graduate students outside sfws building after graduation
Conference Agenda
| Agenda (As of 9/24/2025) | International Conference on Forest Carbon and Resilience (held within Central Time Zone, except where noted) |
|---|---|
| MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 | |
| 3:00 - 5:00 PM | Arrival/Registration - Prefunction Foyer |
| 5:00 - 7:00 PM | Evening Reception/Networking/Opening Remarks - Legacy Ballroom |
| Remarks: Deans, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University | |
| TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 | |
| 7:00 - 8:00 AM | Registration - Prefunction Foyer |
| Breakfast/Networking - Grand Ballroom | |
| Welcome & Opening Remarks - Auditorium | |
| 8:00 - 8:20 AM | Welcome: Daowei Zhang, Associate Dean of Research, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University |
| Opening Remarks: Steven Taylor, Senior Vice President for Research and Economic Development, Auburn University | |
| Keynote Session 1 - Auditorium | The "Three M's" as related to Forest Carbon: Market, Measurement, and Management |
| 8:20 - 10:00 AM | Introduction by Daowei Zhang, Assoc. Dean of Research, Alumni and George W. Peake Professor of Forest Economics, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University |
| Keynote Address 1: Evaluating the "Markets" for Forest Carbon , Jesse Henderson, Project Leader, Forest Economics and Policy, U.S. Forest Service | |
| Q&A | |
| Keynote Address 2: Forest Carbon at a Crossroads: Science, Policy, and Technology in a Rapidly Changing World, Chris Woodall, U.S. Forest Science and Policy, CTrees | |
| Q&A | |
| 10:00 - 10:30 AM | Break/Networking/Exhibits - Prefunction Foyer |
| Concurrent Session Block 1 - Multiple Locations | |
| 10:30 - 12:00 PM | Concurrent Sessions |
| Concurrent Session 1 - Auditorium: Forest Carbon Programs - Richard Hall, Buckhead Resources Inc. (Moderator) The Family Forest Carbon Program: An Innovative Opportunity for Landowners and Foresters - Sarah Hall, American Forest Foundation ACR: Opportunities for Landowners and Researchers in a Maturing Forest Carbon Market - Kurt Krapfl, ACR at Winrock International Chestnut Carbon: Scaling High-Integrity, Nature-Based Carbon Removal Across the U.S. - Sarah Ford, Chestnut: Forest Carbon Works From the Field to the Future: Scaling Forest Carbon Solutions Through Innovation and Partnership- John C. Fennebresque, Jr., ACRE Investment Management LLC Integrating Geospatial Applications with Spatial Finance Principles to More Clearly Define the Value Propositions for Forest-Based Climate Solutions - Richard Hall, Buckhead Resources Inc. |
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| Concurrent Session 2 - Legacy Ballroom: Current Challenges and Opportunities for Pine Systems in the Voluntary Carbon Market - David Shoch, TerraCarbon LLC and Trisha Johnson, The Nature Conservancy (Moderators) Balancing Conservation and Longleaf Pine Management: Market Expectations of Carbon Balance Sheets - David Shoch, TerraCarbon LLC. Landowner Challenges and Market Participant Challenges as Markets Change Accounting Methods and Buyers Change Expectations - Michael Lauve, Tim White, & Mitch White, NativState Short-Term and Long-Term Tradeoffs of High Initial Planting Densities Related to Aboveground Carbon Dynamics in Loblolly Pine - Adam Polinko, Mississippi State University Land Trust and Landowner Participation in Carbon Markets in Alabama, Thomas Reddick- Alabama Forest Land Trust Compelling New Model for Fostering Trust and Aligning Incentives, Paving the Way for the Seamless Integration of Biodiversity-Driven Carbon Solutions into Established Forest Management - Josh Parrish, Funga |
