By Dr. Alan Barton,
NMFWRI Director
Over the past year, the staff at NMFWRI has been celebrating our 20th anniversary. After Congress created the Southwest Ecological Restoration Institutes in 2004, the States of New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona signed a charter that established institutes in each state in 2005. New Mexico Highlands University was chosen to host the NMFWRI, and from our humble beginnings we have grown over the past two decades to a professional organization with expertise in all aspects of forest and watershed restoration, that partners with a range of organizations to provide training and logistical support, convene and connect practitioners around the state, develop decision support tools for public agencies and private organizations, and advocate for adaptive management practices.
To celebrate our anniversary, we recently held two events. First, we took over the atrium of the NMHU Student Union Building for an open house, and invited campus and community members to stop by and learn more about our work. Each of our programs set up tables with informational handouts, posters, artifacts, photos and videos that represent their projects and purpose. Students, faculty, university administrators and community members all stopped by, heard some of our stories, shared some of their memories, and collected some of our 20th anniversary swag.
Then, we organized an internal event to celebrate our own history, held in NMHU’s lovely Kennedy Gallery. NMHU Chief of Staff Dr. Brandon Kempner, who has been with the university as long as the NMFWRI, kicked off the event with inspiring words about the important role the NMFWRI has played on campus. Then, a panel featuring former NMFWRI Director Dr. Kent Reid, long-time stalwart of NMFWRI’s GIS program Patti Dappen, and Deputy Director Dr. Edward Martinez shared their memories of the NMWRI’s founding, early days, and development over the years. Following that, our program managers celebrated our collaborative work with some of our closest partners, including New Mexico Forestry Division District Forester Shannon Atencio, U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Amina Sena, New Mexico Rural Water Association’s Dr. Martha Graham, and Claunch-Pinto Soil and Water Conservation District’s Dee Tarr. As we reflected on the lessons from the morning, everyone enjoyed a lunch of delicious New Mexican food provided by local taco-master Kraiger’s Smokin’ Tacos, and then retired to our office space for an after-party with deserts, games, and crafts.
After 20 years, NMFWRI is firmly embedded in New Mexico’s conservation community, and we have much to celebrate and to be proud of. We also have much to look forward to, as we embark on our third decade. Stories of destructive wildfires continue to appear in the news, making our support for work in pre-fire mitigation, post-fire recovery, and reforestation increasingly important. And as more New Mexicans enjoy outdoor recreation and rural communities near forested areas continue to face risk of wildfires, the need to produce healthy forests to ensure their safety is also a priority. NMFWRI assures partners and communities around New Mexico that they can count on our continued support into the future.
