Women Owning Woods (WOW)
Women Owing Woods- Catskill | Hudson Valley (WOW) is a group of women landowners and natural resource professionals from the Catskills and the Hudson Valley regions of New York. The Watershed Agricultural Council, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene Counties, and the Columbia Land Conservancy organized this group of professionals and landowners as a way to foster learning experiences and discussions about forest property. The group tailors events and programs to women who own and/or manage forest land, but you need to be neither a woman nor a landowner to join! If you’re interested in learning more about WOW you can sign up for our enewsletter or email
Relevant links/How To Information:
- Join WOW on Facebook The WOW Facebook page is an informal space for members to share stories, resources, and events with one another.
- Women and Their Woods Retreat More and more women are becoming landowners and making decisions about the family woods. Women and Their Woods is a biennial four-day retreat hosted by the Delaware Highlands Conservancy where women can meet other female landowners and discover more about caring for their land.
- WOWnet If you live outside of the Catskills and Hudson Valley but are still interested in joining WOW you can check out the Women Owning Woodlands Network, which connects WOW chapters across the United States. This web project strives to bring topical, accessible, and current forestry information to woodland owners and forest practitioners through news articles, blogs, events, resources, and personal stories. WOWnet supports women in forest leadership, women who manage their own woodlands, and all who facilitate the stewardship of forests.
- New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) and Beyond BOW are programs designed to teach women outdoor skills. BOW workshops are designed primarily for women who have little or no experience with outdoor activities. These are three-day workshops that offer many different classes over the course of a weekend.
- Partner organizations of WOW Catskills | Hudson Valley:
- The Watershed Agricultural Council (WAC)- WAC works with farm and forest landowners in the New York City Watershed region to protect water quality on behalf of nine million New York residents.
- Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene Counties- CCE Columbia and Greene Counties puts knowledge to work in pursuit of economic vitality, ecological sustainability, and social well-being.
- Columbia Land Conservancy (CLC)- CLC works with their community to conserve the farmland, forests, wildlife habitat, and rural character of Columbia County.
- Women only Game of Logging chainsaw safety and use classes.
- Literature: Women on the Land. Throughout this guide, you will find real-life case studies focusing on the stories and stewardship of a handful of women across the eastern United States.
- MyWoodlot Events Click here to see upcoming WOW events.