2nd November 2020 Newsletter
PRESIDENTS COLUMN
I want to thank all members who took the time to write in, either privately to me or more publicly to Members Voice. I strongly believe NZIF needs to encourage good debate and to listen to ideas from all parts of our diverse sector if we are to make good decisions. Too often I am seeing comments made on behalf of the sector which has not sought widespread feedback before going to print and therefore only represents a small section of our sector. To ensure NZIF does not fall into this trap, please keep your comments, thoughts and ideas flowing.
I believe NZIF should be speaking for forests and their role in land management, where they fit and the diverse range of services they provide. To do this we need to provide a forum where the various interests can discuss their differences. We can then provide politicians and members with a balanced and inclusive view of forests and forestry.
I would like to acknowledge and welcome Stuart Nash as our new Minister of Forests. I will be meeting with the Minister soon to emphasise the importance of forests, what the NZIF role is and to offer any help and advice we can, to ensure we see some positive policy over the next three years.
As a Institute we must grow professionalism. I am therefore disappointed at the lack of members seeking registration. Registration should be the goal for all members who provide advice and I know there are many of you currently doing this who are not registered. I encourage you to seek registration ASAP. An important part of registration is CPD and I make no apologies for this. Continuous improvement is necessary if we are to ensure we are providing the most recent advice to clients. I am aware NZIF has a responsibility to provide more CPD and we will work on this over the next few years. However there are also many other CPD providers and I do not accept lack of courses as a reason for not being able to undertake required CPD.
As we move into the last two months of 2020; a year I am sure many of us will be pleased to see the end of; I would like to hear your views on what NZIF need to work on in 2021. Whilst council have some goals it is important we are concentrating on areas of most use to you the members. Please take the time to write into Members Voice (or directly to me) with your ideas. Council will then discuss these at our next meeting and inform members of which goals they feel can be completed. Please note council is only 9 members so it is likely we will be looking for skills from within membership to help achieve some of the goals. I hope if we shoulder tap you, you will be prepared to do what you can to help achieve the goals for the benefit of all members.
Once again thank you to all members who have taken the time to write in. Please keep your thoughts and ideas flowing. Remember we are here to serve you the members so please keep the communication flowing.
Thanks
James
MEMBERS VOICE
Who does the Institute represent and to what end?
The newsletter is always interesting, and provocative. Both James and Howard raise fundamental questions for the Institute; who does the institute represent and what’s the scope of the brief? James asks his question in the context of politics and Howard in the context of engagement in issues and access to appropriate expertise within the institute. Read more
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Proposing that the size of the NZIF Council be reduced from 10 members to seven.
In the newsletter of 19 October 2020, Howard Moore commented on the motion that James Treadwell and I presented to the AGM, proposing that the size of the NZIF Council be reduced from 10 members to seven. At the 2018 AGM in Nelson, we presented a similar motion, but it failed. Read more
____________________________________________________________________________________________
I wholeheartedly support the President
I wholeheartedly support the President in his comments about getting in front of the new Forestry Minister and creating a relationship with him/her. The NZIF should be seen as an independent and trusted voice for the forestry sector. Some of the other Forestry organizations can be more partisan and pointed in their dealings with our political leaders. I would hope that the Minister could look to the NZIF as a source of reliable and solid advice from a fair and balanced perspective, with a strong focus on policy and planning. I would also hope that the NZIF can become much more involved at a political level in the discussions of climate change, sustainable development, social well-being, education and economic development.
The forestry sector need to have articulate and sympathetic people interfacing with our political leadership if the forestry sector is to achieve its full potential.
GEORGE KURU
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Have you say!
Ideas, thoughts or advice?? Send it through to admin@nzif.org.nz
INSTITUTE UPDATE
Adrian is a past graduate of the University of Canterbury having completed a Bachelor of Forestry Science with First Class Honours a Certificate in Commerce. He is a founding member of the Future Foresters and is actively involved in a leadership role within this initiative.
Adrian currently works within the Canterbury Region in an ETS/Project Manager role for Forest Management Limited. In addition to his full-time job Adrian is studying a Master of Forestry Science degree at the University of Canterbury.
Adrian is a graduate NZIF member and has been co-opted onto the council as a Future Foresters representative.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Update from Antonia - MPI
I wanted to connect again since the NZIF conference and thank you very much for the opportunity to attend. I also wanted to thank your members who took part in the session where we updated you on the Forests (Regulation of Log Traders and Forestry Advisers) process and Wood Legality. Your feedback was incredibly valuable.
Many of you asked at the conference that we keep you informed on timeframes and how you can be involved, so I would like to take this opportunity to provide that update.
Both pieces of work are considered an important part of the Covid-19 recovery as the registration system will give potential investors the surety that advisors in the forestry sector are registered and meet appropriate criteria, while Wood Legality helps to ensure New Zealand maintains access to foreign markets.
We expect to provide information on both pieces of work to the NZIF and the wider forestry sector for feedback in early 2021. We anticipate that there will be several opportunities throughout 2021 and 2022, for the NZIF to provide input.
Right now we are preparing for the formation of the new Government and for Ministers to be appointed. We will be meeting with primary sector Ministers as soon as we are able to, to build a clear picture of the key sector issues and initiatives and how these fit with what the Government wants to achieve more broadly. I know that Julie is intending to keep the forestry industry up to date as much as possible during this time. In line with that we will also update you on how our regulatory programme fits within the broader strategic goals for forestry. Until we get to that point we are ensuring we are well resourced with the right skills and experience to support the Minister and the industry.
With regard to the regulatory programme, with the Forest adviser and Log Trader Registration Bill now in place, MPI is working on the operational design of the system, in preparation for stakeholder consultation. The design phase will be an iterative process and MPI is keen to draw on the experience of the Institute of Forestry’s Registration Board in progressing key aspects of the system. Once we have that clear line of sight on Minister priorities and what that means for our forestry policy work programme we will be able to provide a clearer line of sight over the next 18 months on key milestones and dates related to forestry adviser registration.
I will be back in touch with you when we have more clarity on Minister priorities in the next few weeks - my team is keen engage with your registration experts! Kay Shapland will continue to be the key lead for this work, but feel free to get in touch with me if you need
Regards
Antonia
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Online CPD
Were you unable to attend the CPD workshops on the 26th September?
We have had the presentations recorded and these are available to view online:
• Overview of ETS transformation - Emily Geck
• ETS 1989 Land eligibility - Phillip Lubeck
• Changes for the ETS - Steven Cox
• Code of Ethics - Andrew McEwen and Peter Casey
and the PowerPoint presentation of
• Forests (Log Trader and Forestry Advisors) Amendment Act 2020 - Antonia Reid
Please email Raewyn at admin@nzif.org.nz to let me know you want to view them. I will send you an invoice for $80 and once you have paid I will allow you access to the Dropbox file.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Code of Ethics
Want to see and hear about the changes to the Code of Ethics Read more
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Conference presentations
The ANZIF 2019 conference presentations are now uploaded to the NZIF website