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| Concurrent Session 3 - Oak Room: Forest Measurements, New Tools, and Emerging Geospatial Technologies - Georgios Arseniou, Auburn University (Moderator) Quick Estimates of Carbon in Western Even - Aged Shortleaf Pine Forests Using Carbon-Basal Area Ratios - Curtis L. VanderSchaaf, Mississippi State University ACR's Framework for Remotely Sensed Quantification of Forest Carbon - Warren Reed, ACR at Winrock International Advancing Aboveground Biomass Mapping in Forests of Alabama Using Multi-Source Earth Observation Data - Janaki Sandamali, Auburn University Precise Quantification of the Aboveground Carbon Stock of Urban Trees Using Terrestrial Laser Scanning Technology - Georgios Arseniou, Auburn University Synergy between Airborne Lidar and High-Resolution PlanetScope Imagery for Advancing Forest Aboveground Biomass Estimation in the Southeastern United States - Nisham Thapa, Auburn University |
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| Concurrent Session 4 - Terrace Room: Forest Management Contributing to Carbon Sequestration and Forest Resilience, and Landowner Income - Fred Cubbage, North Carolina State University (Moderator) Forest Carbon Consulting for Family Forests: Insights from an Emerging Practice - Anthony F. Pappas, West Virginia University Optimizing Carbon and Timber Value - How Working Pine Plantations are Poised to Further Monetize Sustainable Forest Management - Pete Compton, Real Heritage Group Prescribed Fire Effects on Carbon and Evapotranspiration Fluxes in a Longleaf Pine-Dominated Forest - Siddhartha Regmi, Clemson University Integrated Timber Investment Returns, Wood Fiber Stumpage Costs, and Forest Carbon Offset Costs for Global Planted Forests - Fred Cubbage, North Carolina State University Fields to Forest, Utilization of Carbon Markets to Assist Landowners in Planting Regional -Specific Loblolly Pine Seedlings on Marginally Productive or Difficult to Manage Pastures and Croplands - Sarah Hall, American Forest Foundation |
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| Concurrent Session 5 [Panel] - Camellia Room: Global Lessons from Local Voices: Stakeholder-Driven Insights on Forest Carbon Offsets from the ACT-AT Forests Project - Melissa Kreye, Forest Owner Carbon and Climate Education, Pennsylvania State University Panelists: - Sebastián Fragni, Executive Director, GMF Nature Based Solutions, Argentina - Sergio Alonso Orrego, Professor, Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNAL) - Magnolia Longo, Professor, Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano (Utadeo) The ACT-AT Forests project (Augmenting Climate Transitions across the Atlantic Transect) is a multi-country, extension-driven project focused on accelerating the development of high-integrity, socially responsible forest carbon offset programs across four diverse ecosystems in the Atlantic transect - Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, and the United States. This panel session presents early findings from the project’s stakeholder needs assessments - including project developers, registries, NGOs, legal professionals, academics, landowners and community leaders - convened to evaluate opportunities and challenges in forest carbon offset markets. Using structured group facilitation methods, discussions centered around key stages of project development (design, monitoring, verification, commercialization, and long-term sustainability), and revealed pressing needs for stakeholder education, institutional capacity building, legal literacy, and better alignment between global carbon standards and local implementation realities. Visits to offset project sites illustrated the diversity of models for managing carbon, and highlighted critical knowledge gaps related to ecosystem services, community equity, and project permanence. This session will bring together academic and industry professionals from the ACT-AT Forests team to reflect on the outcomes of the project and broader implications for global carbon forest strategies. Panelists will share lessons learned from cross-sector, cross-national dialogue and contribute ideas for advancing forest carbon policy, research, education, and certification frameworks through place-based engagement. |
