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The Gifford Pinchot Task Force is dedicated to protecting and restoring Cascade ecosystems. We accomplish this through three avenues: conservation; restoration; and policy.

Our conservation program is straightforward: we work to protect our public lands from destructive mining, grazing, timber practices, and more. When we act to finally protect remaining mature and ancient forests and remote areas, we will be able to look to the future with more confidence that we can successfully restore the biodiversity and resilience of our forest and watersheds.

Our restoration programs aim to bring back the resilience and adaptive capacity of ecosystems that have been degraded, damaged, or destroyed. We work to reconnect fragmented landscapes so fish and wildlife habitats can survive floods, fire and drought – all of which are predicted to increase in intensity and occurrence with climate change. Healthy ecosystems are essential to healthy forests, and with the Cascade forests being such a huge historical carbon sink, this work is an essential part of addressing climate change around the globe.

Finally, our policy program attacks some of the root causes of poor forest and wildlife management. The Task Force works with other organizations and coalitions to shape national legislation and Forest Service policies to protect and restore Northwest public lands. The objectives are often long and hard fought, but the payoff can be permanent protection of critical ecosystems.

We agreed to join the Northwest Biocarbon Initiative (NBI) as an Innovation Partner, because our work to protect and restore Cascades ecosystems will ensure that our great forests will continue on the path to recover

 their tremendous carbon storage capacity. NBI’s focus on Northwest forests as important carbon sinks – both on public and private land – closely aligns with our work. We are also aligned with NBI in the value of uniting local communities and diverse interest groups in order to advocate the for restoration and bringing sustainable jobs to rural communities. Responsible forest management is the best path forward in difficult times for both our economy and environment.