Perspectives for sustainable management of cedar forests in Lebanon: situation analysis and guidelines

The signature and ratification of the convention on biological diversity by the Lebanese government has boosted the declaration of nature reserves. Cedar forests formed the pilot ecosystems, using international funds, for the implementation of a conservation programme and development of management plans. Although different in their attributes, all recent nature reserves have the same basic management objectives and goals but they ignore the idea of taking into account the difference in specific site features and assets that could boost the success of any management plans. Twelve cedar forests flourish in the Mount Lebanon chain. These forests are either protected by the forestry law or are declared as nature reserves by the Ministry of Environment. The results reveal, through Participatory Rural Appraisals and Rapid Rural Appraisals, that religion, geographical location and land ownership play, to a certain extent, a role in adopting successful management practices of cedar forests. The RRAs and PRAs spell out the origins of woodcraft, old stories memorized by elderly people and ethnobotanical knowledge. The 4Rs tools method adopted highlighted the need for more collaboration and synergy of effort between various institutions. The social, ecological and economic aspects of the regions play a major role in defining the backbone of management plans for cedar forests in Lebanon. The present paper proposes guidelines for the establishment of a network of cedar nature reserves in Lebanon adopting collaborative management and assigning a separate role for each reserve; the details rely on the site’s natural features, as well as socio-economic and cultural characteristics. Readers should send their comments on this paper to BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue     

Environmental sustainability practices in South Asian university campuses: an exploratory study on Bangladeshi universities

Environmental sustainability practices in universities can play an important role in helping society form a sustainable future. In this study, the roles that Bangladeshi universities play in terms of sustainability practices on their campuses are scrutinized, as well as the challenges these universities face. The existing research on campus sustainability practices in Asia is reviewed, and a new exploratory study is put forth on environmental sustainability practices in the higher education institutions of a developing country—Bangladesh. The Campus Sustainability Assessment Framework used in Canadian universities was taken as basis for determining potential environmental management indicators. Results show that environmental management practices (i.e., environmental education, research, governance and operations) are present only to a very limited extent in higher education institutions in Bangladesh.     

The Misdiagnosis: Rethinking “Nature-deficit Disorder”

This study examines and critiques “nature-deficit disorder” (NDD), Richard Louv's popular theory of how and why children are alienated from nature. Specifically, I explore NDD within the context of one forest conservation education program that aligns with and operationalizes Louv's message. Underlying Louv's and forest educators' discourses are culturally specific assumptions about human-nature relationships. Both evoke a fall-recovery narrative—that children are separated from nature and must return—and promote science and naming to reconnect. I argue that, in the absence of deeper cultural examination and alternative practices, NDD is a misdiagnosis—a problematic contemporary environmental discourse that can obscure and mistreat the problem. I call on adults to rethink human-nature disconnectedness by returning to the psyche, digging deeper to the problem's cultural roots, and using nontraditional communication practices such as emotional expression and non-naming.     

论中国林业现状及可持续发展战略

本文对中国林业的现状及其因在林破坏而引发的一系列生态和环境、经济和社会等问题进行了评述，强调指出可持续发展特别是林业可持续发展是解决上述问题的必然选择，并从生态学、经济学、社会学等方面论述了林业可持续发展的目标、准则及对策。     

Cypress dome characteristics within one county of the Southern United States: a case study of changes

Cypress domes are non-transient, disconnected, depressional wetland areas scattered about the southern United States. Baldcypress (Taxodium distichum (L.) Rich.), swamp tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica var. biflora) and other trees species typically occupy these sites. Even though these areas are relatively fixed on the landscape, given land use changes over the last 60–70 years, the spatial character of the resource may have undergone some change as well. A small case study of one Georgia county suggests that there was net decrease in cypress dome land area from 1940 to 2007. The case study also suggests that there was a significant change in the land class(es) adjacent to or containing cypress domes. In addition, the physical shape of cypress domes seems to have changed, perhaps due to mechanical treatment of the land during commercial forestry operations. While the shape of cypress domes that were adjacent to mature forests in 1940 was not significantly different than the shape of the same cypress domes that were adjacent to mature forests in 2007, the shape of cypress domes adjacent to agricultural land and pasture/forest land uses in 1940 was significantly different in shape than their 2007 counterparts. Thus, the value of this study is in suggesting that the physical shape of cypress domes that were once adjacent to agricultural or pasture/forest lands seems to have changed, perhaps due to mechanical treatment of the land during the transition from agricultural practices to commercial forestry operations. The study also highlights the need for assessing the hydrologic changes in wetland function due to changes in cypress dome shape, and due to mechanical operations used along the edges of cypress domes to effectively adjust their shape. Research along these lines can lead to a better understanding of the spatial character of the cypress resource in areas that were once used for agricultural or pasture/forest purposes and may lead to more effective management strategies for protecting its role in society.     

