Nevada City, California, September 2, 2025 – Sierra Business Council, in partnership with Sierra Commons and the Sierra Small Business Development Center, is hosting a free two-day forest business workshop on October 11-12 in Auburn. This training is designed to help entrepreneurs grow successful forest-based businesses, equipping them with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate this expanding industry.
About the Forest Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
The Advanced Forest Entrepreneurship Bootcamp is designed for aspiring or current entrepreneurs in the forest economy: fuel reduction, defensible space, prescribed fire, biochar, home hardening, restoration, sawmilling, forest products, etc. Small business owners who want to expand into forest-related services will also benefit from this free training, as well as community members seeking to create sustainable, fire-adapted livelihoods.
While the Advanced class builds on concepts introduced in the Intro course, it is still accessible to new participants. Those who are already in business, or who come in with a clear idea they want to pursue, will gain immediate benefit, even if they didn’t attend Part 1. The class provides refresher context at the beginning, so newcomers won’t be lost.
The curriculum will engage participants in:
- Hands-on application and scenario-based exercises
- In-depth exploration of government contracting, financing, and compliance
- Development of a minimum viable product (MVP) or service offering, with strategies to grow from there
- Guidance on scaling, marketing, and partnerships specifically tailored to forest and fire-adapted businesses.
Participants walk away with practical, actionable steps to grow or refine their forest-based business — not just ideas. Students will also have access to an accountability group and one-to-one advising at no cost through the Small Business Development Center (SBDC).
Expert Guidance & Networking Opportunities
Industry experts in forestry, business, marketing, finance, human resources, and more will share their knowledge and experience. A Friday night social will kick off the event and allow participants to network with like-minded entrepreneurs. Past participants found value in the connections they made among other participants in complementary forest businesses; some connections have led to innovative collaborations.
Robert X Trent, the founder of Nevada City’s nonprofit business incubator Sierra Commons and an experienced business consultant, will co-facilitate the training with Ruby Beauchamp, who works as both a Forestry Fellow at Sierra Nevada Alliance and as the Reforestation Pipeline Partnership Coordinator for American Forests. Beauchamp is also a successful forest entrepreneur working in cone collection and reforestation across California. Her experience brings practical insights and lived examples from the forest economy to the workshop.
“This is an exciting time for forest entrepreneurship,” said Trent. “The industry is growing rapidly, with opportunities that support both economic and environmental resilience. This training provides everything an entrepreneur needs to know to start or expand a forest business.”
Beauchamp concurs. She is enthusiastic about helping entrepreneurs take advantage of business opportunities and give back to their communities at the same time. “Right now, there’s a lot of momentum around sustainable natural resource management, community preparedness for wildfire, habitat restoration, and the re-use of forest bi-products for energy. It’s powering a whole new era of land stewardship that symbiotically connects local businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies. This work is not going away anytime soon. Not only does this training introduce folks to opportunities in forestry, it gives them tools to be in business for the long term.”
This program is administered by Sierra Business Council, and funded by a Good Jobs Challenge EDA-funded grant through the Foundation for California Community Colleges to conduct forestry and fire mitigation training programs throughout California.
Pre-registration is required and space is limited.
Learn more and register at http://bit.ly/462b1rs.
Sierra Business Council is a Sierra-based nonprofit organization with a mission to catalyze and demonstrate innovative approaches and solutions to increase community vitality, economic prosperity, environmental quality, and social fairness in the Sierra Nevada and beyond. www.sierrabusiness.org
Sierra Commons empowers rural entrepreneurs by offering heart-forward business education, resources, and community. www.sierracommons.org