Robbie Coville

PA DCNR Bureau of Forestry

I am focused on mutually-beneficial relationships between humans and sources of our sustenance, inspired by metaphysics and indigenous wisdom. I have benefited greatly from education and mentorship by people dedicating their lives to agroforestry and related topics. I learned of woodland stewardship in the Adirondacks, permaculture and cooperative work among Syracuse's non-profits, traditional ecological knowledge from Lacandon Maya agroforesters and Onondaga Nation firekeepers, ecosystem services from i-Tree, and temperate-climate agroforestry big and small from practitioners in the Finger Lakes. Love brought me to Pennsylvania where I forest garden and propagate trees with my partner Naomi. Along the way, I try to be a connector. That led me into roles with Keystone Tree Crops Co-op and nut grower associations, and now I work as a public servant supporting agroforestry and forest health throughout Pennsylvania. I am often inspired by hazels, co-ops, the abundance of forests and the creativity of farmers.