Since 1993, the Pacific Forest Trust (PFT) has been dedicated to conserving and sustaining America’s vital, productive forest landscapes. Working with a diverse array of partners, we advance innovative, incentive-based strategies to safeguard our nation’s privately owned forests and their many public benefits. These invaluable “ecosystem services” include provision of sustainably harvested wood, rural jobs, clean water, wildlife habitat and a well-balanced climate.

PFT is working to Retain our forest infrastructure by raising awareness of the threats to privately owned working forests and by directly conserving critical forestlands in partnership with landowners and communities across the United States. We lead the country in the use of working forest conservation easements that ensure productive forests stay working. And we help protect the integrity of important public forests by conserving neighboring private lands threatened by development.

To date, we have conserved more than 50,000 acres of forestland in California, Oregon and Washington valued at more than $160 million, including 38,000 acres that have been conserved with working forest conservation easements.

PFT helps Sustain forests by employing state-of-the-art forest stewardship practices on the thousands of acres we manage in the Pacific West. Through our national consulting, speaking and advocacy work we also promote exemplary forest management to landowners, policymakers and the public, so people across the United States will better understand that forestry is key to ecosystem conservation.

Recognized as a national leader in sustainable forestry and conservation, PFT has provided consultation and services to the owners and managers of more than 5 million acres of forestland from coast to coast.

PFT also helps both landowners and the public Gain from working forests by developing and promoting forest ecosystem services. These services form the basis for a sustainable business model that yields financial returns from land management practices that offer direct benefits to the public, such as reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that warm the atmosphere, protecting watershed quality and enhancing fish and wildlife habitat.

PFT has been recognized for our work promoting ecosystem service markets that help conserve rural landscapes and the jobs they provide. Through our Working Forests, Winning Climate program, we have been instrumental in creating policy and market frameworks to expand the conservation and carbon stewardship of U.S. forests. Our leadership in this area has led to the creation of a first-in-the-nation, California-based program that allows forest landowners to register and sell CO2 emissions reductions generated by conservation and sustainable management.

PFT is the project developer and manager of the Van Eck Forest Project, California’s first registered emissions reduction project. Recent accolades for our work include the 2009 U.S. EPA Climate Protection Award, the 2008 James L. Irvine Foundation Leadership Award and the 2008 Kingsbury Browne Leadership Award.

Our main office is located in San Francisco’s historic Presidio. We have additional field offices and staff in Sacramento, Calif.; Boston, Mass.; Seattle, Wash.; Corvallis, Ore. and Washington D.C.

The Pacific Forest Trust is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization.

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The Pacific Forest Trust is a public-benefit charitable organization.
Your support is crucial to our ability to keep America's working forests working for us all.

Please make a tax-deductible donation to the Pacific Forest Trust.

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Private, working forests like this mature stand of cedars provide immense public benefits, yet they are increasingly threatened.

The Pacific Forest Trust is a center for research, education and innovation in stewardship forestry, and is recognized nationally as an authority on the conservation of working forestlands. Photo by Marty Knapp.