Keeping Forests Selects Laura Calandrella as New Executive Director
Calandrella will be focused on leveraging the power of collaboration to create new and innovative pathways for forest conservation in the southern United States.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 17, 2022
Keeping Forests announced today that Laura Calandrella has been selected as the next Executive Director for the partnership. An experienced leader, Calandrella will succeed Scott Davis who retired this past April.
Calandrella brings 17 years of experience leading the development of collaborative conservation initiatives in the South. Her focus on building and strengthening partnership has enabled diverse, and often competing perspectives, to work together on the most critical challenges across the southern landscape. From leveraging the influence of large private landowners to promote natural resource management to advancing economically-driven, urban forestry solutions in underserved communities, she has tapped into the power of collaboration to shape strategy and deliver results.
“We are thrilled that Laura has agreed to serve as the new Executive Director,,” said Daniel McInnis, USDA Forest Service Shared Stewardship Coordinator from the Southern Region. “She brings decades of leadership experience in collaborative conservation in the South and has been engaged with the partnership from the beginning. Laura will be instrumental in guiding the collective impact that Keeping Forests will have toward the goal of creating the enabling conditions to conserve 245 million acres of forestland in the region.”
In 2016, Calandrella founded a consulting practice aimed at strengthening collaborative conservation initiatives and teaching the skills of collaborative leadership. She has supported executives in advancing their shared priorities with groups like American Forest Foundation, Conservation without Conflict, Southeast Natural Resource Leadership Group, and the Southeast Conservation Adaptation Strategy. A former USDA Forest Service civil servant, she facilitated the development of the first State Forest Action Plan in the nation, served as Chief of Staff to the National Fire Director, and provided leadership to the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest as a Deputy Forest Supervisor.
“I’m excited to lead Keeping Forests at a pivotal point in our nation’s conservation history. We have an opportunity to elevate the value of privately owned and family forests in the South now more than ever, Calandrella said.“These stewards of our forest lands have a critical role to play in addressing climate change, the loss of biodiversity, ensuring clean air and clean water, driving sustainable economic growth, and expanding access to forests for people from all walks of life. Our partners are committed to taking on a challenge that affects an entire region because the pace and scale of change demands bigger, bolder, and more creative thinking.”
Calandrella is the author of Our Next Evolution: Transforming Collaborative Leadership to Shape Our Planet’s Future. She received a Masters in Development Studies from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, where she was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. She holds a BS in biology and a BA in Spanish from Arizona State University, where she was nationally recognized for her environmental leadership by the Udall Foundation.
About Keeping Forests
Keeping Forests is a diverse coalition of more than 40 partners including private landowners, non-profits, businesses and state and federal agencies. Together, they are developing innovative, market-based approaches to conserve the natural, economic and cultural value of southern forests.
Media Contact
Zach Clifton
Keeping Forests Communications Specialist
Zach supports Keeping Forests via its partnership with the Georgia Forestry Association. Zach and the other communications staff at GFA lend support to the partnership both strategically & tactically.