|
| 12:00 - 1:15 PM | Buffet Lunch/Networking - Grand Ballroom |
| Introduction by Janaki Alavalapati, Emmett F. Thompson Dean, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University | |
| Keynote Address 3: From Seedlings to Solutions. How Mass Timber Could Lock in Carbon Wins for Developers, Troy Harris, Jamestown LP | |
| Keynote Session 2 - Auditorium | |
| 1:15 - 2:45 PM | Introduction by Adam Maggard, Extension Specialist & Harry E. Murphy Associate Professor, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University |
| Keynote Address 4: Beyond Carbon Counting: Hidden Dimensions of Ecosystem Carbon Studies, Jiquan Chen, Professor, Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences, College of Social Science, Michigan State University | |
| Q&A | |
| Keynote Address 5: Forest resilience, Building Resilient Forests for Our Future, Colette DeGarady, Director, Longleaf Pine Whole System, The Nature Conservancy | |
| Q&A | |
| 2:45 - 3:05 PM | Break/Networking/Exhibitons - Prefunction Foyer |
| Concurrent Session Block 2 - Multiple Locations | |
| 3:05 - 4:55 PM | Concurrent Sessions |
| Concurrent Session 6 - Auditorium: Forest Carbon Markets - Jesse Henderson, U.S. Forest Service (Moderator) Forest Carbon Outlook - U.S. South - Gabriel Reis, Fastmarkets Positioning Southeastern U.S. Forests in the Global Carbon Economy - Unlocking Access to the Expanding Article 6 International Carbon Market - Pete Compton, Real Heritage Group Measure Twice, Tokenize Once: Precision Forestry, Telemetry, and Carbon Monetization Strategy - Rex Allen Lester, Montague Neville and DeMontfort Making Voluntary Carbon Markets Work for Small Landowners - Joshua Fain, Landyield Crisis as Catalyst: How Credibility Shocks Within the Voluntary Carbon Market Reshape Forest Governance and Resilience - Idowu Kunlere, University of Delaware |
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| Concurrent Session 7 – Legacy Ballroom: Balancing Carbon and Conservation Outcomes in Pine System Management - Trisha Johnson, The Nature Conservancy (Moderator) Dynamics of Managing and Measuring Carbon Towards Restoration of Longleaf - Cat Chamberlain, The Nature Conservancy Restoring Longleaf and Shortleaf Pine Forests for Resilience and Ecological Benefits - Parallel but Unique Challenges - Steve Jack, Boggy Slough, T.L.L. Temple Foundation Managing Longleaf Forests for Our Future: A Climate-Smart Guide - Colette DeGarady, The Nature Conservancy Management for Carbon and Conservation in Pine Systems - (Hurricane Resiliency) - Adam Polinko, Mississippi State University Grounded in the Soil Microbiome: Harnessing Forest Fungi to Support a Regenerative Forestry Transition in Southern Pine - Josh Parrish, Funga |
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| Concurrent Session 8 [Panel] - Oak Room: Informing Forest Carbon Management and Policy through Integrated Modeling Approaches - Chad Papa, Michigan State University (Moderator) Panelists: - Kyla Dahlin, Michigan State University - Jiquan Chen, Michigan State University - Chad Papa, Michigan State University - Li An, Auburn University - Zutao Yang, Auburn University Session Abstract: Forests play a vital role in the global carbon cycle, climate mitigation, and adaptation efforts, the provisioning of fiber resources, and the health of rural economies. Further, forest management and policy from local to international scales will continue to drive climate mitigation and forest resilience efforts through a variety of mechanisms. There is a critical need to continue to advance the use of data, tools, and models to inform the future of forest management interventions and policy mechanisms that incentivize them in direct support of net zero greenhouse gas emission goals. With the confirmed interest of national experts, we aim to highlight recent advances and guide future direction with regards to the use of ecological models, data, and tools to increase the resilience and stewardship of forest management and planning for carbon considerations. |
