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Forests
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Foresight for Forest Bioeconomy
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Foresight for Forest Bioeconomy

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Economics, Policy, and Social Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2020) | Viewed by 13000

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Teppo Hujala

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
University of Eastern Finland, School of Forest Sciences, FI-80100 Joensuu, Finland
Interests: action research; actor networks; business model design; family forest owners; multi-criteria analysis; multi-level governance; qualitative research; service research

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Forest bioeconomy may be seen as a concept bridging current forest-based businesses and policies and visionary thinking on sustainable and inclusive biosociety. To further towards operable societal transformation, we need better understanding of the trends and drivers within the operational environment of forest bioeconomy. Not only are technological advances prevalent, but also economic, social, political, and environmental aspects of future developments deserve attention. In particular, exploring weak signals, potential game changers and disruptors, transformative tipping points and their possible timing may meaningfully add to existing literature on forest bioeconomy foresight.

For this Special Issue, authors are encouraged to submit studies that look at futures of forest bioeconomy from the viewpoints of new bio-based forest products and their markets, services and business concepts, policies and governance, discourses, practices and consumer behaviour, as well as measures to understand and influence the transformation towards biosociety.

Prof. Teppo Hujala
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • anticipatory analysis
  • bio-based economy
  • bio-product markets
  • futures studies
  • sustainability transition
  • systemic change
  • transformation governance

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 1237 KiB  
Article
Bioeconomy in the National Forest Strategy: A Comparison Study in Germany and the Czech Republic
by Ratna Chrismiari Purwestri, Miroslav Hájek, Miroslava Šodková, Mathy Sane and Jan Kašpar
Forests 2020, 11(6), 608; https://doi.org/10.3390/f11060608 - 27 May 2020
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3138
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Forest-based bioeconomies have been adopted as the national forest strategies in many European countries. However, in the Czech Republic, the bioeconomy has not been officially included in national policies. The main objective of the paper was to review the current [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Forest-based bioeconomies have been adopted as the national forest strategies in many European countries. However, in the Czech Republic, the bioeconomy has not been officially included in national policies. The main objective of the paper was to review the current forest policy in the Czech Republic in meeting the purposes of the European forest-based bioeconomy. To better understand the opportunities and shortcomings of the forest strategy and the implementation of a forest-based bioeconomy in the country, a comparison study in the Czech Republic and Germany was also carried out. Methods: A review of the forest strategies was done based on the following research questions: (1) How are the bioeconomy principles and priorities present in the Czech National Forest Programme (NFP) as reflected in the EU Forest Strategy, and how does the Czech forest strategy compare to that in Germany? (2) What is the situation concerning the national wood production and consumption to understand the opportunities and challenges of the bioeconomy implementation in the studied countries? Results: The Czech NFP was approved following the pan-European process for the protection of forests in Europe; therefore, it does not directly reflect the 2012 bioeconomy principles, although most of these approaches have been included in this strategy. Different national measures in two studied countries were revealed to achieve the objectives of the forest bioeconomy. The primary contribution from the Czech forestry to the bioeconomy is sustainable forest-based products. A forest bioeconomy is also targeted at mitigating climate change by providing forest biomass for bioenergy. Conclusions: The Czech Republic is in the midst of the adoption process of the bioeconomy strategy. The main challenges faced by the forest-based sector in the country is to fulfil the demand for sustainable forest biomass and high value-added products. Multisectoral collaboration, business diversification, and education for public consumers are needed to increase the growth and job opportunities of the bioeconomy sector in rural areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Foresight for Forest Bioeconomy)
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19 pages, 3360 KiB  
Article
New Values of Non-Wood Forest Products
by Gerhard Weiss, Marla R. Emery, Giulia Corradini and Ivana Živojinović
Forests 2020, 11(2), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/f11020165 - 31 Jan 2020
Cited by 45 | Viewed by 5760
Abstract
The role of non-wood forest products (NWFPs) in industrialised country economies has declined in the past, but they are generating renewed interest as business opportunities. In a forest-based bio-economy frame, NWFPs can contribute to human nutrition, renewable materials, and cultural and experiential services, [...] Read more.
The role of non-wood forest products (NWFPs) in industrialised country economies has declined in the past, but they are generating renewed interest as business opportunities. In a forest-based bio-economy frame, NWFPs can contribute to human nutrition, renewable materials, and cultural and experiential services, as well as create job and income opportunities in rural areas. Applying a service-dominant logic (SDL) approach to analysis of NWFPs, this article aimed to understand how new goods and services are co-created through networks of public and private actors in specific institutional, social, and cultural contexts. This focus sheds light on the experiences associated with NWFP harvest and use, revealing a fulsome suite of values and economic opportunities that include but are greater than the physical goods themselves. Turning the SDL lens on in-depth case studies from Europe and North America, we show dimensions of forest products that go beyond commercial values but are, at the same time, constituent of commercial activities. SDL provides a new view on customer relations, service provision to businesses, and policy measures for innovation support for non-wood forest products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Foresight for Forest Bioeconomy)
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15 pages, 1395 KiB  
Article
Social Innovation as a Prospect for the Forest Bioeconomy: Selected Examples from Europe
by Alice Ludvig, Ivana Zivojinovic and Teppo Hujala
Forests 2019, 10(10), 878; https://doi.org/10.3390/f10100878 - 06 Oct 2019
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3397
Abstract
Very recently, social innovation has become a subject of investigation in forest research. Earlier on, social innovation turned into a term used in EU policy strategies for addressing social issues and the self-empowerment of local people, as well as for tackling economic, social, [...] Read more.
Very recently, social innovation has become a subject of investigation in forest research. Earlier on, social innovation turned into a term used in EU policy strategies for addressing social issues and the self-empowerment of local people, as well as for tackling economic, social, or environmental challenges. The question of how the forest bioeconomy might profit from social innovation remains. The article examined the forest bioeconomy from the perspective of social innovation features: How is social innovation reflected in the forest bioeconomy? The forest sector is identified as one principal supplier sectors in the updated European Bioeconomy Strategy. In the strategies’ general objectives of job creation and employment through the green economy, we detected some links to social innovation. In contrast, the EU Social Innovation Initiative includes social aspects via addressing collective action, integration of vulnerable social groups, and rural and urban economic development, without mentioning explicitly the forest sector. In order to make use of both EU policy documents, it is necessary to enquire on the overlaps. This research focused on the communalities in their policy goals as a reference framework for systematically identifying specific forest bioeconomy activities fitting into both realms. With example of these activities, we showed how the forest bioeconomy plays a unique role in addressing hitherto unmet needs with the development of new types of services. There is rich potential in the forest bioeconomy for private forest owners and producers with activities that range from social biomass plants to collectively organized charcoal (biochar) production in remote rural areas. Most of these are service innovations, while some combine services with product innovations. Our findings challenge positions that regard economic and social issues as strictly separated. As a result, they are identified as two combined complementary sources of income for Europe’s forest owners. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Foresight for Forest Bioeconomy)
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