Woodland Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts Executive Committee Meeting - Mar. 14th, 2023

This will be a Virtual Meeting as allowed by “An Act Relative to Extending Certain State of Emergency Accommodations,” signed into law by Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker on July 16, 2022, which extends the expiration of the provisions pertaining to the Open Meeting Law, G.L. c.30 sec. 20, to March 31, 2023.

Members of the public are welcome. Please RSVP to Lisa Hayden to request a Zoom link to attend by emailing: [email protected]

Agenda

1. Call to order, welcome, and Land Acknowledgement
2. Approval of minutes from January 17, 2023, Executive Committee meeting
3. Discuss Status of Partnership Name Change – Any Committee action needed to clarify that state legislation will be required to ratify and officially acknowledge the new name:
   
   Proposed Motion to clarify Board’s Oct. 11, 2022 vote: The Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership (MTWP) voted at its 11 October 2022 Board Meeting to change its operational name to The Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts, and to request our State Legislators, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, and the USDA Forest Service to take necessary actions to make the new name the official, legal name of the Woodlands Partnership.
   
   Below is the text of the Oct. 11, 2022 Board motion approved unanimously:
   "The Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership", a public body established by Massachusetts House Bill No. 4835 filed on 26 July 2018 and signed into law on 31 October 2018, will conduct its work known as "Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts," and change its bylaws to reflect said change in name. …
   We furthermore request that the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the U.S Department of Agriculture - U.S. Forest Service officially establish and recognize the name of the public body formerly known as "The Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership" as being henceforth "Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts."
4. Discuss and consider action on proposal to expand Board membership to include an Indigenous Peoples representative
5. Notification from USFS regarding Congressionally Directed Spending on $540,000 “Action on Forest Climate Resilience” project
6. Posting of Woodlands Partnership full-time Coordinator position to replace vacant Asst. role
7. Status of Board Officers and Committee Chair recruitment
8. Finalizing date, location & agenda/speaker topics for Board & Annual Meeting – Tuesday, May 23, or May 30, 6-8 p.m.
9. Reviewing Proposal “Bringing Value to Wood Residue” from Charlie Cary
10. Update on Virtual Forest Center Stakeholder Focus Group held in Feb.; Partnership website design project launching this month
11. Any item(s) not anticipated within 48 hours
12. Public comment

Executive Committee members: Henry Art – Williamstown (Board Chair); Rick Chandler – Ashfield
(Board Vice Chair); Alain Peteroy – Franklin Land Trust (Clerk); Keith Ross – MA Society of American
Foresters (Treasurer); Robert O’Connor – MAEOEEA; Kate Lindroos Conlin – MA Forest Alliance; Connie
Carpenter (USFS acting ex-officio)
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*On Oct. 11, 2022, the Board of the public body created in 2018 voted unanimously to change its name from the
“Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership” in its bylaws to operating as the “Woodlands Partnership of Northwest
Massachusetts” and requested the state legislature and USDA Forest Service to officially establish and recognize
the new name.