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| Concurrent Session 9 - Camellia Room: Forest Policy - Lili Li, Auburn University (Moderator) The Role of Forest Certification in Forest-Based Carbon Sequestration and Forest Resilience - Greg Cooper, Sustainable Forestry Initiative Beyond Bad Actors: How Governance Lock-ins Undermine Forest Carbon Resilience - Idowu Kunlere, University of Delaware Playing with Fire: We Must Radically Rethink National Forest Management, or Risk Losing Them Forever - Blake Hudson, Samford University From Voluntary to Mandatory Corporate Climate-Related Disclosures: Practices of America’s Large Corporations - Lili Li, Auburn University Property Tax, Land Use Transition, and Carbon Sink Depletion: Evidence from Parcel-Level Data in Alabama - Sariful Islam, Auburn University |
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| Concurrent Session 10 - Terrace Room: Forest Resistance, Adaptation, and Resilience - Chris Woodall, CTrees (Moderator) Evaluation of a Hand-Held Moisture Meter for Timely Dead Fine Fuel Moisture Measurement - Ziyu Dong, Ohio State University Managing for Carbon and Resilience: Implementation Strategies from a Landowner’s Perspective - Burke Lipscomb, Aurora Sustainable Lands Enhancing Forest Resilience Through AI-Powered Early Stress Detection and Adaptive Management - Ping Yang, Chen Ding, Auburn University Detecting Brown Spot Needle Blight Disease Severity in Loblolly Pine Using Remote Sensing and Machine Learning - Swati Singh, Auburn University Evaluating a Portable NIR-Based Model to Detect Susceptibility in Loblolly Pine Trees Affected by Brown Spot Needle Blight - Laura Michelle Nieto Arciniegas, Auburn University |
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| 4:55 - 5:10 PM | Break/Networking/Exhibitions - Prefunction Foyer |
| Poster Session - Legacy Ballroom | |
| 5:10 - 6:45 PM | Poster Session/Networking/Refreshments - Legacy Ballroom |
| Extending Rotation Age of Loblolly Pine Plantations for Enhanced Carbon Sequestration and Financial Returns from Carbon Credits: Evidence from East Texas - Esther Kemigisha, Stephen F. Austin State University Operationalization Requires Participation: Why Addressing Public Sentiment is Critical for the Future of Article 6.4 - Sarah Regina Widderich, Forest Owner Carbon & Climate Education Program Trade-offs Between Timber Harvesting and Landscape-Level Carbon Storage Under Expanded Riparian Buffer Policies in Oregon - Keeryun Cho, Oregon State University Forest Landowner Carbon Market Participation as a Response to Property Taxation Concerns: Does a State-Level Relationship Exist? - Bailey Johns, University of Arkansas at Monticello Understanding the Impacts of Carbon Market Program Participation on Forest Management Practices - Samantha Schweisthal, Auburn University Local Environmental Influences on Oak Specific Gravity in the Eastern U.S. Forests - Jose Febles Diaz, Auburn University Developing Allometric Models to Assess Tree Biomass Allocation in Two Coastal Slash Pine (Pinus elliottii) Ecosystems - Favour Onyido, Auburn University Quantifying the Effect of Neighborhood Competition and Fire on Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris) Tree Growth - Favour Onyido, Auburn University |
|
| Dinner- Grand Ballroom | |
| 6:45 - 8:45 PM | Introduction by Daowei Zhang, Associate Dean of Research, Alumni and George W. Peake Professor of Forest Economics, College of Forestry, Wildlife & Environment, Auburn University |
| Keynote Address 6: Carbon and Forest Management - A View from The Field, Brent Keefer, CEO, American Forest Management | |
| Q&A | |
| WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1 | |
| 7:00 - 8:00 AM | Continental Breakfast/Networking - Grand Ballroom II |
| Concurrent Session Block 3 - Multiple Locations | |
| 8:00 - 9:30 AM | Concurrent Sessions |
