About Us

Innovative Partnership

Founded in 2012, the Northern Hardwoods Research Institute (NHRI) is an innovative partnership between the forest sector, governments and academia.

The applied research conducted at NHRI is executed in order to produce and mobilize the knowledge and tools required to optimally manage northern hardwoods and mixed forests, in terms of resource growth, timber value and long-term sustainability.

Through the years the NHRI has become a knowledge hub on the subject matter and evolved into a pivotal applied research and knowledge mobilization player among specialists, decision-makers, private enterprise and the research community.

Our Team

Focused on delivering effective knowledge and timely solutions.

Purpose

To provide the forest sector with the knowledge and tools required to ensure the growth and sustainability of northern hardwood and mixedwood forests.

Vision

Become one of the top applied forest research centers in North America, and a significant agent of change in the way forest management is conducted in Eastern Canada.

Mission

Mobilize knowledge into effective solutions that our clients can materialize into tangible benefits, such as:

  • Improved resource growth
  • Increased harvest volumes
  • Higher timber value
  • Long-term sustainability

Transparency and Honesty

Solution-Oriented

Client-Driven

Innovative

Effectiveness

Continuous Improvement

Adaptive Management

Efficiency

Value Proposition

Why we are attractive to our customers.

  • Increase growing stock, tree size and quality of tolerant hardwoods.
  • Increase % of Sugar Maple.
  • Improve profitability (revenues-costs) of forest operations and reduce risk.
  • Provide a framework for “Results-based” sustainable forest management.
  • Improve long-term stand/forest net value through the production of timber.
  • Lead the digital transformation of the forest products sector.
  • Increase forest sector capacity for R&D, knowledge transfer and training.
  • Provide an innovation hub/space for ICT and forestry sector to develop user ready tools.

Operational Objectives

  • Improve knowledge of the northern hardwood resource.
  • Develop silviculture methods that promote the sustainable yield of desired species and products and increase the volume and value of the northern hardwood stands.
  • Effectively transfer knowledge and tools to our forest sector clients.
  • Assume a leadership role in the digital transformation of the Canadian forest products sector.
  • Influence forest policy based on the results of NHRI research.
  • Create value for our clients, stakeholders, and partners.

The Focus of Our Work

Operational Scope

The focus of our operations: Our work is focused on the generation of value through the production of hardwood timber. Our team’s research priorities revolve around helping our industrial forestry partners develop and implement solutions aimed at improving yield, and quality, of timber production. Other forest values (ecosystem services, habitat, biodiversity etc.) are certainly important, but not within NHRI’s operational scope.

Geographical Scope

Where we operate: The geographical scope of our work is limited to Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States. While some of our work can certainly be useful for foresters beyond these borders, our research and tools are developed specially for forests within the current range of the sugar maple.

Customer Scope

Who we work for: Our products and services are developed primarily for large industrial forest managers, NB Department of Natural Resources and Energy Development and forestry SME’s. NHRI’s work is driven by the needs and concerns of the forestry sector.

Collaborative Scope

Who we work with: To produce effective solutions for our forestry clients, our team has developed an impressive and diversified array of partnerships. Our deliverables are tightly defined, and laser-focused. However, the collaborations required to obtain these results for our clients are broad and diversified, involving industrial forestry companies, government agencies, forestry SME’s, ICT SME’s, universities, research centers, NGO’s, etc. We are constantly looking to develop new partnerships to better serve our clients.

Governance

The Northern Hardwoods Research Institute is an incorporated not-for-profit organization whose vision and direction are set by its’ Board of Directors.

Partners

NHRI is an innovative partnership between forest companies operating in New Brunswick, the Université de Moncton (Campus d’Edmundston), as well as provincial (New-Brunswick) and federal (Canada) levels of government. The Institute has been a multi-stakeholder network since its’ inception and has gained precious experience in managing cooperative relationships between academia, business, and government.