A long time safety campaigner in the forestry industry says the sector is beginning to make some major changes.  

The forestry safety summit begins in Rotorua today.

One of its key speakers Wiremu Edmonds says the industry has learnt the lessons from a tragic couple of years.

"There's not too many areas I haven't been in, but myself being involved in the industry, I've seen some big changes in what we're doing."

Keynote speaker and British Columbia Forest Safety Council CEO Reynold Hert says it's important industry leads change.

"I'm in a room here with 320 people who have come to really learn about how they can improve safety in forestry. I have a high degree of confidence that they will learn quite quickly."