Kerri Simmons, RPF, is the current chair of the 78th Forest Professionals British Columbia (FPBC) Board. She will be outgoing chair for the 79th board and previously served as a councillor-at-large for a three-year term that ended in 2020.

Kerri, originally from Newfoundland, came to BC to plant trees in 1990 and returned from an additional four years to do the same. Kerri enrolled in the College of New Caledonia forest resource technology program in 1994, and after completing the program, along with another year of university transfer courses, enrolled in FPBC’s pupil program while working for a consulting firm and as a seasonal employee with Canadian Forest Products.

Kerri became an RPF in 2004 and boasts experience in multi-phase development fieldwork, cutting permit administration, silviculture, planning and permitting, as well as harvesting supervision, GIS co-ordination, safety roles, certification and forest tenures, and was director of Indigenous partnerships, leading Canfor’s Indigenous engagement strategy and Indigenous partnerships.

Kerri is currently senior advisor, planning and partnerships for the Strategic Natural Resources Group, overseeing client needs for planning, advocacy, facilitation, and policy development while ensuring Strategic staff are mentored on related projects and programs.

Kerri, through her time on the FPBC Board and volunteering with the organization, has been involved in the 2017 and 2022 FPBC conference and AGM host committee, assists in testing FPBC’s registration processes and more.