Sparking Skill in Natural Resources
The following post was written by Quincey (Quinn) Feinberg, Spark-Y Sustainable Forestry Apprentice.
Spark-Y’s forestry program is designed for young adults, aged 14-24, to build skills in arboriculture and prepare for a career in forestry.
This program was made possible by Hennepin County and funding from the Inflation Reduction Act and USDA Forest Service.
Our Summer 2025 first cohort program offers hands-on training in foundational tree care, delivered by an ISA-certified arborist educator and supported by Spark-Y’s expert STEAM education team. Participants gain practical skills and industry-aligned knowledge in tree maintenance and arboriculture. Our curriculum emphasizes inclusive, experiential learning, with a focus on supporting individuals facing barriers to employment.
It's been a fantastic summer with the Spark-Y forestry team, and together with our amazing interns, we've all learned so much!
The Forestry Workforce Development Program is a new action group working with both Hennepin County and a pair of ISA certified Arborists. Its goal is to introduce a group of youth and young adults to the forestry industry while planting and caring for trees through the county.
Over the summer, our skills have grown along with the trees that we’ve cared for! Our interns have developed so many skills, from watering trees, to correctly planting them to grow strong years in the future, to identifying both trees and their common issues. We also worked hard on improving job skills through mentorship and professional development workshops, shaping up our resumes, doing mock interviews, and more. These skills will help prepare them for future jobs in tree care, as well as any other natural resources field! One tree at a time, we're building a stronger, more sustainable future, and preparing our interns to take part in it.
For many of the skills we've learned, we partnered with a pair of amazing ISA certified arborists, Chad and Rachel Giblin from Trees & Me. Under them, we've had valuable lessons and experiences, such as planting trees in Logan Park, helping to protect a tree against Dutch Elm Disease, and trimming trees together. We've also gone on many fascinating field trips, to arboretums, nurseries, and parks. On those tips, we’ve explored topics like how to assess the health of maple trees in a sugar bush and saw how goats can chew back invasive species. We’ve explored so many different aspects of tree care and learned about the natural world around Minnesota. It’s been an amazing summer, and we can’t wait for the program next year.