| Concurrent Session 11 - Oak Room: Forest Measurement Tools and Technology - Curtis VanderSchaaf, Mississippi State University (Moderator) Amount of Carbon Within a Log Truck Load of Pine Logs in the Southeastern United States - Curtis VanderSchaaf, Mississippi State University Geospatial and Radial Variations of the Specific Gravity of Pinus palustris (Longleaf Pine) and Driving Factors - Zhaofei (Joseph) Fan, Auburn University Evaluating Field Inventory Needs: Comparing PBI and FIA Informed Lidar Assisted Forest Carbon Estimation - Anupa Khadka, University of Minnesota Determining Influential Variables for Live Aboveground Carbon on Federal Lands in Southern Appalachia - Tara Skiba, University of Tennessee Estimating Tree-level Aboveground Biomass using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-Based Multispectral Imagery in Mixed-Species Forests of the Southeastern United States - Favour Onyido, Auburn University |
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| Concurrent Session 12 - Grand Ballroom I: Landowner Participation in Carbon Markets - Rajan Parajuli, North Carolina State University (Moderator) Understanding Small-Scale Forest Owners’ Preferences for Voluntary Carbon Programs: Evidence from a Conjoint Experiment in North Carolina - Tatyana Ruseva, Appalachian State University Understanding Forest and Farm Landowners’ Likelihood to Participate in Traditional and Nature-Based Solution Financial Incentive Programs: Insights from a Landowner Survey in North Carolina, USA - Courtney Deviney, North Carolina State University A Study of Pennsylvania and Virginia Forest Landowner’s Willingness to Accept Compensation from Forest Carbon Offsets - Kripa Neupane, Pennsylvania State University Evaluating Landowner Willingness to Participate in Carbon-Based Improved Forest Management in Oklahoma Marginal Lands - Carson Raper, Oklahoma State University Equity, Empowerment, and Emissions: The Role of Forest Carbon Markets in Advancing Climate Justice for Smallholders in the Global South - Jayesh Rane, University of Mumbai |
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| Concurrent Session 13 - Camellia Room: Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for Advancing Forest Carbon Modeling and Decision Making - Li An, Auburn University (Moderator) AI-Assisted Landscape Innovations for Food Security - Arun Agrawal, University of Michigan AI-Powered Forest Management: Enhancing Carbon Sequestration and Resilience in the Southeastern U.S. - Li An, Auburn University AI-Enhanced Integration of FIA Inventories, NAIP Photogrammetry, and Multi-Sensor Data to Map Forest Biomass - Chao Wang, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Upscaling Aboveground Biomass in Subtropical Forests of China Using Machine Learning - Zutao Yang, Auburn University Toward an AI for Science Framework for Forest Carbon Modeling and Decision-Making - Xinyue Ye, University of Alabama |
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| Concurrent Session 14 - Terrace Room: Curriculum for Professional Education in Resilient Southern Forestry - Skip J. Van Bloem, Clemson University (Moderator) Curriculum for Professional Education in Resilient Southern Forestry - Michelle Thompson, Clemson University, Adam Maggard, Auburn University Changing to Dynamic Baseline Forest Carbon: How Does it Affect Forest Carbon Revenue for Private Landowners? - Lucas Clay & Sanjeev Sharma, Clemson University Climate Smart Training & Education for the Professionals in the South - Puskar Khanal & Susan Guynn, Clemson University Development and Improvements of Mangrove Allometry and Biomass Estimates in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean Basin - Skip Van Bloem, Clemson University Use and Validation of Terrestrial Laser Scanning for Mangrove Biomass Estimation - Skip Van Bloem, Clemson University |
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| 9:30 - 9:45 AM | Break/Networking/Exhibitions - Prefunction Foyer |
| Concurrent Session Block 4 - Multiple Locations | |
| 9:45-10:45 AM | Concurrent Sessions |
