Hello
colleagues!
I am
emailing to announce the launch of our new “October is Firewood Month” outreach
effort, which is a partnership between the Don’t Move Firewood and Hungry Pests
campaign. We’ve got all month to share materials, encourage press releases,
reach out on social media, and give this pilot year a really great start!
Right now,
the two partners - USDA APHIS Hungry Pests and The Nature Conservancy’s Don’t
Move Firewood campaign - are launching the first week of Firewood
Awareness Month. The primary goal is to raise public awareness about
firewood movement as a forest pest and disease pathway. The timing is
strategic, as October is a month that brings a visceral reminder that home
heating season is coming, with colder temperatures in most of the U.S, as well
as travel for hunting. Firewood Awareness Month is intentionally not
species-centric – it is a focus on a critical pathway - and it offers a chance
to reach target audiences who pose the greatest risk for moving firewood in the
fall season.
Please help
get the word out:
- Download
free resources off the updated partners page, found at http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/blog/free-resources-firewood-month.html
- Promote
the USDA blog article at http://blogs.usda.gov/2016/10/03/as-the-weather-cools-your-firewood-choices-matter/
to your local media and to your partners.
- Refer
people to the public landing page on Don’t Move Firewood, aptly named http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/firewoodmonth
- Talk
this up in your own professional world this month- whether that’s social
media, office communications, listserves, or whatever works for you
- Share
the attached Firewood Awareness Month Stakeholder Toolkit with your
nonprofit, university, industry, and other partners to encourage them to
spread the message through their social media and other interactions. It’s
easy! Just copy and paste the note below and send it with the attached
Stakeholder Toolkit.
Please
contact Leigh Greenwood (lgreenwood@tnc.org)
with questions. Thank you for promoting Firewood Awareness Month!
___________
October is
Firewood Awareness Month and we need your help to raise public awareness about
firewood movement as a forest pest and disease pathway. Each week of October
focuses on a theme that allows you to strategize when to “chime in” according
to your preferences, audiences, and professional time constraints. There is no
minimum requirement to participate.
Oct. 2 – 8: General
information regarding the issue of firewood as a pathway for forest pest
spread.
Oct. 9 –
15: Messages targeted to fall recreationalists- especially hunters,
anglers, and RV owners.
Oct. 16 –
22: Firewood's important role as a forest product during National
Forest Products Week
Oct. 23 –
29: Messages targeted to people that buy or gather firewood to heat
their homes or cabins.
Oct. 30 –
31: General information and fun Halloween related tie-ins.
To make it
easy to find materials that will help you participate, we’ve created a partner
page, named Free Resources for Firewood Month blog, http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/blog/free-resources-firewood-month.html
. On this page, one of the most valuable items you will find is the 2016
Firewood Awareness Month Stakeholder Toolkit – it contains regionally tailored
messages, messages by week and target audience, suggested social media posts
and tweets, and graphics. You’ll also find a lot of great partner resources,
such as videos, kids activities from Plant Heroes, and more.
Please help
amplify the key messages: Moving firewood long distances can spread forest
pests. Your firewood choices matter. You can protect the places you love by
preventing the spread of forest pests on firewood. Don’t move firewood –
instead, you can buy firewood where you’ll burn it, buy certified heat treated
firewood, or gather on site when permitted. You have the power to slow the
spread of forest pests. Note: please tag all social media posts #FirewoodMonth
to allow for campaign tracking of metrics.
Thanks for
helping protect what we love by spreading the word about responsible firewood
choices.
Leigh Greenwood
Don’t Move Firewood Campaign Manager
The Nature Conservancy, Forest
Health Program
Mobile: (406) 544 - 5099 note:
mountain time zone
Alternate: (406) 640 - 3250
*PLEASE
NOTE MY OFFICE STREET ADDRESS HAS CHANGED
