and regulation, are fire resistant, and help to moderate the climate.
Washington State manages 1.7 million acres of forest lands in Western Washington. Only about 77,000 acres of these are unprotected legacy stands. These forest stands are significantly more valuable standing than turned into board feet. We are not trying to stop logging in Washington State. Now is the time for us to preserve these 77,000 acres of remaining legacy forests.
After adopting this statement, we began a discussion of next steps. We agreed to continue this discussion at our next meeting via Zoom in January.
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Photo Captions
1. Minutes of Broadband Meeting on November 16, 2023