Welcome, Madame President!
Cara Farr was crowned President of NW Forest Soils Council at the 2018 Winter Meeting! See below for more information from Cara.
About me:
My name is Cara Farr, and I work as the current Regional Soil Scientist for the Pacific Northwest Region (OR/WA) of the US Forest Service. I have held this position for a little over two years. Prior to that I was the Watershed Program Manager on the Umpqua National Forest for a brief stint after serving as the Forest Soil Scientist on the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest for 5 years. I have been a Federal Soil Scientist for 15 years and have worked for three agencies (USFS, NRCS, and BLM). I am in my dream job right now and super excited to work with you all in the coming years.
A little about my personal life:
I was born and raised in West Virginia (Go Mountaineers!). My family had one of the first British land grants in rural central WV and I visit the family and farm annually to connect with my roots. My father was a career SCS man as a soil mapper retiring as NRCS Assistant State Conservationist in WV. A second generation soil scientist is rare and I count my father as my most influential teacher. I now live in Portland and spend as much time recreating in the woods as I can -- and especially enjoy camping, hiking, backpacking and cross-country skiing.
My goals as President of NWFSC:
1 - Continue to promote networking opportunities to forest soil professionals in the PNW region.
2 - Try and grow the organization by reaching out to private and tribal forest managers.
3 - Establish the NWFSC logo and get some swag made!
4 - Have fun and foster the great relationships this group provides around the region!
The Question Game:
Question from Nicole: If you could be any mythical being for one day, what would you be and what would you do?
Answer from Cara: I would be a Phoenix. The Phoenix represents several things for me, some related to soils. All things are recycled and born again through the soils and the Phoenix rising from the ashes is a good example for us to think about in the rebirth of several of our forested ecosystems after wildfires. In my one day as a Phoenix, I would fly around to explore the amazing scenery and landscapes and maybe even stop to smell the flowers in a wildflower meadow created from a wildfire!
