Mary Ellen Aronow (Chair)
Senior Director, Forest and Carbon Economist
Manulife Investment Management Timberland and Agriculture
Mary Ellen conducts economic research to support the firm’s business and forestry investment decisions, including market analysis supporting investment and operational planning and decision-making for the firm’s timberland strategies. Mary Ellen leads the global timberland economic, financial, and statistical analytical efforts, including commodity price forecasting and market outlooks. She has experience in industrial forest management, timberland investment, and forest products markets. Before joining the firm in 1999, she was a Research Coordinator with the Center for Forest Business at the University of Georgia, focused on timber supply research and reporting on structural changes within the timberland industry. Education: M.S., Forest Economics, University of Georgia, B.S., Forest Management, University of Montana.
Tom Johnson (Chair Elect)
Managing Partner, Client Relations and Corporate Development
Timberland Investment Resources, LLC
Tom is a founding partner of Timberland Investment Resources (TIR) where he is a member of both TIR’s Executive Team and Investment Committee. Prior to joining TIR, Tom served as a management consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers and held various institutional investment roles for Wachovia. Tom is a graduate of Appalachian State University and earned an MBA and an MFR at the University of Georgia. He holds the designation of Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) and serves on the Board of the National Alliance of Forestland Owners (NAFO).
Matt Edwards
Director of Operations, Southern Timberlands
Weyerhaeuser Company
Matt is the Director of Business Development for Weyerhaeuser’s operations in North America, based in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He started his career as an accountant and financial analyst with Georgia-Pacific Corporation in Arkansas, and later joined Plum Creek Timber where he served in financial, marketing and operational roles in Arkansas, Georgia and Mississippi prior to Plum Creek’s merger with Weyerhaeuser. Matt earned a Bachelor of Science in Professional Accounting from Louisiana Tech University and a Master of Business Administration with a Concentration in Finance from the University of Louisiana.
Terri Galinski
Director of Timberland Transactions
Green Diamond Resource Company
Terri Galinski is the Director of Timberland Transactions with Green Diamond Resource Company and lives in Athens, Georgia. She started her career with Plum Creek in Kalispell, Montana, as a forestry technician in 2000 and worked her way to northern Wisconsin and then Georgia through various forest operation roles. Terri managed the silviculture and tree improvement programs for all regions up until the merger with Weyerhaeuser in 2016, at which time she led timberland acquisitions and divestitures while based in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Originally from Greensboro, North Carolina, Terri earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Management from NC State University in 1999, a Master of Science in Forestry and Natural Resources from the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point in 2012, and an executive MBA from the University of Georgia in 2024.
Wes Godbee
Vice President, Southern Wood Procurement
Interfor
Wes Godbee is a Vice President with Interfor, responsible for log procurement and byproduct sales for the company’s sawmills in the US-South. He has held various procurement roles with Georgia Pacific, Willamette Industries, Weyerhaeuser and Grant Forest Products supporting plywood, OSB, pulp and lumber operations. Wes earned his BSFR from Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources in 1997.
Stephen King
Senior Vice President, Business Development
Resource Management Service
Steven is responsible for developing and supporting the business development initiatives at Resource Management Service. With more than two decades of global timberland experience, he has broad experience developing timberland investment strategies, acquiring timberland, and managing portfolios. Prior to joining RMS, Steven was Managing Director, Global Strategies at Campbell Global. Prior to that Steven held positions at RMS, Rayonier, James W. Sewall Company, and Jaakko Pöyry Consulting. Steven received his M.S. in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia and a B.S. in Forest Resources and Conservation from the University of Florida.
Jim Langdale
The Langdale Company
Garrett Mack
Director, Portfolio Management
Forest Investment Associates
In his current role as Director, Portfolio Management at Forest Investment Associates, Garrett leads the delivery of sustainable forestry investments to institutional clients globally, developing and managing investment strategies that align with financial and environmental sustainability goals. Garrett holds a Master of Forest Business and a Bachelor of Science in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia, Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. He has extensive involvement with professional and community organizations that include the Society of American Foresters and the Georgia Forestry Association. Garrett was the 2022 recipient of the Warnell School’s Distinguished Young Alumnus award and was recognized as a ‘40 under 40’ award recipient in 2024 by the University of Georgia.