Effects of Land Use Changes on the Landscape Composition: A Comparison Between Finnish and Russian Karelia

During the last 50 years the practising and intensity of agriculture and forestry have differed considerably between Finnish and Russian Karelia. We studied the effects of different land use practices on the landscape composition in the two countries using the road transect sampling along four study routes (99-121 km) between 1997 and 1999. Effective environmental management in Finland has resulted in more distinct agricultural land types, more even distribution of the different age classes of forests, and the higher abundance of coniferous forests. Fields (mean percentage of the landscape: Finland 28%, Russia 13%), clearcuts and sapling stands (15%, 6%), and young forests (23%, 9%) were more typical elements of the Finnish landscape, whereas settlements (9%, 13%), semi-natural grasslands (3%, 7%), and mature forests (20%, 49%) were more characteristic of the Russian landscape. Landscape-level differences between the two countries may have various effects on the diversity of fauna and flora inhabiting Finnish and Russian Karelia.     

石首市抑螺防病林空间布局优化研究

20世纪80年代以来,我国血吸虫疫区的林业血防生态工程建设已取得显著成效,但局部地区的抑螺防病林仍存在空间布局不完善、螺情反复出现的现象。在石首市钉螺孳生环境适宜性分析的基础上,采用层次分析法对钉螺孳生地的风险等级进行了评价,并通过抑螺防病林宜林地和更新区分布研究确定了抑螺防病林的空间布局优化区,以期为完善抑螺防病林建设工程布局提供依据。研究结果表明：石首市钉螺孳生高风险区主要分布在长江及其支流沿线、沟渠、塘堰和滩涂,占研究区总面积的874%。钉螺孳生中风险区主要分布在长江垸内,占总面积的2377%。钉螺孳生低风险区主要分布在大型湖泊、长江等永久水体以及城镇用地周围,占总面积的6749%。石首市抑螺防病林以中幼林为主,面积占抑螺防病林总面积的8047%。成熟林和过熟林（更新区）总面积4 51251 hm2,占抑螺防病林总面积的1405%。另有宜林地2 82336 hm2,石首市抑螺防病林优化区总面积为7 33586 hm2。其中,2395%的优化区分布在钉螺孳生的高风险区,2322%的优化区分布在钉螺孳生的中风险区,5283%的优化区分布在钉螺孳生的低风险区,是未来几年开展抑螺防病林建设的重点区域     

Scenarios and story lines: drivers of land use change in southern Mexico

The study presents three scenarios of land use and cover change (LUCC), the most important factor for environmental degradation in southern Mexico. We developed story lines and quantitative projections for regional scenarios based on historic LUCC processes, environmental policies, socioeconomic drivers, stakeholder consultations and official planning documents to gain a better understanding of drivers of LUCC, and quantitative scenarios were modeled with DINAMICA-EGO. Regionally specific interactions between social and natural systems are recognized, and detrimental policies and policy options for landscape conservation and management for sustainability are acknowledged in a base line, variant and alternative scenario. Incongruent policies and ineffective ground implementation of conservation actions were identified as the critical underlying drivers of deforestation and forest degradation that could lead to a severe reduction in natural forests, while the local socioeconomic situation stays precarious. The baseline scenario parts from an analysis of historic LUCC processes and shows the consequences of LUCC tendencies: 73% of temperate forests and 50% of tropical forests would get deforested until 2030. In the variant scenario, these tendencies are adjusted to planning goals extracted from official documents and recent changes in public policies. The alternative scenario further addresses policy options for fostering conservation and sustainable development, but because of the time lag of implementation, still 59% of temperate forests and 36% of tropical forest would get lost until 2030. Nevertheless, this represents a reduction of 13% of forest loss and 11% less pastureland due to the proposed measures of conservation, and sustainable management, including strategies for reforming agricultural systems, agricultural and forestry policies and trade, land tenure and livelihood risk management.     

