WOWnet: a communication and networking model for women.

We interviewed members of Women Owning Woodlands network (WOWnet), an Extension program in Western Oregon and an ideal community to study how women communicate and network. We found that WOWnet women are involved in a variety of natural resource-based organizations. However, WOWnet is unusual because of its small-group, praxis-based approach. If more Extension and forestry organizations followed the WOWnet example of supporting women new to forestry and focusing more on women-centric knowledge, they can become more inclusive of women with diverse interests and backgrounds. Programming that incorporates women-centric knowledge has implications for Extension programs throughout the U.S. and elsewhere.