Sierra ForestWorks is a critical, strategic collaborative dedicated to advancing forest restoration, wildfire resilience, and sustainable workforce development. We have brought together an unprecedented coalition of federal and state land managers, industry leaders, education partners, workforce agencies, philanthropy, and local government.
Led by deep commitment to proactive forest management in Tuolumne County, we are building a scalable, durable workforce solution tied directly to on-the-ground forest resilience work. Building upon a Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S. Forest Service and the American Loggers Council, we are preparing the next generation of logging and forest management professional.
Sierra ForestWorks is designed for long-term sustainability, not just one-time implementation. By aligning education and workforce systems with sustained state investments like Proposition 4, we are generating lasting impacts by:
Forestry, Heavy Equipment Training, Logging, and Fire Resilience.
Keeping high-wage, high-demand, non-automatable jobs in rural CA communities.
Building local capacity to maintain forest health and mitigate wildfires for decades to come.
Offering a scalable workforce strategy that aligns climate investments with education, industry, and land stewardship.
Without intentional, regionally grounded workforce development, climate investments risk becoming one-time expenditures rather than a durable, long-term resilience strategy.
Sierra ForestWorks is how we galvanize those investments.
Sierra ForestWorks provides a seamless pathway that prepares individuals for high-wage, high-demand careers that are essential for maintaining California’s forest health and mitigating future wildfires.
The program responds to this challenge by creating a sustainable, regionally grounded workforce pipeline.
Applied learning spanning from classroom and simulator instruction to job-ready field experience at our primary hub, Wildcat Ranch, and a forest campus for advanced, rugged-terrain operations in the Beardsley/Dry Meadow area
We train future forest maintenance technicians to engage in proactive forest management and restoration to ensure the long-term health of California’s landscapes.
Addressing critical industry shortages, our program provides hands-on heavy equipment operator training that progresses from classroom simulators to job-ready field experience.
Supported by strong industry partnerships, we prepare the next generation of logging professionals to earn stackable, industry-recognized credentials.
By embedding our training directly into active fuel reduction and wildfire mitigation projects, we are building a durable workforce to protect our rural communities and climate investments.
This level of cross-sector coordination is rare and creates the conditions for long-term success. Sierra ForestWorks is proudly implemented in partnership with:
