Good Luck to All Exam Candidates! There are 420 people writing the registration exams tomorrow. All staff and council members wish the exam candidates the best of luck. We look forward to seeing you at the Inductees’ Lunch at ExpoFor 2010 in Kelowna! All examinees were sent an e-mail notifying them of their assigned exam writing locations. If you did not receive this notice, please contact the registration department immediately. Exam towns and venues are posted on the Registration Exam page of the website. We urge you to double check the venue information today in case the building or room number has changed. Exam Rules Before writing the exam carefully read the Registration Exam Rules available on our website. Registration Exam Rules (pdf) Arrive Early Registration exams will start promptly at 9 am in all locations. Make sure you arrive 20 to 30 minutes early for check in and bring at least one piece of photo ID. If you have any questions or concerns about the 2009 registration exams please contact: Registration Department Ph: 604.687.8027

Council Slate Announced, Nominations Now Being Accepted There are 2 RFT and 3 RPF positions open on the 63rd ABCFP council. The nominating committee worked all summer to find members to run for these positions. Members who have agreed to run for council are: • Bev Atkins, RFT, of Williams Lake • Hugh Carter, RFT, of Vancouver • Phil MacDonald, RFT, of Nelson • Christine Gelowitz, RPF, of Victoria • Curt Nixon, RPF, of Nelson • Mike Pelchat, RPF, of Quesnel • Frank Varga, RPF, of Burns Lake • Dave Watt, RPF, of Chetwynd For the first time in many years, members will be asked to vote for a vice-president of the ABCFP. The vice-president serves one year and then automatically becomes the president for a year and finally serves as immediate past-president for a year before leaving council. The two individuals running for vice-president of the 63rd council are: • Jacques Corstanje, RPF, of Terrace • Ian Emery, RFT, of Campbell River The association is now accepting nominations from members for the positions of councillors and vice-president. For more information on making a nomination, look on the council election page of the website. The deadline for nominations is November 16, 2009. The election will take place January 4 to February 2, 2010, and the new council will take office at ExpoFor in April 2010.

Member Renewal Notices Coming Soon It’s that time of year again – membership renewal! Watch for a notice in your e-mail inbox in early October and for the special renewal feature in the November/December issue of BC Forest Professional. As always, there are three steps to renew your membership: • Pay your fees • Submit your self-assessment declaration • Update your indictable offense status (if necessary)

New Credit Card Fee Effective Immediately Credit card processing companies are charging the ABCFP large fees for each payment we accept by credit card including, but not limited to, annual member fees, workshop registrations and purchases from the ABCFP online store. These fees, which cost the ABCFP $65,000 last year, can be up to 4% of the total purchase – the actual amount varies based on the type of card used. Council recently approved a 3% credit card interchange fee that is now applied to all purchases made with credit cards. This fee is applied to the total purchase (the purchased item, such as annual membership fees or workshop registration, plus the applicable taxes). The interchange fee itself is not subject to GST. You can avoid this fee by paying by cheque or cash.

Aboriginal Competency Statement Added to the Self-Assessment Aboriginal competency, if required for professional work, has been added to the self-assessment in order to ensure Aboriginal values, interests and rights are part of a forest professional’s competency requirements -- an ABCFP strategic plan objective. Statement 7 in the self-assessment form and guide has been revised to help assess your competency with respect to Aboriginal relations, culture and issues if it is applicable to your job. Members are now asked to assess the following statement: “In order to carry out my job responsibilities I have adequate knowledge about Aboriginal culture, issues or traditional use; or how to work effectively with Aboriginal peoples.” The self-assessment guide provides more detailed direction to help you assess the above statement including supplied web links for further information. If you believe your Aboriginal competency needs to be improved, an online workshop entitled: “Working Effectively with Aboriginal Peoples” is available on our website. If there are any questions, contact: Brian Robinson, RPF Manager Professional Development and Member Relations

Conduct a Voluntary Peer Review There is a lack of voluntary peer reviews being completed by members. While this practice is voluntary, it does help members improve their professional practices and can be completed by a chosen peer. We recommend that two peers do peer reviews on each other’s practice. The voluntary peer review is available for all types of members and the review enables discussion about ethical responsibilities for all aspects of professional work. Please refer to the Peer Review page of the website for more information. If you have any questions, contact: Brian Robinson, RPF Manager of Professional Development and Member Relations

Kids' Art Contest Now On All members should have received a copy of the National Forest Week art contest form in the September/October issue of BC Forest Professional magazine. It can also be downloaded from the website. Ask your children to have some fun and draw a picture of what the forest means to them. A winner and runners up will be selected from three age groups. The winners will receive a $50 Chapters gift card and their art will be published in the magazine.

