Dr. Lisa Venier takes on a new role at the Canadian Journal of Forest Research

Canadian Science Publishing is excited to introduce Dr. Lisa Venier as the new co-Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal of Forest Research (CJFR). Dr. Venier recently served as the acting co-Editor-in-Chief of CJFR and has been an Associate Editor of the journal for over 16 years. Dr. Venier will be working alongside co-Editor-in-Chief Dr. Sylvie Gauthier, succeeding Dr. S. Ellen Macdonald, who will be moving into a Consultant Editor role after leading the journal for the past five years.

Dr. Venier brings a wealth of knowledge to the journal. She currently works as a senior research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service of Natural Resources Canada. Her research examines what biodiversity indicators can tell us about forest integrity and the sustainability of forest management. She works with industry and various levels of government to inform the development of forest management policies and at multiple scales—from the soil microbiome to national indicators of degradation. She uses a variety of approaches including metabarcoding, autonomous bird recording, analyzing remote sensing data, and simulation modelling.

Join us in welcoming Dr. Venier to this new role as we learn more about her research career and ideas for the future of CJFR in this Q&A.

You recently served as the acting co-Editor-in-Chief for CJFR and have been an Associate Editor for the journal for 16 years. Why did you initially decide to join the team at the Canadian Journal of Forest Research? What does it mean to be appointed as the co-Editor-in-Chief of the journal?

I think it’s important, as a scientist, to contribute to the publishing process that we all rely on to communicate our work. CJFR has always been an important journal in my work in sustainable forest management and I have always appreciated the rigor of the editorial process. I remember my excitement to join the editorial board 16 years ago. As a young scientist, I did not imagine that I might one day be co-Editor-in-Chief. This is a highlight of my career.

Let’s start by talking about your initial interest in biodiversity and scientific research. How did you become interested in forest research?

I have always loved forests and wildlife. Canoeing, camping, skiing, and hiking have always been a big part of my life. I did my undergraduate degree at Queen’s University in the Biology department and got a summer job working at the Queen’s Biology Station. That’s when I realized that it was possible to have a career doing research on forests.

Since joining the team at the CJFR, what are some of the biggest changes and challenges you’ve seen in forest research?

Since joining CJFR there has been a large increase in global concern over how forest management might impact forests and forest integrity. I think the challenge of defining and measuring forest integrity, sustainability, and degradation has been an important objective of the Canadian Forest Service, where I work, and of my research specifically.

Your research focuses on biodiversity and what it can tell us about the sustainability of forest management practices. Why is it important for forest managers to pay attention to biodiversity in a specific environment?

Biodiversity has been shown to be closely linked to forest function and the goods and services that forests provide. For this reason, it’s important that our forest management practices do not compromise forest biodiversity. This is an essential requirement of sustainable forest management. At the same time, changes in biodiversity are also indicators of broader changes to the forest and provide a mechanism to measure sustainability. Biodiversity is an essential component of forest integrity as well as an indicator of integrity.

Autonomous bird recording is one of the many strategies Dr. Venier uses to assess biodiversity. Species in the picture from left to right are the Nashville warbler (NAWA), Golden-crowned kinglet (GCKI) and Swainson’s thrush (SWTH). The calls of these birds are identified in the spectrogram (in blue, bottom row) created by Song Scope (Wildlife Acoustics) from recordings sampled as part of a study assessing the ability of autonomous recording units to generate data comparable to human observers. 

How does your research contribute to building more sustainable forest management plans that support forest ecosystem health?

I work at a large range of scales and with a large diversity of taxa to ask questions about how forest management and biodiversity interact. At planning scales, I use simulation and statistical modelling to describe and predict how forest change resulting from natural and human disturbance impacts the availability of habitat. At stand scales, I explore specific forest management practices and assess their sustainability using biodiversity indicators.

Biomass harvest treatments at the Island Lake Biomass Harvest Experimental Study Area near Chapleau Ontario in 2010. Treatments include tree length clearcut harvest where trees are delimbed at the stump (top left), full-tree harvest where trees are delimbed at the roadside (top right), full-tree with stumps removed (bottom left), and full-tree harvest with stumps and forest floor removed (bottom right). The study is part of work conducted by Dr. Venier with colleagues at the Great Lakes Forestry Centre to identify sustainable biomass harvest approaches.

How has climate change affected the current landscape of forest research? For example, have the recent severe wildfire seasons presented any new challenges or created gaps in data collection?

Climate change is going to have profound implications for the distribution and nature of our forests. Understanding and predicting how climate change will change forest ecosystems in terms of composition, structure, and function is one of the biggest challenges that forest researchers are grappling with right now. Understanding the cumulative effects of climate change and natural resource development will necessitate the development of sophisticated ecosystem models that require large amounts of forest data. Open and accessible data is one of the most important areas where we need investment for the future.

Throughout your career at the Canadian Forest Service, you have worked with various levels of government (e.g., provincial, and federal). What does that collaborative process look like?

Every collaboration is different. Some collaborators bring new skill sets to a team, some bring the ability to apply the results in practical settings, and some help to identify decision-making needs. Every project has its own unique needs. I love projects that bring people together with diverse skill sets, backgrounds, and interests, and that help provide information to answer real-world problems.

Predicted probability of Canada warbler occurrence in Black Brook forest, New Brunswick, mapped using habitat modelling with data from autonomous recording units and habitat data courtesy of J.D. Irving. This work is part of a collaboration with the Canadian Forest Service (CFS), Carleton University, JDI, and the University of New Brunswick. Map created by Benoit Hamel of CFS.

Once again, congratulations on being named as co-Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Journal of Forest Research. What are you looking forward to the most while working on the journal?

It’s still early days, so I am trying to pay attention to the folks who have been doing this for a while. Ellen MacDonald, the previous EIC and current consulting EIC and Sylvie Gauthier, my current co-EIC have a lot of experience in this role, so I am trying to learn as much as I can from them. I have always admired the integrity of CJFR, and I think maintaining the quality of the peer-review process is the most important role of the EIC. Hopefully, I can also help identify creative ways to increase submissions and streamline processes to make the publishing process as enjoyable as possible.