"Forest Policies for a Sustainable Humanosphere"
Date： February 17 Tue.−18 Wed., 2009
Venue： Inamori Foundation Memorial Hall
Co-organization
・Wageningen University and Research Center, Forest and Nature Conservation Policy Group
・University of Goettingen, Institute for Forest Policy, Forest History and Nature Conservation
【Summary】
Policy is a key element that mediates the relationship between human societies and the environment, and policy formulation is for that reason very much debated among academics and practitioners. Policies need constantly to be adapted according to changing societal environmental needs, or to changing environmental capacities to deliver goods and services. These general principles apply equally to forest policies, giving the important role of forest in many societies around the world.
Policy theory development has advanced significantly since the 1990s, but is until today largely based on political life of western societies and mainstream policy domains. This suggests that policy theory development reflects a bias of particular policy cultures. Little explicit use has been made of policy or other political science theories in explaining or guiding forest policy in tropical regions, while the latter is of major importance for economic progress, poverty alleviation, and climate change in many countries. This raises the question if forest policy making can or should be enriched with existing policy theories, or if forest policy making could contribute to policy theory development and testing?
For that reason, we propose to hold an international meeting to address the two following questions:
1. What are the general features of tropical forest policies for the coming years or decades, considering the changing demands of human society on forests, and the changing forest capabilities to provide for those demands?
2. How can policy and political science theories contribute to a better understanding of and thus improve the process of forest policy making?
The meeting will include participants from Japan, representatives from Asia and Africa and scientists from five European Universities (Goettingen, Wageningen, Uppsala, Freiburg, and Dresden). The first day will focus on the general features of forest policies that can address the changing societal demands on forests in a 21st century world. The second day will be dedicated to a discussion how a better theoretical underpinning can improve forest policy making.