As 2025 winds down, we’ve been reflecting on the stories that stayed with us — the ones we kept coming back to, and the ones that helped us step back and appreciate the breadth of NEFF’s work.
As part of NEFF’s communications team, we spend a lot of time listening, learning, and helping tell stories from across the organization. This year, a few stood out — not just because they were compelling to tell, but because they revealed how deeply forests are connected to people, communities, and the work happening behind the scenes to care for them well.
We wanted to share some of our favorites.
Stories Rooted in People and Place
—David
When I look back on this year, I keep coming back to stories about people and community— stories that show how forests are woven into everyday life.
From Forest to Family Hearth is one of those stories. It follows a timber donation to a local wood bank, sourced from a harvest at one of NEFF’s Community Forests in Maine. It’s a powerful example of how well-managed forests can meet real human needs: providing warmth and support to families, while keeping forests healthy and productive.
At True Farm, the story was about being on the ground and seeing timber stand improvement in action, but also about stewarding a landscape alongside the next generation of conservationists. Hands-On Forestry at True Farm captures a day spent working with the Maine Conservation Corps, sharing knowledge and caring for the land together.
The Thissell-Smith Donation was another highlight. In A History Preserved, A Future Secured: One Family’s Lasting Commitment to Conservation, it was a pleasure to meet with members of the family, walk the property, and learn more about its long history — history that felt very much alive on the land itself. That experience reinforced how meaningful it can be when families choose to protect the places they love for generations to come.
NEFCo consulting forester Peter Farrell leads a woods walk on May 15, 2025, at Thissell-Smith Memorial Forest in Ossipee, New Hampshire. Photo by David Ayers.
Community Forests: Demonstration Sites and Education Opportunities
I’ve also really enjoyed our work in NEFF’s Community Forests. These forests aren’t just places to walk and reflect; they’re demonstration sites where NEFF can model thoughtful forest management and invite learning, dialogue, and sometimes difficult conversations.
Two of those stories reached beyond our own channels and into the news.
At Bliss Woods Preserve, a planned harvest prompted coverage in the Times Record (“Freeport timber harvest that rankled locals serves as forestry lesson”), opening the door to conversations about why management matters and what long-term forest health looks like in a well-loved forest.
At Sortwell Memorial Forest, NEFF’s work to address invasive species, pests, and pathogens was featured in the Maine Monitor (“Fighting bugs with bugs: How the Midcoast is defending its hemlocks”), highlighting the kind of science-based management that’s increasingly important as climate pressures intensify. We’ll soon share a full blog post that goes deep into the why and how behind this work.
Science, Advocacy, and the Work Behind the Scenes
—Tinsley
What stood out to me this year was the scope of work happening behind the scenes to support forest stewardship across New England.
This included efforts to make NEFF’s approach to forestry clearer and more accessible, such as the release of our Exemplary Forestry explainer video, as well as active participation in broader conversations about forests and climate at Climate Week and the Ninth American Forest Congress.
A scene from the Exemplary Forestry video
NEFF’s science and forestry teams also continued to advance ambitious research and conservation initiatives. One of the most significant is our Forest Carbon for Commercial Landowners (FCCL) initiative, an expanded forest carbon study examining how different management approaches influence carbon storage, resilience, and long-term forest health. This work, now in its second stage, is helping build the evidence base needed to guide climate-smart forestry across the region.
At the same time, NEFF is leading its Conserving Maine’s Oldest Forests initiative, supported by a $4.3 million U.S. Forest Service grant. This effort is focused on identifying, studying, and protecting some of Maine’s oldest and most ecologically significant forests. As part of this work, NEFF presented at the Northeast Old Growth Conference, sharing insights with peers from across the region.
Taken together, this work reflects the role science, research, and collaboration play in guiding effective forest stewardship alongside the on-the-ground care happening every day in NEFF’s forests.
Looking Ahead to 2026
As we look ahead to 2026, we’re excited to keep building on this work.
You can expect:
- More stories centered on community and how NEFF’s work impacts our neighbors.
- More place-based reporting, like our upcoming deep dive into invasive species management at Sortwell Memorial Forest.
- More flexible, interest-based email communications that let readers engage deeply with the topics that matter most to them.
- More coverage that explores how forest stewardship, conservation, climate, and wildlife intersect across New England.
If you’d like a more day-to-day glimpse into NEFF’s work, we also invite you to follow us on social media, where we share regular moments from the field and behind the scenes: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Thanks for reading and for caring about the people, places, and work that shape New England’s forests. We appreciate you being part of this community.
Together,
David & Tinsley