Deforestation in the drylands of Africa: Quantitative modelling approach

This paper has developed a two-sector model of forestry that gives some insights into the interactions of poverty, land tenure insecurity, economic growth, trade and deforestation in the context of the drylands of Africa. Externally, the model results show that the world demand for non-timber forestry products can lead to a win-win situation whereby both trade and environmental sustainability can be promoted. Monopolistic measures to control the supply of these products, for short-term price gains, are harmful economically and environmentally. By contrast, productivity-raising measures have a favourable impact on both the economy and the environment. Internally, the model results show that the growth of the rest of the economy has driven the economic growth of the forestry sector, but at the same time, its environmental degradation. Poverty and land tenure insecurity also contribute to this degradation. Fortunately, policies promoting basic needs satisfaction and property rights security are shown to be effective in mitigating environmental degradation in the forestry sector. The paper results contribute towards a more sustainable exploitation of forestry.     

Role of remote sensing and community forestry to manage forests for the effective implementation of REDD+ mechanism: a case study on Cambodia

In this study, we have shown the importance of remote sensing applications and community forestry for forest management, discussed as a case study on Cambodian forest management. Curbing deforestation is necessary for the effective implementation of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forests Degradation (REDD+) mechanism and management of forest resources to support sustainable forest management plans. The updated information of the forest cover and forest biomass using advanced remote sensing techniques can be useful for selecting the suitable sites for planned thinning, reforestation, community forestry, and concession land, which eventually will help in controlling the deforestation in Cambodia. To overcome the limitations of remote sensing, an integrated approach of remote sensing and community forestry to monitor forests from local to national level has also been discussed.     

Characteristics and drivers of forest cover change in the post-socialist era in Croatia: evidence from a mixed-methods approach

Extensive forests in Croatia represent an important biological and economic resource in Europe. They are characterised by heterogeneity in forest management practices dating back to the socialist planned economy of the pre-1991 era. In this study we investigated the difference in rates of deforestation and reforestation in private- and state-owned forests during the post-socialist period and the causal drivers of change. The selected region of Northern Croatia is characterised by a high percentage of privately owned forests with minimal national monitoring and control. We used a mixed-methods approach which combines remote sensing, statistical modelling and a household-based questionnaire survey to assess the rates of forest cover change and factors influencing those changes. The results show that predominantly privately owned forests in Northern Croatia have recorded a net forest loss of 1.8 % during the 1991–2011 period, while Croatia overall is characterised by a 10 % forest cover increase in predominantly state-owned forests. Main factors influencing forest cover changes in private forests are slope, altitude, education structure, population age and population density. The results also show that the deforestation in private forests is weakening overall, mostly due to the continuation of the de-agrarisation and de-ruralisation processes which began during socialism.     

Deforestation in the drylands of Africa: Quantitative modelling approach

This paper has developed a two-sector model of forestry that gives some insights into the interactions of poverty, land tenure insecurity, economic growth, trade and deforestation in the context of the drylands of Africa. Externally, the model results show that the world demand for non-timber forestry products can lead to a win-win situation whereby both trade and environmental sustainability can be promoted. Monopolistic measures to control the supply of these products, for short-term price gains, are harmful economically and environmentally. By contrast, productivity-raising measures have a favourable impact on both the economy and the environment. Internally, the model results show that the growth of the rest of the economy has driven the economic growth of the forestry sector, but at the same time, its environmental degradation. Poverty and land tenure insecurity also contribute to this degradation. Fortunately, policies promoting basic needs satisfaction and property rights security are shown to be effective in mitigating environmental degradation in the forestry sector. The paper results contribute towards a more sustainable exploitation of forestry.Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Human–forest relationships: ancient values in modern perspectives

The relationship between human beings and forests has been important for the development of society. It is based on various productive, ecological, social and cultural functions of forests. The cultural functions, including the spiritual and symbolic role of forests, are often not addressed with the same attention as the other functions. The aim of this paper is to put a stronger emphasis on the fact that the acknowledgement of cultural bonds is needed in the discussion of sustainable development. Forest should not only be considered as a technical means to solve environmental and economic problems. To achieve a deeper understanding of the dependency of society on forests, it is necessary to recognise the role of forests in our consciousness of being human. Giving a historical overview about the cultural bonds between people and forests, the first part of the paper puts focus on non-productive aspects in human–forest relationships. Through history, forest values have changed and new functions have emerged. Industrialisation and urbanisation have contributed to an alienation from nature and weakened the connection of humans to forests. The consequences of these changes for the development of society and its environment are discussed in the second part of the paper. Finally, it is elaborated how the awareness of the cultural bonds can be strengthened in the population and especially in forest management; a management which should relate to cultural, emotional and aesthetical aspects, in addition to economic, ecological and social functions, and lead towards a sustainable relationship between forests and society.     

