The Southern Center for Sustainable Forests was established in 1997 by a Memorandum of Understanding among North Carolina State University, Duke University, and the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources.

The Center was established to provide leadership for research, education, and extension to promote economically and ecologically sustainable management of forests in the South. Leadership for the Center is shared among the three codirectors from each organizing institution.

The Center sponsors and performs projects that involve research, teaching, and outreach regarding the practice of sustainable forest management in the South.