E-Book Overview
Forestry has been witness to some dramatic changes in recent years, with several Western countries now moving away from the traditional model of regarding forests merely as sources of wood. Rather these countries are increasingly recognizing their forests as multi-purpose resources with roles which go far beyond simple economics. In this innovative book, Sylvie Nail uses England as a case study to explore the relationships between forests, society and public perceptions, raising important questions about forest policy and management both now and in the future. Adopting a sociological approach to forest policy and management, the book discusses the current validity of the two principles underlying forestry since the Middle Ages: first, that forestry should only exist when no better use of the land can be made, and second, that forestry itself should be profitable. The author stresses how values and perceptions shape policies, and conversely how policies can modify perceptions, and also how policies can fail if they do not take perceptions into account. She concludes that many of the issues facing English forestry in the 21st century from leisure, health and amenity provision, through education and rural as well as urban regeneration, to biodiversity conservation go well beyond both national borders and the scope of forestry. Indeed forestry in the 21st century seems to be less about planting and managing trees than about being a vector and a mirror of social change. This novel synthesis provides a valuable resource for advanced students and researchers from all areas of natural resource studies, including those interested in social history, socio-economics, cultural geography and environmental psychology, as well as those studying landscape ecology, environmental history, policy analysis and natural resource management.
E-Book Content
FOREST POLICIES AND SOCIAL CHANGE IN ENGLAND WORLD FORESTS Series Editors MATTI PALO PhD, Independent Scientist, Finland, Affiliated Professor CATIE, Costa Rica JUSSI UUSIVUORI Finnish Forest Research Institute METLA, Finland Advisory Board Janaki Alavalapati, University of Florida, USA Joseph Buongiorno, University of Wisconsin, USA Jose Campos, CATIE, Costa Rica Sashi Kant, University of Toronto, Canada Maxim Lobovikov, FAO/Forestry Department, Rome Misa Masuda, University of Tsukuba Roger Sedjo, Resources for the Future, USA Brent Sohngen, Ohio State University, USA Yaoqi Zhang, Auburn University, USA World Forests Description As forests stay high on the global political agenda, and forest-related industries diversify, cutting edge research into the issues facing forests has become more and more transdisciplinary. With this is mind, Springer’s World Forests series has been established to provide a key forum for research-based syntheses of globally relevant issues on the interrelations between forests, society and the environment. The series is intended for a wide range of readers including national and international entities concerned with forest, environmental and related policy issues; advanced students and researchers; business professionals, non-governmental organizations and the environmental and economic media. Volumes published in the series will include both multidisciplinary studies with a broad range of coverage, as well as more focused in-depth analyses of a particular issue in the forest and related sectors. Themes range from globalization processes and international policies to comparative analyses of regions and countries. Forest Policies and Social Change in England SYLVIE NAIL University of Paris III, Sorbonne Nouvelle, France Dr. Sylvie Nail University of Paris III Sorbonne Nouvelle France ISBN 978-1-4020-8364-8 e-ISBN 978-1-4020-8365-5 Library of Congress Control Number: 2008925104 © 2008 Spr