#WomenInForestry – meet Ilke Opperman
Nelson Mandela University (NMU)
Master’s Student
Qualifications:
- BTech degree Forestry
Forestry career: About to start
My current job/responsibilities as a master’s student is to complete my studies within the recommended/required time frame and to make sure I best equip myself with the correct knowledge to assist the Timber Industry Pesticide Working Group (TIPWG) to identify alternative products that can legally be used in forestry nurseries.
As part of my studies I surveyed several agricultural and forestry nurseries to identify the pests and pathogens that occur most frequently and causes the most damage. Along with this the pesticides used to control them.
With this knowledge we are able to identify products that comply with forest certification schemes and which may be less hazardous to the environment and the people applying them.
WHY I LOVE WORKING IN THE FORESTRY SECTOR
The reason I love forestry is the fact that it combines my love for nature and being outdoors with my administrative skills. I can get the best of both worlds when it comes to forestry. I don’t have to sit behind a computer the whole day nor do I have to be outside on days where you would rather stay in bed with hot chocolate. There are however exceptions to every rule, but this just means there is never a dull moment!
MY ADVICE TO THOSE EXPLORING A CAREER IN FORESTRY
As a woman stepping into the forestry sector, I am excited to join the many other women whom have successfully showcased their capabilities in the field (as researchers, foresters, silvicultural and harvesting contractors, wood technologists and the support from all the wives of the male foresters, whom without I am sure foresters would not have been as successful as they have been) and have contributed to creating an environment where women feel empowered working in the sector.
These are exciting times to be a woman in forestry and in the spirit of woman’s month:
“This is a man’s world, but it wouldn’t be nothing, nothing without a woman or a girl” ~ James Brown
“There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish” ~ Michelle Obama
