GET UPDATES
GET UPDATES
GET UPDATES
The 13 states of the U.S. South function as an interconnected forest region.
Water systems, supply chains, manufacturing networks, working lands, and economic relationships cross state lines every day. The region's forests also support military readiness, disaster resilience, and many of the conditions that enable continued growth.
While forests are managed locally, the forces shaping their future rarely stop at property or state boundaries. A mill closure, a new manufacturing facility, or a major infrastructure investment in one state can influence what landowners decide to do with their forests hundreds of miles away.
Those decisions collectively shape a forested region that is also a globally significant asset -- supporting people, industries, communities, and natural systems far beyond the U.S. South.
Keeping Forests is working to strengthen the long-term competitiveness and viability of Southern forests.
We do not own land, regulate land use, or advocate for a single sector. Instead, we work across industries, institutions, and geographies to identify opportunities that no single organization can advance alone.
By connecting partners, developing and testing new approaches, and learning through implementation, we build models that others can replicate and scale. We then bring those lessons back to our partners, helping align the markets, investment, and decision-making needed to move what works forward.
Executive Director
Laura Calandrella is the founding Executive Director of Keeping Forests. She began working with the partnership as a consultant in 2016 and led its transition into an independent nonprofit in 2025.
For more than two decades, Laura has helped leaders understand why complex environmental systems remain stuck and where their capital, authority, and influence can create meaningful change. Her work sits at the intersection of ecology, economics, public policy, and institutional decision-making.
Laura spent ten years with the U.S. Forest Service before establishing a consulting practice advising leaders and cross-sector initiatives on strategy, partnership development, and systems change. She is also the author of Our Next Evolution, a book about the leadership required to work across and leverage differences to create transformational change in our world.
Enter your email to access the brief.
Thank you for your interest in Keeping Forests. You can access the brief below.
DOWNLOAD THE BRIEF