Students from Oregon State University traveled to Chiang Mai to learn about tropical forest restoration together with the Forest Restoration Research Unit (FORRU), Chiang Mai University. Over a four-day workshop from June 23–26, 2026, participants explored forest restoration in depth through hands-on experience and fieldwork in forest restoration.
Day 1: Forest Restoration Concepts, the Doi Suthep Reference Forest, and Seed Collection
In the afternoon, students traveled to Doi Suthep–Pui National Park to study evergreen reference forests, examine the challenges of ecosystem recovery, and learn about optimal phenological timing for seed collection. Participants also practiced techniques for recording phenology data and collecting seeds and herbarium specimens directly in the field.
Day 2: Seedling Production and Nursery Research Experiments
Participants spent the full day learning propagation and seedling production at the Doi Suthep Nursery. Hands-on sessions covered nursery work such as extracting seeds from figs; seed preparation and pre-sowing treatment methods such as scarification; seed germination; transplanting seedlings into growing bags; and caring for seedlings in the nursery. They also learned how to set up seed germination experiments using a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD).
After a busy morning in the nursery, the group visited Wat Phra That Doi Suthep for a cultural interlude, then stopped at the Chiang Mai University Observatory to observe the local deciduous dipterocarp forest.
Day 3: Visiting the Mae Sa Restoration Plots and Talking with the Mae Sa Mai–Mae Sa Noi Community about Restoration Work
On the third day, the workshop moved to the Mae Sa restoration plots to explore forest landscape restoration efforts. Participants took part in an activity sketching the landscape and land use of the Mae Sa Valley, joined discussions on forest landscape restoration and sustainable land-use planning, and hiked up to FORRU's restoration plots established in 2000 to analyze restoration outcomes in terms of biomass, forest structure, biodiversity, and ecological function. They also visited restoration plots affected by forest fire.
In the afternoon, participants visited the Ban Mae Sa Mai community nursery to talk with local villagers about their forest restoration work and the selection of tree species useful to the community, and held a discussion with the village environmental conservation club to learn about community motivation, challenges, and the management of forest restoration in Mae Sa Mai–Mae Sa Noi.
Day 4: Forest Restoration Activity at Ban Ton Ngun with Multiple Stakeholders
The final day involved hands-on forest restoration work at the "Huam Jai, Returning the Forest to the Mountain, Ban Ton Ngun 2026" tree planting event — an activity supported as part of the Chiang Mai Low Carbon City goal. Participants restored forest alongside agencies and stakeholders from multiple sectors, including private-sector organizations, Doi Suthep–Pui National Park, the Sop Poeng Subdistrict Administrative Organization, the Ban Ton Ngun community, and Thai and international schools in Chiang Mai Province.
Oregon State University students practiced correct tree-planting techniques and joined conversations with participants and community members about forest restoration work.
