Seeing the Forest for More than the Trees
Mike Kilgore wants Minnesota to maintain its resources

By Sarah Finley

Whether it’s to fish, hunt or simply go for a walk in the woods, Mike Kilgore, associate professor of natural resources policy and economics in the Department of Forest Resources, is always looking for a reason to escape the indoors. “My kids are all outdoorsmen too,” says Kilgore. Anyone could see this when stepping into his office in Green Hall, where there’s a photo of his three sons posing in hunter’s orange alongside the family’s Brittney spaniel, Buddy.

Mike Kilgore

The outdoor experiences that Kilgore shares with his sons are the very same ones that his father and grandfather shared with him when growing up in rural Minnesota. But one element continues to change. The woods that Kilgore walks today aren’t the same woods his grandfather walked and they won’t be the same 40 years from now. It’s a reality that motivates Kilgore’s service, teaching and research.

“Awhile back, my dad gave me some of his father’s old hunting licenses and duck stamps. They’re just great,” Kilgore says with a smile. “When I was looking at them the other day, it made me wonder what my grandfather would think of Minnesota’s landscape today. I think he’d say we’ve really altered it. We’ve put a lot of pressure on the resources.”

This pressure isn’t going unnoticed in Minnesota. This past fall, Gov. Tim Pawlenty formed the Conservation Legacy Council – a 15-member council charged with finding a model to effectively fund, govern and deliver natural-resource conservation in the state. Kilgore, with his love of the outdoors and extensive knowledge of natural resources economics and policy in Minnesota, was asked to chair the council. He welcomes the opportunity.

“Conservation policy and funding have been growing and becoming more visible in Minnesota,” says Kilgore. “This is the time to make a difference.” The council is expected to deliver its report in late spring.

While the council demands quite a bit of time, Kilgore still manages to stay on top of his teaching and research responsibilities. Since 2001, when he joined the Forest Resources faculty, he’s taught the department’s Economics of Natural Resource Management course.

“I like to see how students come to appreciate, over the course of the semester, that natural-resource management is not just a biological or physical problem,” says Kilgore. “It also has an important social component that centers around how individuals and society value these resources.”