Sense of Place: Talking Trees: Family & Timber with Brothers Phil & Steve Rigdon

with Phil & Steve Rigdon

"Phil Rigdon is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation who has served since 2005 as Superintendent of the Yakama Nation Department of Natural Resources, overseeing forestry, fisheries, wildlife, water, and land management across the Yakama Reservation and the Nation's ceded lands in south-central Washington. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Forest Management from the University of Washington and a Master of Forestry from the Yale School of the Environment, and has been a leading voice in wildfire-resilient forest management that draws on both Western forestry training and traditional ecological knowledge. He currently serves as Vice President of the Intertribal Timber Council (and previously as its President). Phil has testified before Congress on tribal forestry, wildfire, water rights, and treaty resource issues and currently oversees one of the largest tribally managed forest, fisheries, and irrigation operations in Indian Country.

Steve Rigdon is the Tribal Resource and Stewardship Manager at Sustainable Northwest, where he brings a deep professional and cultural connection to the region's natural resources. A member of the Yakama Nation, Steve previously served as the General Manager of Yakama Forest Products. His expertise spans forest stewardship, community well-being, and integrating traditional knowledge with contemporary economic opportunities. Steve has been recognized for his leadership in environmental preservation and for his expertise on the growing market for tribal timber products, including recent collaborations bringing tribal timber into mass timber projects like Portland International Airport's new terminal ceiling."

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