The Society of Irish Foresters is an all-island organisation which was founded in September 1942. Its main aims are to spread knowledge of forestry and to improve professional standards in the Irish forestry industry.
To that end the Society publishes an annual scientific journal and a twice yearly newsletter, organises four field days, two public lectures, conferences and an international study tour each year.
The Society regularly makes submissions to government on policy initiatives which are likely to impact on the forestry industry and it is represented on several interdepartmental working parties. Our Continuous Professional Development (CDP) programme provides an opportunity for members to engage in the lifelong acquisition of knowledge and skills.
The Society currently has almost 700 members, most of whom are professional foresters who work across the whole spectrum of Ireland’s forest industry. There are five categories of membership: Technical, Retired Technical, Associate, Student and Honorary.
Our Mission
To lead and represent the forestry profession, which meets, in a sustainable manner, society’s needs from Irish forests, through excellence in forestry practice.
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Irish Forestry – is a peer-reviewed journal publishing forestry research articles. It also covers all aspects of practice, history, policy, culture and related areas of forestry interest in Ireland. Irish Forestry has been published continuously since 1943. Full text articles are available free of charge as PDF files. Irish Forestry is published by the Society of Irish Foresters and is Ireland’s only technical publication on forestry.
Irish Forester Newsletter – is a bi-annual newsletter published by the Society of Irish Foresters which keeps members up to date with local, national and international forestry issues.
Policy Papers – The Society has published a series of papers giving its position on a number of topics with the view to influencing policy makers.
Conference Proceedings – The proceedings of conferences that the Society has organised or co-organised are occasionally published.
Books – The Society occasionally publishes books on forestry related subjects. The latest publication is a reprint of The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland by Elwes and Henry.
Web – The Society maintains the website ForestryFocus.ie to provide an introduction to Ireland’s trees, forests and woodlands. Covering all aspects of forestry it gives the reader an easy to understand overview of the Irish forestry sector, while at the same time, providing access to more detailed information on topics such as tree species, growing forests, wood processing and the public goods and services that our forests provide.