News Pulp
UBC student gets FPAC internship at Canfor

For environmental engineering student Danielle Amaral, striving towards a sustainable and environmentally conscious lifestyle is one of her top priorities.

She is adamant she picked her course of studies with this in mind so when she heard she was one of the interns chosen by the Forest Products Association of Canada for their Green Dream program, she felt it was the perfect opportunity to share some of the innovative practices currently being implemented by the forest products industry.

“During my first year at UNBC, we had the chance to tour Canfor’s Northwood Pulp Mill. As the tour progressed, I was taken aback by the initiatives and energy saving projects Canfor was implementing. When I found out I would have the opportunity to work for them this summer in the forestry industry, I was thrilled,” says Amaral. “Here was my opportunity to make a difference, one kilowatt at a time.”

Since starting her internship with Canfor’s Northwood operations in May, Amaral has been able to work alongside some of the company’s more senior employees to develop strategic plans for reducing the company’s energy use. She admits the process is not as straightforward as she first assumed but admires the ingenuity that goes into optimizing Canfor’s various pulp operations.

“It is evident sustainability is a part of everything they do at Canfor. From existing processes to the new innovative engineering projects, the staff at Northwood are determined to uphold Canfor’s core values of safety, quality and sustainability,” Amaral says.

Amaral studies at University of British Columbia (UBC) and University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC).

FPAC’s internship program was designed to raise awareness among college and university students and tell them about job opportunities in the forest sector. The goal was to connect the industry with the next generation of workers and help those choosing career paths to become aware and enthused about a career in the forest industry.

For students like Amaral who might want to get a head start on planning their job search, FPAC’s The Greenest Workforce Job Match Tool is an online tool that can assist greatly with securing vocational employment. FPAC’s first-of-its-kind online tool assists with matching job openings at Canadian forest products companies with job seekers as well as provides detailed labour market information about the sector.

The on-line labour market information is searchable at the national, provincial and regional levels, as well as by occupation. This market information aims to help employers make sound business and human resources decisions, assist industry associations and post-secondary institutions to address skills issues and reduce the likelihood of new skills shortages in the industry.

To read about the Green Dream Team’s summertime job experiences, visit The Greenest Workforce blog.