Non-timber forest products certification in India: opportunities and challenges

Forest certification has emerged as a marketing tool for linking the good forest management practices with the environmentally conscious consumers. Its genesis can be attributed to the society’s concern for the social and environmental significance of forests. Forest management certification when coupled with the chain-of-custody certification; then, the supply chain stages for such forest products can carry an ecolabel. Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are of socio-economic and cultural importance for the forest dwelling communities, particularly for the tropical countries like India. India is home to an amazing diversity of plants, with over 46,000 plant species recorded to occur there. NTFP’s availability, utilization, commercialization, exploitation, management practices, policies and tenure systems in different parts of India have high diversity and variability. There is concern, however, that collection methods for most of NTFP species are destructive and wild populations are declining as a result. Thus, the harvest of NTFPs is coming under increasing scrutiny from certification programmes, as it plays a key role in the sustainable management of forest resources and community benefit worldwide. Thus, the present research paper highlights the issues relevant to certification of NTFPs in India, based on more than a decadal experience in dealing with this subject at Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal.     

Environment,development and sustainability of local practices in the sacred groves and shrines in Bongo District: a bio-cultural study for environmental management in Ghana

The eminent crisis threatening biological and resource diversity is a global adversity. Global resource diversities are constantly disappearing and deteriorating at quite an alarming proportion, provoking renewed thinking regarding the effectiveness of existing environmental management approaches and practices. For the past four decades, several epochs of environmental management policies and practices disregarded the cultural imperative for safeguarding efficient environmental management outcomes, particularly at the community level. Even in the rouse of this reality, issues of spirituality and how it binds local community people to their natural environment appear to be given only a window dressing attention through the recognition of sacred natural sites. Eight sacred groves and shrines in the Bongo District were investigated based on an endogenous development framework. The data were collected using focus group discussions with stakeholders at the local and district levels and individual interviews with key local natural resource managers from four selected communities. The study revealed that the way indigenous people construct the worldviews and interactions with nature using ancestors and other spirit mediums can safeguard the environment against long periods of human interference and destruction. It also demonstrates that in certain places traditional institutions are becoming malleable and open to the use of external knowledge and resources in order to sustain places of sacred significance. It concludes that cultural imperative and the issues of spirituality are critical for the sustainable management of environmental resources. The study recommends revisiting local practice and cultural values that promote good environmental management practices within the local communities.     

省以下生态转移支付制度环境保护激励效应

现有文献认为生态转移支付具有基本公共服务均等化与提升地方生态环境质量双目标,而目标的多样性会影响地方财政转移支付资金效果及目标的实现。文章基于环保支出和农林水支出的中介与调节效应,对生态转移支付的生态环境目标进行了理论分析,利用2010—2018年甘肃、贵州、湖北及河南四省的199个县的面板数据进行实证检验。实证研究表明:在样本期内,生态转移支付促进了地方生态环境质量的提升,中介效应和调节效应模型的结果表明,中国地方生态转移支付资金对辖区环境保护效果中,环境保护支出起到部分中介效应,农林水支出不仅调节了生态转移支付的地方环境保护支出效果,而且调节了环境保护支出对地方环境质量的影响。因此,由于地方政府具有环境治理信息优势,省以下制度目标更能体现辖区生态需求,省对县生态转移支付制度会有效促进地方生态环境质量的改善,环保激励效应较为明显。同时,县级地方政府应该逐步摆脱"先污染后治理"的路径依赖,逐步转向经济与环境"双目标协同发展"模式。为了协同生态转移支付的双目标,"自下而上参与式决策"可以作为环境治理的有益补充,通过地方政府多元化实践改善环境质量。     

Forest dynamics in Mississippi, USA: a hybrid statistical and geospatial analysis

