Episode 9: Patty Thielen

Abstract

In Episode 9, Kyle asks five questions with a forester of Patty Thielen, Northeast Minnesota Region Director at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. We hear that she would "rather wear hiking boots and long johns than heels and nylons" as a forester. Patty shares wisdom and anecdotes from her 25 year career with the Minnesota DNR. She discusses balancing multiple objectives across DNR lands and shares stories of the Old Growth Triathlon and when 3rd-graders at a public outreach event were shocked when the answer to their question, "Do you have to pay to be a forester?" was, "No, in fact they pay me to be a forester!" The audio quality during the interview was not quite as high as we would like due to rural internet connections but we feel that the quality of the content outweighed the occasional audio delay. Thank you for your understanding.