Join an ABCFP Network of Forest Professionals The ABCFP would like to establish more Networks of Forest Professionals (NFPs) around the province to provide effective communication, education and to liaise on forestry issues with a wide variety of audiences including the public, schools, government, politicians, media, other organizations, and ABCFP members throughout BC. Currently we have openings for NFP chairs in the following locations: Prince George, Victoria, Campbell River, Squamish, Okanagan area, Revelstoke, 100 Mile House, Smithers, Prince Rupert and Fort Nelson. If you would like to join an existing NFP or start one up in your community, refer to the list of existing NFPs or to obtain more information about NFPs, refer to the terms of reference. If you have any questions, contact: Brian Robinson, RPF Manager of Professional Development and Member Relations

ABCFP Attends CIF Conference The annual Canadian Institute of Forestry national conference was held in Nanaimo last week. Several council members and senior staff attended the conference and the ABCFP participated in the trade show. At the awards ceremony, we were very pleased to learn that lay councillor Gordon Prest was recognized with the Canadian Forestry Achievement Award for his dedication to improving forest education for young people.

ExpoFor 2010 Comes to Kelowna Because of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, ExpoFor 2010 will be held April 8 and 9, 2010 in beautiful Kelowna! Watch the January/February issue of BC Forest Professional magazine for a program and registration information. You can also check out the ExpoFor website for more detailed information beginning in January. We will keep you updated here in The Increment as well. For more information on ExpoFor, contact: Amanda Brittain, ABC Director of Communications

What’s Hot on the Web Did you know that the ABCFP has an online store that stocks a number of ABCFP-branded items such as water bottles, running shirts and vests? All items are sold at cost so you get the best price possible. Sponsors might like to purchase a small gift to congratulate their enrolled members for passing the exam or newly minted RPFs/RFTs might want to send a memento to their sponsors to thank them for their assistance. The ABCFP store has just what you need. Visit the ABCFP store today to see what’s new.

Register Now for the Online Working with Aboriginal Peoples Workshop Because of the growing importance of the role of Aboriginal Peoples in forestry, the ABCFP is pleased to be working with Indigenous Corporate Training to offer members an online course called Working Effectively with Aboriginal Peoples. The ABCFP will soon require that members can prove their competency for working with Aboriginal Peoples if their jobs entail it and this workshop is one way of gaining competency. This online course takes approximately 10-15 hours to complete and members will have three months from the date they register to finish it. Registration Fee $85.00 + $4.25 GST (if applicable) = $89.25 START Student Rate $42.50 + $2.13 GST (if applicable) = $44.63* *Must be enrolled in the START program to qualify. Visit the Workshops page for more information on this course. Online Registration    Printable Registration Form for Mail or Fax

Can’t Travel to a Workshop or Policy Review Seminar? Buy the Manuals Now For those members who were unable to attend the Spring Series Workshops or the Policy Review Seminars you can now buy the workshop materials and manual on the ABCFP website. The cost of the Spring Series Workshop materials are: • Professional Ethics and Obligations $80 plus GST • Professional Reliance $40 plus GST • Writing the Best Exam Possible $40 plus GST. The workshop materials can be ordered on the Workshops page of the website. The 2009 Forest Legislation and Policy Reference Guide is available on the website as a free download. Please note that the manual is over 500 pages long. If you prefer, you can purchase a hardcopy  $60 plus GST. Visit the Policy Seminars page  for more information.

Forest Capital Nominations Now Being Accepted This is your chance to promote forestry in your town. Whether you live in a large, urban centre or a small community, BC’s forests influence almost every aspect of life in this province. However, many people don’t know this fact and it’s up to the ABCFP and our members to try and change the situation. With this in mind, we are pleased to announce the search for the 2010 Forest Capital of BC. Every community in BC is eligible to be nominated. The ABCFP will evaluate nominations based on a community's relationship to its surrounding forests and the strength of the bid proposal. The winning community will be announced in December and will carry the Forest Capital of BC title from January 1 to December 31, 2010. If you think your community has the stuff to be the 2010 Forest Capital of BC, visit the Forest Capital of BC webpage or view the nomination package below. The nomination deadline is November 13, 2009, so start gathering support for your community’s bid today. Forest Capital of BC 2010 Nomination Package

Nominate Your Colleagues -- Awards Deadline Extended to January 11, 2010 Know someone who has done outstanding volunteer work this year? Or someone who has gone above and beyond his/her job requirements? How about a senior member who deserves to have his/her life’s work recognized? Consider making a nomination for an ABCFP award. The awards criteria were updated this summer and some changes have been made to several of the awards criteria. For example, the Honourary Member award has been changed so that both council members and past presidents must vote in favour of the nominee. Please note that late or incomplete nomination packages will no longer be accepted. The deadline for all awards has been extended to January 11, 2010 because ExpoFor has been moved to April. The new awards criteria are available on the website. Please read them carefully before submitting your nomination. For more information on our awards, please contact: Brian Robinson, RPF Manager of Professional Development and Member Relations

Five Positions Are on the Job Centre If your firm is looking for qualified and experienced professional foresters or forest technologists, be sure to post your position on the ABCFP Online Job Board or in BC Forest Professional magazine. All ads are posted by the next business day. Visit the Post a Job Opportunity page on our website to post your listing online. There are currently five career listings and one volunteer position on the Job Seekers page of the ABCFP website. Please check back often as new openings are posted on a regular basis. For more information, contact: Brenda Martin Ph: 604.639.8103

Questions and Comments? If you have questions or comments about the items mentioned in this e-newsletter or other communications activities, please contact: Amanda Brittain, MA, ABC* Director of Communications Ph: 604.331.2321 *Accredited Business Communicator