Keynote Speaker Heather Berklund, a 2000 graduate of UW-Stevens Point, is the chief state forester in the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division of Forestry, where she has worked for almost 25 years. Appointed in October of 2020 as the first ever female state forester in Wisconsin, Heather has helped lead and implement initiatives that move the state forward in sustainable forestry and wildland fire protection. She works with partner organizations and remains an active leader at the national and regional level to address forest markets, forest inventory and wildland fire. Her office is at the Wisconsin DNR forestry headquarters in Rhinelander. Previously she was the deputy division administrator for Forestry Field Operations, overseeing statewide policies for bureau and field
Heather Berklund
staff. Heather also held several supervisor roles as an area and team leader. She spent much of her field career as a forester, managing diverse public lands, the tax law program, fire suppression, education and outreach and private landowner programs. During her career, Heather has developed and demonstrated strong interpersonal and communication skills, prioritizing relationship building and collaboration with staff and external partners while taking a commonsense approach to leadership. She believes in the importance of investing in the current and future workforce, ensuring her staff are supported and valued and adapting and aligning program work and policies to meet the current and future needs of the public and the long-term health of our forest resource. Heather earned a Bachelor of Science in Forestry with a soil science minor. She attributes much of her career success to the educational foundations offered at UWSP, as well as diverse opportunities to get involved with organizations, travel abroad studies, applicable internships and supportive professors. In her current role, she stays connected with UWSP as a representative on the Forestry Curriculum Board, as well as numerous collaborative projects with UWSP Forestry Center and the LEAF forestry education program. Heather resides in the Northwoods near Minocqua, where you can find her and her husband, a DNR forester and UWSP 2000 alum, engaged with their teenage kids’ activities, hiking with their golden doodle, biking, making maple syrup and enjoying any activity that involves snow or water.
Spring 2025 Commencement 4
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