The professional forester - shaping the future.

Abstract

The past decade has been one of rapid change in forest policies. There is growing acceptance that a wide range of individuals and interest groups (representing conservation, recreation, socio-economics, etc.) are legitimate stakeholders in forestry along with the timber processors. These new demands came to a head at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), and again in the 1993 Helsinki Conference, the conclusions of which are binding upon all European states, including the Republic of Ireland. In this environment, it is not the function of the professional forester to set policy, but rather to achieve the balance between all competing demands .