Dr. Krigstin’s research interests are focused on value-added applications for wood and biomass materials as well as by-product streams from related processing industries. Being practical and focused, this research tends to resolve industrial issues in the forest and pulp and paper industry. Dr. Krigstin has spent many years working in the pulp and paper industry and uses her practical knowledge to bring feasible solutions to challenges facing one of Canada’s main manufacturing sectors.

Her current research is on bioenergy centres around characterization of biomass during the natural degradation occurring over the storage phase in the bioenergy supply chain. Developing optimal storage guidelines for uniform and well characterized material is key to successful utilization in combustion applications. Modelling of GHG emissions and quality changes are outcomes of the research. Dr. Krigstin works in partnership with industry organizations such as FPInnovations, Canmet, PAMI, CSA, and NRCAN to bring real solutions for utilization of biomass as sustainable energy and bio-chemical resource.

Anne Koven was involved with the University of Toronto’s former Faculty of Forestry and is now a Sessional Lecturer at the Daniels Faculty with a research interest in forest policy. She was a member of the Faculty of Forestry’s council and is an adjunct professor. She assisted the Faculty in obtaining accreditation of its Master of Forest Conservation program by the Canadian Forestry Accreditation Board in 2014 and in achieving a highly successful external review of the Faculty in 2016 under the University of Toronto’s quality assurance process. She has visited forestry projects in Haida Gwaii (2009), the Brazilian Amazon (2010) and Ghana (2017). Dr. Koven has spent more than 30 years working in government and business, primarily in the areas of environmental and resource management. Beginning in 1987 she served as a member and subsequently as vice chair of the Ontario Environmental Assessment Board until resigning in 1996 to start her business. During this tenure she conducted the landmark Class Environmental Assessment for Timber Management on Crown Lands in Ontario. She also heard appeals related to development on the Niagara Escarpment. Prior to that, she spent six years working for the Ontario Ministry of Health directing research on health studies concerning landfill sites and occupational health and safety issues. Dr. Koven started her career in the mining industry where she was involved in public affairs for INCO Limited, a major international corporation. Appointed by order in council in May 2005, Dr. Koven was a public member of the Council of the Ontario Professional Foresters Association until 2011 and chaired its Urban Forestry Committee. In 2012, Dr. Koven was awarded with the Honourary Registered Professional Forester designation by the Ontario Professional Foresters’ Association. She also received the Bayley Award for making significant contributions to the profession and practice of professional forestry in Ontario. She was appointed to the Ontario Provincial Forest Policy Committee in 2008 and continues to serve on it. She was a trustee and secretary treasurer of the Trees Ontario Foundation, which was established in 1994 by the Ontario Forestry Association for the purpose of raising funds for tree planting. Dr. Koven represented the Trees Ontario Foundation on the Natural Spaces Leadership Alliance. Dr. Koven was president of the Ontario Forestry Association and also served as its executive director. The Ontario Forestry Association and the Trees Ontario Foundation joined together to form Forests Ontario. She was also a member of the federal-provincial Great Lakes Innovation Committee. She is a member of the Canadian Institute of Forestry, the Forest Gene Conservation Association and the Forest History Society of Ontario. Dr. Koven was also the owner and operator of HipGuard Canada Ltd., a company she founded in 1996. Dr. Koven collaborated with partners in Gainesville, Florida to complete the final design and testing of the HipGuard safety belt, worn by seniors to prevent hip fractures. She was a member of the Resource and Development Committee and was the 2003 Volunteer of the Year for Community Living Toronto. She is also a supporter of the Baycrest Centre and the Reena Foundation. Dr. Koven graduated with a masters degree in public administration from Queen’s University in 1976. She graduated with a PhD in forestry from the University of Toronto in 2015. She lives in Toronto with her husband.

John Caspersen studies human impacts on the structure, composition, and function of forest ecosystems, as well as the interactions between forest ecosystems, the global carbon cycle, and climate. His goal is to understand how the production of wood, fibre and fuel can be balanced with the continued provision of other ecosystem services, including the maintenance of biodiversity, storage of carbon, and mitigation of climate change. Most of his research employs some combination of field work, modelling, remote sensing, life cycle analysis, and analysis of forest inventory data. Current research topics include:

• Balancing wood production with other forest ecosystem services
• Increasing the utilization of forest biomass for the production of energy
• Managing forests to mitigate climate change
• Anticipating the response of forests to climate change
• Remote sensing of forest structure and composition