Todd Mullis
President
Forest Resources Consultants
Todd Mullis is currently the President of Forest Resource Consultants, Inc (FRC) in Macon, GA where he joined the company in 2019. In his current role Todd manages all of FRC’s operations which span across the southeastern United States. Prior to joining FRC, Todd worked for Weyerhaeuser and Interfor where he served in various capacities including Vice President of Operations, Vice-President of Forestry, Procurement Manager, and Procurement Forester. Todd received a Bachelor of Science in Forest Resources (BSFR) and a Master of Forest Resources (MFR) from the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at UGA as well as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Terry College of Business at UGA. Todd is a past Chair of the Georgia Forestry Association, past President of the Warnell Alumni Steering Committee, and past Chair of the Georgia Division of the Society of American Foresters. He currently serves on the Warnell Dean’s Advisory Board as well as the Warnell Langdale Center Advisory Committee.
Clarence Neese
Co-founder and Vice President
Orbis
Having started Orbis, Inc. from the ground up, Clarence currently leads the organization’s business development, marketing, and operations support. He has been an integral part of the company’s growth, transforming ideas into real solutions for clients and pioneering technology-driven products and services in the land asset management industry. Clarence acquired a master’s degree in forestry from West Virginia University. Prior to this, he received his Bachelor of Science degree in resource management, with a minor in GIS and remote sensing from George Mason University. Clarence is also a licensed N.C. Land Surveyor.
Shelda Owens
Director, Timberlands
Cushman and Wakefield
Shelda is the Director of Timberland at Cushman and Wakefield where she leads a national team of asset managers and assists clients in establishing their asset management and investment goals for Bank of America accounts. She has 20 years of investment and asset management experience focused in timberland, and has expertise in business development, acquisitions, strategy, client management, team development, and operations through roles with Bank of America, Timberland Investment Resources and F&W Forestry Services. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Forest Resources and a Master of Science in Forest Economics from the University of Georgia, and an MBA from Kennesaw State University. She is originally from Mount Pleasant, SC and currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia with her family.
Jody Strickland
Chief Business Officer, EVP
F&W Forestry Services
Jody serves on the executive team at F&W where she is responsible for business development, real estate services, marketing and overseeing international forest operations in the UK and South America. Previously, Strickland spent 22 years working with Weyerhaeuser and Proctor & Gamble in various leadership positions in timberland acquisitions and sales, forest operations, land management, wood procurement, harvesting, engineering, and manufacturing. She is a member of numerous professional organizations including, the FLA, SAF, NAR, RLI and serves on Boards of the FRA, GFA and Superior Pine Products and Superior Berries. Strickland is a graduate of the University of Georgia and received a Master’s degree in Engineering from the University of Florida.
Marshall Thomas
President
F&W Forestry Services
Cade Warner
President and CEO
The Westervelt Company
Cade is the President and CEO of The Westervelt Company. After graduating from Warnell in 2014 with a Masters of Forest Resources (MFR), Cade spent time in the timberland investing sector. In 2017, Cade returned to The Westervelt Company and has since worked his way through a series of positions with progressive responsibilities – including CEO, COO, CSO, Director of Business Development and Improvement, and Continuous Improvement Manager.
Lynn Wilson
President and Principal Owner
WinterTide
Lynn Wilson has spent over three decades in leadership roles at top-tier timberland and building products manufacturing companies, with experience across the U.S., Canada, and New Zealand. She earned a B.S. in Forest Management from the University of Maine and an MBA from Thomas College. In December 2020, Lynn was appointed to the Roseburg Forest Products Board of Directors, which is a closely held, family-owned forest products company. She most recently served as Vice President, Supply Chain for Louisiana-Pacific before her retirement, overseeing LP’s raw materials procurement, transportation and logistics, supply chain planning, and sustainability. Lynn founded WinterTide LLC in 2020 and advises forest products and manufacturing companies on operational excellence, strategic planning, procurement, supply chain, and logistics challenges. She has a passion for leadership development, mentoring, and training with a special emphasis on cultural transformation and building high-performance teams.
Chris Zinkhan
Owner
Timberland Options
Chris is the owner of the consulting timberland-investment firm, Timberland Options, where he advises clients on timberland investment options. He was the co-founder and former chairman and chief executive officer of The Forestland Group (TFG), an independent timberland investment management organization. Chris was a former faculty member at the University of Georgia and Campbell University, where he taught and performed applied research in timberland investing and finance.