Understanding forest changes and its trajectory is important to develop policy options and future scenarios for climate analysis. This research is conducted to gain insights on secondary forests change using Mississippi, USA, as a case study. We investigate the spatial patterns and temporal dynamics of secondary forests at high resolution and examine the forces driving their changes. An extensive literature review is conducted to refine the conceptual framework of forest changes and identify the underlying key factors. Forest changes are quantified at high spatial (30-m) and temporal (biennial) resolutions, using time series remotely sensed data between 1984 and 2007. A number of geospatial and socioeconomic data were compiled to analyze the spatial variations of forest disturbances and their linkages to various socioeconomic, political, and biogeophysical factors. The results show that the secondary forests are highly dynamic and variable. Disturbances and regeneration occur continuously everywhere in a systematic and coordinated fashion. This pattern prevents an extensive disturbance and increases total forest cover. Market conditions (i.e., timber price) are the key predictor of the level and overall trend of forest disturbances. However, spatial patterns of forest dynamics cannot be explained by location-specific biophysical, socioeconomic, and policy factors identified in the literature. They can best be described by the ecological characteristics of the forests (i.e., the forest type and age distribution), which have a clear economic linkage. The research shows that regenerated forests frequently experience loss and gain of their extent, and their ecological characteristics change drastically on a short-term basis. These results point out challenges and opportunities in forest management and policy with regard to reforestation.     

三峡库区建坝前后森林生态系统服务动态

基于六期Landsat TM/ETM+/OLI影像数据,利用生态系统服务功能评估规范及GIS空间统计方法,对三峡库区1990~2015年间森林生态系统服务价值动态变化进行分析。结果表明：三峡库区森林面积与森林覆盖率逐年增加,森林面积增长率71.04%,森林覆盖率由31.27%增加到53.48%。库区整体的森林类型结构比较稳定,表现为针叶林>混交林>灌木林>阔叶林。时间上,三峡库区森林生态系统服务价值呈上升趋势,具体表现为快-慢-快的增长特征。三峡库区单位面积森林生态系统服务价值在总体增长趋势下出现局部负增长趋势,各森林类型的单位面积价值与三峡库区整体的单位面积价值有着相同的变化趋势,均表现为增加-减少-增加的变化特征。三峡库区各类型服务价值的贡献表现为：涵养水源>固碳释氧>生物多样性保护>保育土壤>净化大气环境>积累营养物质>森林防护。空间上,1990~2015年,三峡库区森林生态系统服务价值的地域分布大致以巫溪至武隆一线为界,呈现出东南高、西北低的特征。1990~2015年三峡库区森林生态系统服务价值变化幅度呈现出“西增加快,东增趋缓”的格局特点。     

The Orthodoxy And Sustainable Development A Potential For Broader Involvement Of The Orthodox Churches In Ethiopia And Russia

In recent years, churches across the world have become involved in dialogue on the theory and practice of sustainable development. A number of Western churches have expressed their concern about climate change and destructive living patterns, stressing the need for human beings to exercise the care for all creation based on a life of sharing and sacrifice. Some Orthodox churches, however, quite recently included the environmental issues in their agendas. While the Bases of Social Concept, a major doctrine of the Russian Orthodox Church adopted in 2000, for the first time emphasises the Churchs position in overcoming environmental crisis and presents a solid basis on which to build the future environmental strategy of the Church, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church has not yet drawn up a programme document that might serve as a framework for the Churchs current extensive activities in the field of biodiversity conservation and sustainable forestry practices. Hence, despite certain closeness of both institutions, there is the potential for strengthening their roles in promoting sustainable development, based on the Biblical concept that the Earth belongs to the Lord and humans are responsible stewards assigned the duty to work for creation and care for it. This paper seeks to demonstrate by means of comparable analysis between the two Churches, Orthodox in nature but different in rites and religious practices, that traditional, highly conservative faiths may serve as powerful instruments of spreading out the ideas of sustainable development as the basis of spiritual revival in the situation of the two concurrent and interrelated crises – spiritual and ecological.Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Contemporary changes in open water surface area of Lake Inle, Myanmar

From 1935 to 2000, the net open water area of Inle Lake in Central Shan State, Myanmar decreased from 69.10 to 46.69 km², a loss of 32.4% during this 65-year period. Local beliefs are that losses in lake area have been even greater within the last 100–200 years. Various activities, including timber removal, shifting agriculture in the uplands by various ethnic groups, and unsustainable cultivation practices on the low- and mid-level hillslopes around the lake, have been blamed for both historical and ongoing sedimentation. We take issue with attributing loss of lake area to these activities, and propose instead that ongoing “in-lake” and “near-lake” agricultural practices are the main sources of contemporary sediment and loss of open water area. About 93% (i.e., 20.84 km²) of the recent loss in open water area of the lake is due to the development of floating garden agriculture, largely along the west side of the lake. Direct environmental impacts associated with this practice and with other agriculture activities within the wetlands and margins of the lake include sedimentation, eutrophication, and pollution. Whilst the sustainability of hillslope agriculture and past forestry practices can indeed be questioned, a more urgent need is to address these "in-lake" and "near-lake" practices.