| Concurrent Session 15 - Oak Room: Forest Carbon Programs, Experiences and Challenges - Adam Maggard, Auburn University (Moderator) Carbon Additionality in Forest Management: A How-To for Forest Landowners in the US South - Chizmar, Kowalczyk, Tatyana Ruseva, Appalachian State University Evaluating the Conservatism of Harvested Wood Product Accounting in Forest Offset Methodologies - Gregory Latta, University of Idaho One Year Harvest Deferrals Can Produce Forest Carbon Additionality - Jesse Henderson, U.S. Forest Service |
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| Concurrent Session 16 - Terrace Room: Forest Carbon Under Alternative Management - Lana Narine, Auburn University (Moderator) Management Options Influencing Carbon Sequestration by Eucalypts in Florida, USA, and Associated Economics - Donald L. Rockwood, Florida FGT Assessing Forest Management Alternatives for Reforestation and Tree Planting for Forest Carbon Storage - Benjamin Hauptli, North Carolina State University Reducing Uncertainties in Coupled Carbon-Water Cycle Predictions - A Parameter Perturbation Ensemble Experiment at Three NEON Tower Sites in the Southeastern United States - Thomas Mutiso Kavoo, Auburn University |
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| Concurrent Session 17 - Camellia Room: Innovations in Biomass Estimation: From Forests to Carbon Management, Li An, Auburn University (Moderator) Non-Burning Silviculture and Understory Vegetation: A Global Meta-Analysis with Implications for Human-Wildlife Conflict - Ren Cao, Auburn University GIS-Based Biomass and Carbon Estimation of Mangroves in a National Forest Park in Dominican Republic - Wenwu Tang, University of North Carolina at Charlotte Scenario-Responsive Siting Framework of CO₂ Capture and Electrochemical Conversion Systems Using Integrated Spatial and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis - Xinyue Ye, University of Alabama |
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| Concurrent Session 18 - Grand Ballroom II: Forest Carbon and Land Use Change, Ajay Sharma, Auburn University (Moderator) Carbon Credits from Albedo-Induced GWI for Landowners After Forest Conversions - Jiquan Chen, Michigan State University Carbon Credits and Land Use Change in U.S. South - Ghanashyam Khanal, USDA Forest Service Remote Sensing Analysis of Land Use Land Cover Dynamics and Rainfall Variability in Alabama’s Black Belt Area - Salem Ibrahim, Tuskegee University Carbon Implications of Integrating Biochar into Southern Forest Nursery Operations - Ajay Sharma, Auburn University |
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| Concurrent Session 19 - Prefeunction Foyer: Pre-Field Trip Social, Networking, and Open Discussion (All conference participants not attending other concurrent sessions are invited.) | |
| Field Trip | |
| Tour Day 1 (Wednesday, October 1, 2025) | |
| 10:45 - 11:00 AM CT | Tour Gathering /Departure - Hotel |
| Box Lunch Provided During Travel to Dothan, Alabama | |
| 2:30 - 3:30 PM CT | Location 1: Carbon Market Forest Landowner Property Tour: What, Why, and How Would A Landowner Be Able To Participate In Forest Carbon Markets? |
| 3:30 - 4:45 PM CT | Location 2: Cross-Laminated Timber Facility Tour: Forest Carbon Storage in Mass Timber: Challenges and Opportunities |
| 4:45 - 6:15 PM CT/7:15 PM ET | Travel to Newton, GA |
| Location 3: Jones Ecological Center at Ichauway | |
| 7:30 - 8:45 PM ET | Dinner at the Jones Center |
| Overnight Lodging at Jones Center & Local Hotel | |
| THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2 | |
| Tour Day 2 (Thursday, October 2, 2025) | |
| 7:00 - 8:00 AM ET | Breakfast at the Jones Center |
| 8:00 - 11:45 PM ET | Tour of the Jones Center: Forest Carbon, Management, and Resilience |
| 11:45 - 12:45 PM ET | Lunch at the Jones Center |
| 1:00 PM ET - 3:30 PM CT | Travel to Auburn, AL |
| 3:30 PM CT | Return to the Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center |
