Brian Woodward

My program

I am the Regional Forest Advisor for the Santa Cruz Mountains (Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties). Here, I lead a forest management and ecology research and extension program addressing the challenges facing landowners, industry, non-profits, and government forest property owners in the Santa Cruz Mountains. My research and extension is centered around coast redwood forest management, restoration, wildfire resilience, ecological monitoring, insects and disease, and conservation.

In my position as Forest Advisor, I currently serve as the Research and Monitoring Director for the Santa Cruz Mountains Long Term Forest Stewardship Research and Monitoring Program. I am also PI or co-PI on research related to coast redwood wildfire history, carbon retention, wildland fuels modeling, and invasive shothole borer management. Since 2024, my program has collaborated on over $1.6 million in grant funded research and extension projects. This has brought in over $1 million in research funding directly to the Santa Cruz Mountains region and over $300k directly into my program.

My Background

I completed a PhD in Ecology from Colorado State University, where I studied the effects of mixed severity fire and other disturbances on coast redwood forest communities across California. I hold an MS in Forest Sciences where I studied spatial patterns and environmental factors contributing to bark beetle outbreaks. Previously, I have worked across western forest systems in roles related to ecology, forestry, conservation, and remote sensing.

Please reach out to me anytime with questions!