Structural changes of society, such as urbanisation, economic growth and ageing, have evoked a co... more Structural changes of society, such as urbanisation, economic growth and ageing, have evoked a continuing diversification of forest ownership objectives and management strategies in Finland and other Nordic countries. Traditional forestry extension, by means of selling regular forest plans to farm-forest owners, has lost efficiency. As a modern way of activating and satisfying the growing number of new forest owners,
Decision-orientated negotiation faces a particular challenge as regards information logistics whe... more Decision-orientated negotiation faces a particular challenge as regards information logistics when the acting group is part of a larger decision-making hierarchy. This is typically the case in large companies, policy processes, and in land-use planning. In hierarchical planning, the higher (top) levels of decision making frame, and are informed by the lower levels. Concurrently, the lower (subordinate) levels implement, and
Programme-based Planning of Natural Resources (PBPNR) is an evolving planning frame for solving c... more Programme-based Planning of Natural Resources (PBPNR) is an evolving planning frame for solving complex land use, environmental and forest management problems within hierarchically administrated funding and decision-making schemes. PBPNR acknowledges that an effective planning process requires the combined consideration of environmental, technological, economic and socio-political factors. To reach acceptability, commitment and operability, PBPNR processes need to foster collaboration and learning. For this study, an analysis of 43 collaborative planning methods was conducted to examine their potential to be applied within PBPNR. We present the approach of screening the applicability of methods for specific needs that may occur in PBPNR. The approach is based on a list of key criteria for the phases of a collaborative planning process: problem identification, problem modelling and problem solving. The features of each method were qualitatively assessed and peer-reviewed by a team of...
ABSTRACT Forest planning has traditionally been conducted by a professional, typically based on a... more ABSTRACT Forest planning has traditionally been conducted by a professional, typically based on a preliminary interview of the forest owner. The professional first takes into account the wishes of the forest owner, and then provides the owner with a single plan which should represent the requirements of the forest owner. Recent attention has been put into the evaluation of alternative forest plans through multi-criteria decision analysis tools (Ananda and Herath, 2009). These tools assist in choosing the optimal alternative based on preference information of the individual decision maker. The tools used in multi-criteria decision planning situations help determine which of the defined alternatives is most suitable. The development of alternative forest plans once preference information has been obtained from the forest owner has not received much attention.
ABSTRACT It is a common concern that non-resident private forest owners are less able to make inf... more ABSTRACT It is a common concern that non-resident private forest owners are less able to make informed decisions regarding their forests. Moreover, the present guidance given by forest professionals is not reaching all owners. In this study, we suggest enhancing knowledge exchange among forest owners by increasing their mutual and informal interaction that could inspire them to co-construct new knowledge. The first objective is to identify present emerging activities that constitute knowledge exchange contexts (communities) for Finnish forest owners. The second objective is to discuss the challenges of current Finnish forest extension and their implications when introducing Communities of Practice as a complementary response to existing, yet insufficient, professional-led extension. Data consist of Finnish forest owners' and forest professionals' (n = 43) focus group interviews. The qualitative analysis was theoretically oriented followed by data-driven coding and grouping. According to the results, the role of expert-led encounters is strong in Finland and owners' opportunities for good mutual communication are rare. Informal communities exist mainly in the countryside among neighbouring owners and within families. To enhance knowledge sharing among owners, one needs to identify innovative topics and activities that would inspire owners to commit to their forest property and perform active silviculture. These communities would operate as creative learning environments allowing participation of different levels. When cultivating forest owners' communities it is important to consider actors' roles. Forest owners themselves are responsible for the functions and continuity of these communities, although forest professionals could also initiate new and sufficiently homogenous reference groups for the owners.
ABSTRACT Kurttila, M. 2012. Measuring and monitoring socio-cultural sustainabil-ity in the action... more ABSTRACT Kurttila, M. 2012. Measuring and monitoring socio-cultural sustainabil-ity in the action of forest biodiversity cooperation networks. Silva Fennica 46(3): 441–459. To safeguard overall sustainability in forest resource management, the ecological, economic, social, and cultural dimensions of sustainability should all be considered. However, the socio-cultural impacts are frequently contemplated only weakly in sustainability assessments. Hitherto, attempts to operationalize socio-cultural impacts arising from economic utilization or conservation of forest resources have been perceived as vague when compared to rigorous ecological and economic indicators. One reason is that socio-cultural impacts of forest man-agement on individuals and communities are many and by nature context-and case-specific: they need local definition, which hampers diffusion of good solutions. This study developed a multi-criteria method for measuring and monitoring socio-cultural impacts of forest resource management; the case of cooperation network projects within Forest Biodiversity Programme for Southern Finland (METSO) provided empirical data. Based on a literature review, a set of 10 criteria and 25 indicators was compiled. Cumulative utility scores, presenting networks' contributions to socio-cultural sustainability, were generated using performance, expert evaluation and weighting data and an additive utility model. The method enables longitudinal monitoring of socio-cultural impacts, which is beneficial because outcomes are different at different time points of projects' life cycles and some appear with a delay. The method can be used in comparing sub-utility distributions i.e. monitoring units' performance profiles, providing valuable information for policy-makers. The multi-criteria approach and the list of socio-cultural criteria are internationally transferable to other countries and contexts such as forest bioenergy, nature tourism, watershed management, that call for analysing socio-cultural impacts of forest resource management activity on private lands.
