Faces of Forestry is an initiative of the Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC) to highlight people doing great work to enhance our forests throughout British Columbia. This month, we feature Florian Bergoin, Natural Resources Manager with the Nazko First Nation and Director for the Three Rivers Community Forest.
Born and raised in a rural mountainous region of France, Florian grew up surrounded by farmland and nature – an environment that sparked his interest in forestry.
“My playground as a kid was the subalpine mixed forests of the Northern Alps, and from a very young age, I had a strong desire to be in the outdoors. After spending a few of my teenage years in the South Pacific, I decided to pursue environmental studies to turn my passion for the outdoors into a career,” he shared. “Forests are one of the key components of healthy ecosystems. I have always been interested in learning how to not only derive wood products out of the resource but also manage them for all the other ecological values they provide.”
Florian holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering from Université Jean Monnet in France and a Master of Science in Agroforestry from Université Laval in Quebec City.
In his current role as the Natural Resources Manager with the Nazko First Nation and the Director for the Three Rivers Community Forest, he advocates for community values in a rapidly evolving legislative and political environment.
“Answering to elected leadership, I manage all files pertaining to lands and the stewardship of natural resources, including forestry, water, wildlife, fish, or minerals,” he noted.
With the support of his team, Florian is further involved in several roundtable collaborative stewardship processes, such as Forest Landscape Plans. He also manages a few personally interesting projects, including wildfire prevention through fuel management.
Through this role with the Nazko First Nation, Florian has been involved in multiple FESBC-funded projects at different levels. Most recently, he was part of an initiative to rehabilitate a large, forested area that posed a significant threat to the Nazko community due to the impacts of mountain pine beetle and administrative barriers.
“Working under a research partnership with the University of British Columbia and Université Laval, the Nazko First Nation will conduct treatments to not only reduce the forest combustible loadings but also enhance a wide array of other values, such as wildlife habitat, berry production, recreation opportunities, and long term timber production,” he explained, noting that FESBC has been a key partner in turning this idea into a viable project by providing funding and professional support from their team of highly qualified foresters.
“FESBC has also been a very strong supporter of our wildfire prevention efforts since its inception, and I would like to thank the entire team for all their hard work and dedication to enhancing B.C.’s forests for all of us to enjoy,” he added.
With a deep passion for making a difference in the community, Florian finds his work with the Nazko First Nation especially fulfilling.
“I have the opportunity to practice forestry at the intersection of human and social sciences, which I find to be a very rewarding field to work in. I also truly enjoy the diversity of files and topics I get involved in, and while things can sometimes get very busy, there is never a moment of boredom,” explained Florian.
For him, forests are some of the most complex ecosystems in the world, offering far more than wood. He believes the forestry profession reflects this complexity through its diversity of viewpoints and interests, making it a dynamic sector to be involved in.
Thank you, Florian, for your dedication to community values and passion for safeguarding our forests.