ERI in the News
Earth Notes: The Future Of Woody Biomass
Forest thinning across northern Arizona is generating tons of small diameter wood and slash. Those byproducts have a limited sales market, so last year a team of researchers at Northern Arizona University began a pilot project in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service and the Arizona Department of Forestry. [...]
West Coast Fires: Climate, Forest Management, Lax Rules, Plenty Of Blame To Go Around
It's no surprise in an already polarized country that debate over what's causing the wildfires ravaging the West Coast would get partisan, especially with this being an election year. Visiting California this week, President Trump again tried to put the blame on forest management, while his rival, former Vice [...]
Andrew Sánchez Meador – Q and A
Visitors to Andrew Sánchez Meador’s office inside the Southwest Forest Science Complex can immediately see how he relates to his students—engaging, innovative, playful. He adorns his door with dozens of cartoons and graphs that poke fun at the flaws and assumptions hidden in the stream of statistics, visuals, and [...]
Jon Martin – Q and A
We talked with Jonathan Martin, the first director of the new Native American Forest and Rangeland Management Program (NAFRMP) within the Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI). He sees the NAFRMP as a continuation of NAU’s commitment to Native Americans—goal number three in the 2025 Strategic Plan and what he experienced [...]
Fuel Buildup Puts Arizona Communities At Wildfire Risk
Arizona had a busy fire season this summer. Now, with many of the fires out, communities are beginning to look at their wildfire risk. And many are at a high risk — last year, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management did a wildfire risk assessment of more than [...]
Forest health institute at NAU names new executive director
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — An institute that works on forest health out of Northern Arizona University has a new executive director. Andrew Sánchez Meador was chosen in a national search to lead the Ecological Restoration Institute. He starts in the role Wednesday. Read More
NAU professor named Ecological Restoration Institute’s new executive director
Ecological Restoration Institute's national search for a new executive director led it right back to Northern Arizona University. Andrew Sánchez Meador was selected to replace ERI founder and longtime Executive Director Wally Covington, who retired in January. Sánchez Meador was formerly an eight-year professor of forest biometrics and quantitative [...]
Long-term efficacy of managed wildfires in restoration efforts is focus of new NAU study
Land managers are increasingly interested in using lightning-ignited wildfires as a tool to restore forests and reduce fuel loads. But little is known about the effectiveness of managing wildfires to meet restoration goals. For several years, ecologists at the Ecological Restoration Institute at Northern Arizona University have been working [...]