Structural changes of society, such as urbanisation, economic growth and ageing, have evoked a co... more Structural changes of society, such as urbanisation, economic growth and ageing, have evoked a continuing diversification of forest ownership objectives and management strategies in Finland and other Nordic countries. Traditional forestry extension, by means of selling regular forest plans to farm-forest owners, has lost efficiency. As a modern way of activating and satisfying the growing number of new forest owners,
Decision-orientated negotiation faces a particular challenge as regards information logistics whe... more Decision-orientated negotiation faces a particular challenge as regards information logistics when the acting group is part of a larger decision-making hierarchy. This is typically the case in large companies, policy processes, and in land-use planning. In hierarchical planning, the higher (top) levels of decision making frame, and are informed by the lower levels. Concurrently, the lower (subordinate) levels implement, and
Programme-based Planning of Natural Resources (PBPNR) is an evolving planning frame for solving c... more Programme-based Planning of Natural Resources (PBPNR) is an evolving planning frame for solving complex land use, environmental and forest management problems within hierarchically administrated funding and decision-making schemes. PBPNR acknowledges that an effective planning process requires the combined consideration of environmental, technological, economic and socio-political factors. To reach acceptability, commitment and operability, PBPNR processes need to foster collaboration and learning. For this study, an analysis of 43 collaborative planning methods was conducted to examine their potential to be applied within PBPNR. We present the approach of screening the applicability of methods for specific needs that may occur in PBPNR. The approach is based on a list of key criteria for the phases of a collaborative planning process: problem identification, problem modelling and problem solving. The features of each method were qualitatively assessed and peer-reviewed by a team of...
ABSTRACT Forest planning has traditionally been conducted by a professional, typically based on a... more ABSTRACT Forest planning has traditionally been conducted by a professional, typically based on a preliminary interview of the forest owner. The professional first takes into account the wishes of the forest owner, and then provides the owner with a single plan which should represent the requirements of the forest owner. Recent attention has been put into the evaluation of alternative forest plans through multi-criteria decision analysis tools (Ananda and Herath, 2009). These tools assist in choosing the optimal alternative based on preference information of the individual decision maker. The tools used in multi-criteria decision planning situations help determine which of the defined alternatives is most suitable. The development of alternative forest plans once preference information has been obtained from the forest owner has not received much attention.
ABSTRACT It is a common concern that non-resident private forest owners are less able to make inf... more ABSTRACT It is a common concern that non-resident private forest owners are less able to make informed decisions regarding their forests. Moreover, the present guidance given by forest professionals is not reaching all owners. In this study, we suggest enhancing knowledge exchange among forest owners by increasing their mutual and informal interaction that could inspire them to co-construct new knowledge. The first objective is to identify present emerging activities that constitute knowledge exchange contexts (communities) for Finnish forest owners. The second objective is to discuss the challenges of current Finnish forest extension and their implications when introducing Communities of Practice as a complementary response to existing, yet insufficient, professional-led extension. Data consist of Finnish forest owners' and forest professionals' (n = 43) focus group interviews. The qualitative analysis was theoretically oriented followed by data-driven coding and grouping. According to the results, the role of expert-led encounters is strong in Finland and owners' opportunities for good mutual communication are rare. Informal communities exist mainly in the countryside among neighbouring owners and within families. To enhance knowledge sharing among owners, one needs to identify innovative topics and activities that would inspire owners to commit to their forest property and perform active silviculture. These communities would operate as creative learning environments allowing participation of different levels. When cultivating forest owners' communities it is important to consider actors' roles. Forest owners themselves are responsible for the functions and continuity of these communities, although forest professionals could also initiate new and sufficiently homogenous reference groups for the owners.
ABSTRACT Kurttila, M. 2012. Measuring and monitoring socio-cultural sustainabil-ity in the action... more ABSTRACT Kurttila, M. 2012. Measuring and monitoring socio-cultural sustainabil-ity in the action of forest biodiversity cooperation networks. Silva Fennica 46(3): 441–459. To safeguard overall sustainability in forest resource management, the ecological, economic, social, and cultural dimensions of sustainability should all be considered. However, the socio-cultural impacts are frequently contemplated only weakly in sustainability assessments. Hitherto, attempts to operationalize socio-cultural impacts arising from economic utilization or conservation of forest resources have been perceived as vague when compared to rigorous ecological and economic indicators. One reason is that socio-cultural impacts of forest man-agement on individuals and communities are many and by nature context-and case-specific: they need local definition, which hampers diffusion of good solutions. This study developed a multi-criteria method for measuring and monitoring socio-cultural impacts of forest resource management; the case of cooperation network projects within Forest Biodiversity Programme for Southern Finland (METSO) provided empirical data. Based on a literature review, a set of 10 criteria and 25 indicators was compiled. Cumulative utility scores, presenting networks' contributions to socio-cultural sustainability, were generated using performance, expert evaluation and weighting data and an additive utility model. The method enables longitudinal monitoring of socio-cultural impacts, which is beneficial because outcomes are different at different time points of projects' life cycles and some appear with a delay. The method can be used in comparing sub-utility distributions i.e. monitoring units' performance profiles, providing valuable information for policy-makers. The multi-criteria approach and the list of socio-cultural criteria are internationally transferable to other countries and contexts such as forest bioenergy, nature tourism, watershed management, that call for analysing socio-cultural impacts of forest resource management activity on private lands.
Uploads
Papers