The 2026 Stewardship Forester is Paul Drysdale of Drysdale Forestry & Consulting in Cadillac. Paul was given the award in February to recognize his outstanding customer service to family forest landowners.
The Stewardship Forester award recognizes the important role of 155 private sector foresters who serve Michigan's 400,000 family forest landowners. The award is given at the annual meeting of Michigan Association of Consulting Foresters.
Paul studied forestry at Michigan State University and started Drysdale Forestry & Consulting in 2002. Paul serves a variety of landowners and school forests in the northwest Lower Peninsula. In addition to working with rural forest owners, Paul is an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist to work with urban homeowners too.
Paul has numerous credentials to document his professional forestry skills and help landowners enroll in various forestry programs. He is a member of the Association of Consulting Foresters, Society of American Foresters, International Society of Arboriculture, a Michigan Registered Forester, Tree Farm Inspector, Certified Arborist, Certified Forster, Qualified Forester and Forest Stewardship plan writer. If you own wooded land, a consulting forester like Paul can help you achieve your goals to manage, protect and enjoy your forest.
The 2026 Stewardship Award recognizes Paul's work on forest policy with partner organizations such as Association of Consulting Foresters, Society of American Foresters and Michigan Forest Products Council. Paul worked with all three organizations to make significant contributions to revising the Michigan Registered Forester credential in 2018. Local, state and federal laws impact how forests are managed and taxed, so it is important for foresters and forestry associations to advocate for good policy.
Paul has written several hundred forest management plans over the last 24 years covering thousands of acres in northwest Michigan. Paul's clients use forest management plans to accomplish projects such as planting trees or harvesting timber to improve wildlife habitat. Forest management plans provide a fast return on investment when landowners use them to generate income with a timber sale, improve water quality and wildlife habitat or lower their property taxes in the Qualified Forest or Commercial Forest programs.
Dennis McDougall, with USDA Forest Service, appreciates Paul's great work too. "Relationships between foresters and landowners are at the heart of successful private forest management. By listening to the landowner's vision for their property, the forester develops a unique management plan designed to achieve that vision. Foresters like Paul help landowners understand and navigate the unfamiliar world of timber markets and government programs to enable them to make sound decisions about their land."
The Forest Stewardship Program is funded by the USDA Forest Service and administered in Michigan by the Department of Natural Resources. All partners are equal opportunity providers and employers. For more information, contact Mike Smalligan at SmalliganM@Michigan.gov or 517-449-5666.