She builds bridges between gaming and forestry machines – meet Anna Ross from Jobba grönt

Two famous gamers, Maurice (L22) and Rebecca (Bexx), have been tasked with becoming professional forwarder drivers in less than a month - with the help of simulators, the Farming Simulator game and coaching from students at agricultural schools. The final will be held in front of an audience on 5 June at Campus Wood, right in the heart of Elmia Wood.

Campus Wood is the place where Elmia Wood brings together initiatives that want to inspire the next generation of forest professionals. Here, training programmes, schools and future projects meet in a common area - and Jobba Grönt's gaming challenge is an example of how new paths can open doors to the industry.

We asked Anna Ross a few questions about the project, young people in forestry - and why meeting places like Elmia Wood play an important role in the future supply of skills.

”There will be no food on the table or raw materials from the forest if we have no one willing and able to do the job”

Anna Ross describes her job with a combination of commitment and seriousness:

- I love my job, both because it is so much fun to work with communication towards young people and because it is such an important issue. There will be no food on the table or raw materials from the forest if we don't have someone willing and able to do the job!

The idea for Elmia Wood Masters was actually born at Elmia Lantbruk last autumn:

- We have long looked at the gaming community as a very good target group for forestry jobs because it is the same skills that are required. So when the idea struck me that we could do something at Elmia Wood too - then it fell into place.

The project has also involved pupils from agricultural schools as coaches for the competing gamers:

- It's really important to publicise life at an agricultural school, both to inspire more people to apply and to strengthen the pride of those who have already chosen that path. We have so much to be proud of - and we need to show it.

Elmia Wood – a meeting place for future forestry talent

There is no doubt that the supply of skills is one of the forest industry's major issues - but Anna Ross sees more opportunities than problems:

- We have fantastic jobs to offer that are both important and fun. One challenge is to create more and smarter training programmes for career changers, but otherwise I feel more hopeful.

She believes that the industry is actually quite open to trying new ways:

- So far, no-one has backed down from any of my ideas, even if they are sometimes a bit outside the box!

The collaboration with Elmia Wood has been natural:

- It feels so good! Partly because we get a whole new target group there digitally via L22's and Bexx's channels, but also because the industry gets to see what we can actually do to find the future labour force. Hopefully more actors will want to join us.

What happens in the final?

The final on 5 June at Elmia Wood will be both the end and the highlight of the project:

- What I'm looking forward to most is seeing how well the experiment has worked. Can you teach a gamer to drive a forestry machine by playing Farming Simulator and training with a natural farming student as a coach? It remains to be seen - but it will be fun!

Come and watch the final on 5 June at 12.30 at Campus Wood