Gary Schneider
Project Director / Environmental Educator
Phone: 902-651-2575       

Email: macphailwoods@gmail.com​

Gary Schneider founded the Macphail Woods Ecological Forestry Project in the fall of 1991.  He is involved in all aspects of the project, from collecting seeds to fundraising to nature education. He has won a variety of awards for his work at Macphail Woods, including a national Nature Inspiration Award from the Canadian Museum of Nature in 2020. 

Eric Edward
Nature Camps Director / Environmental Educator / Forester / Lead Chainsaw Instructor

Email: ericedward@macphailwoods.org​

Eric Edward has been with the project since 1998. He manages our forestry operations, is the lead chainsaw safety Instructor and our summer camp director. Over the years, he's had a hand in nearly every aspect of the project and developed many of the restoration practices used by our staff. Eric is inspired by the vision of a forestry industry that values the health of forests, foresters and the community they support all equally. 

Daniel McRae
Environmental Educator / Forester / Lead Researcher

Email: danielmcrae@macphailwoods.org​

Daniel started working with Macphail Woods in 2008. Since then he has become an expert in botany, data collection, mapping and forest assessment. Daniel is our lead researcher but is involved with many other aspects of the project including ecosystem restoration, sustainable harvesting and nature education. 

Becky Byrne
Nursery Manager

Email: beckybyrne@macphailwoods.org​

Becky has been working at Macphails Woods for over 25 years. She attended Nova Scotia Agriculture College for Landscape Design as well as completing the Environmental Applied Science and Technology  program at Holland College. As the nursery manager Becky handles all our native plant sales, landscaping, and native plant propagation. Her work has greatly expanded our arboretum and nursery and helped us develop growing techniques for many rare species. 

Evan Young
Forest Restoration Technician / Chainsaw Instructor / Carpenter

Email: evanyoung@macphailwoods.org​

Evan began working at Macphail Woods in 2019 after he graduated from the Wildlife Conservation Technology program at Holland College. With his background in carpentry combined with his knowledge in wildlife conservation he has been contributing to the  growth of many aspects of the project. He is one of our lead foresters and chainsaw safety instructors.