Our Mission

To increase public awareness and stimulate interest in the wise use, protection, and management of the forests and related resources of land, water, and wildlife of Saskatchewan.

Our History

The Saskatchewan Forestry Association was established as a non-profit, charitable organization in 1972. From our roots as a member of the Prairie Provinces Forestry Association, we continue to work with the Canadian Forestry Association and other provincial forestry associations on many national initiatives.

In Saskatchewan our association is seen, by many, as the foremost non-profit agency delivering forest education materials and programming to both schools and the public at little or no cost to the end user. We provide a bias balanced component to our programming ensuring that we can deliver objective information about the forest environment and current forestry issues.

Over the years our message has evolved from conservation and wildfire prevention to an emphasis on improving awareness and understanding of the importance of all forest resources. Prior to 1972 we worked cooperatively with both Alberta and Manitoba, through the Prairie Provinces Forestry Association, on programs that hinged around conservation education for all ages. Programs included: the Tree Planting Railway Car, Forest Protection Tours and Conservation in the Classroom.

The Tree Planting Railway Car, a gift from the Canadian Pacific Railway, was moved along the rail lines from community to community by both the CN and CP free of charge. Regular conservation education programs were held in the tree planting car, in addition to the distribution of information on conservation and tree planting.

Forest Protection Tours operated in cooperation with each Provincial Forest Service, traveling to remote areas of all three Prairie Provinces. In Saskatchewan there was close cooperation with the Superintendents of the Forest Districts and their Field Officers who made all of the arrangements for meetings held within the province. The trucks used on these tours were given to the PPFA by the Ford Motor Company of Canada Ltd., General Motor Products of Canada Ltd., and Studebaker Corporation of Canada.

Conservation in the Classroom was a program that extended the Association ‘s conservation work into city schools. All students from grades three and up attended the classes. These meeting were arranged in cooperation with the superintendents of schools, and each principal.

The success of these programs is reflected in the number of meeting and attendance at between 1949 and 1969. The number of meeting held across the prairies during this period was 3,967, and attendance was 416,181!