2016

LVM scholarship holders acquire new knowledge in five workshops

How fast is the forest growing? What types of forest are there? What is forest diversity? JSC "Latvia's State Forests" (LVM) scholarship holders of the academic year 2015/2016 had an opportunity to learn about these and many other issues by taking an active part in the Nature Days events and in five workshops. "For each of us the forest means something different: childhood memories, an active sports place, a great place to relax and have fun together with the family. But for each and every one of us it is a value we want to cherish, explore and take good care of," say LVM scholarship holders. We offer an insight into the events and impressions shared by the twenty nine LVM scholarship programme participants.

Honesty, good results, competence, cooperation, vitality, friendliness, pride for the organisation we work for - these are the LVM values the scholarship holders got to know in the first workshop. Participants were introduced to the company's operations and structural units.

In the second workshop scholarship holders together with Kaspars Riže, LVM Senior Forest Expert, went to Vidusdaugava Region Forestry to explore how forest data maintenance and forest management planning function in nature. The students had an opportunity to learn about reforestation and maintenance processes to ensure favourable growth conditions for the target tree species.

In the third workshop scholarship recipients could acquaint themselves with innovative solutions for the treatment of wood. Scholarship holders had the opportunity to look at a tree from a different perspective. Round wooden houses are only the beginning of modern and innovative use of wood in Latvia. Having acquired the knowledge on the modern uses of wood, almost all workshop participants would be happy to live in a dwelling made of wood.

In the Shadow Day, scholarship holders had an opportunity to choose the profession with a representative of which they would like to spend a day together, to have a broader picture of the profession. Some went to explore forest fellings; others watched how educational activities are planned in LVM Nature Park in Tērvete.

LVM scholarship holder Antons Seļezņovs shares his most memorable impressions about the events of the programme: "In the workshops we could learn about the life cycle of a forest - from a tiny seedling to a mature tree. One of the most interesting events was the Shadow Days that took place in February, when specialists of the Planning Department presented the Remsoft programme. With its help it is possible to look into a far future (120 years) and to learn about the forest fund we will pass on to our descendants. Taking into account that JSC "Latvia's State Forests" manages the forests very responsibly and reasonably, we can be sure that our descendants will receive viable and multifunctional forests. Scholarship events are a unique opportunity not only to get acquainted with sustainable forest management, but also to learn about the latest developments in the forest sector from professionals."

In the final workshop scholarship holders had an opportunity to visit the place where the future forest is growing - LVM nursery "Mazsili" - and appreciate the magic of the Latvian forest from a bird's flight - the top of Ūdrakalns observation tower. In the nursery the workshop participants had an opportunity to watch an automated sowing process in which the seeds are sown in special containers, in order to start their germination process. The containers are then transported to greenhouses. In the smaller greenhouse there are up to 380 000 seedlings, but in the largest - even as many as the number of population of Latvia. Kārlis Strazdiņš, the manager of the nursery, said that in one metre of land it is possible to school up to 18 spruce seedlings. The areas managed by LVM are restored only with high-quality forest seedlings grown in the LVM nurseries. At the end of the educational day, scholarship holders went to LVM tourism and recreation centre "Spāre" to head for the Mammadaba affair. In the orienteering race participants had to find eight checkpoints to answer forestry-related questions.

"Latvia is located in the forest area. The forest is also the main Latvian ecosystem. Because of this factor, scholarship recipients are highly motivated to develop their abilities and skills during the workshops, learning from the LVM specialists. The opportunity given by LVM to raise our qualification in the field of forestry is just the beginning for the acquisition of new in-depth knowledge to be passed on to our friends and relatives. Thanks to LVM for an active, creative and educational year," says Santa Tinkusa, a LVM scholarship holder.

In order to promote growth and development of students, as well as learning in the field of forestry, JSC "Latvia's State Forests" already for several years has been organising a scholarship competition, which is open to Latvian university students of different programmes, as well as to students of Ogre State Technical College. The scholarship competition is aimed at promoting student motivation to develop their skills and abilities, attracting professionals to the company, increasing university and school students' willingness to improve quality of their studies in the LVM areas of interest, as well as to support the advancement of science. The scholarship holders not only receive a financial support for the school year, but also participate in monthly LVM-organised practical workshops.