Science-Management Collaboration is Essential to Address Current and Future Forestry Challenges
| Authors: | Susan L. Stout, Andrea T. Hille, Alejandro A. Royo |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Type: | Proceedings - Paper |
| Station: | Northern Research Station |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-GTR-P-211-paper5 |
| Source: | In: Kern, Christel C.; Dickinson, Yvette L., eds. Proceedings of the first biennial Northern Hardwood Conference 2021: Bridging science and management for the future. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-211. Madison, WI: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 15–24. |
Abstract
Accelerating changes due to climate, invasive insects, plants, and diseases; and social values in northern hardwood forests make understanding and predicting impacts of natural and human variables ever more complex. Yet policy-makers are disinvesting in forestry research. We believe that science-management collaboration can help bridge the resulting gap. We give examples of advances in sustainable forestry from such collaboration and identify common elements of successful collaborations. Then we propose a new, three-tiered approach to science-management collaboration to reverse the trend away from forest science. Can such collaborations help us keep pace with forest change and develop management strategies to sustain forest values and benefits in the face of these changes?