12:24 p.m.
Dear IUFRO Meliaceae Working party:
Below is IUFRO Spotlight #69. Other Spotlights can be found at:
http://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/
Regards,
Sheila Ward
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: IUFRO Headquarters <office(a)iufro.org>
Date: Wed, Jul 17, 2019 at 7:13 PM
Subject: [IUFRO Div 8] IUFRO Congress Spotlight #69 - Sifting through
underlying values and ethics to make sound nature management decisions
To: Dear Reader of IUFRO News <div8(a)lists.iufro.org>
[image: IUFRO Spotlight]
IUFRO Congress Spotlight #69 - Sifting through underlying values and
ethics to make sound nature management decisions
*IUFRO Spotlight issues up to September 2019 will primarily focus on the
XXV IUFRO World Congress that will take place on 29 September-5 October
2019 in Curitiba, Brazil.*
*Individual Congress sessions will be highlighted in order to draw
attention to the broader Congress themes, the wide variety of topics that
will be addressed at the Congress and their importance on a regional and
global scale.*
*Visit the Congress website at http://iufro2019.com/
<http://iufro2019.com/> or https://www.iufro.org/events/congresses/2019/
<https://www.iufro.org/events/congresses/2019/>.*
Sifting through underlying values and ethics to make sound nature
management decisions
PDF for download
<https://www.iufro.org/fileadmin/material/publications/spotlights/congress-spotlight69-values-and-ethics.pdf>
[image: Photo showing Ema. Image by arqgilson from Pixabay]
Ema Image by arqgilson from Pixabay
How does one decide how to manage a forest ethically?
One could simply say: do the right thing. But, the right thing for whom?
And defining right and wrong – concepts that can vary according to moral
climate or individual circumstance – is not all that simple.
Forest stakeholders have different wants, different needs, and different
values. Additionally, times, perspectives and situations also change. And
all those differences come into play when dealing with any human-nature
interactions, including forest management.
Dr. Christian Gamborg, Associate Professor in Natural Resource Ethics at
the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, will present a session entitled: *Ethics
and values in relation to forest, recreation and wildlife management* at
the IUFRO World Congress in Brazil this fall, in which he will explore the
underlying values and ethical aspects related to those issues.
"There are often different views on issues. And societies are becoming
increasingly pluralistic in terms of values. So what was considered prudent
or 'necessary' forest management, say 20 years ago, may now be the source
of conflict," said Dr. Gamborg.
"For example," he said, "intensive timber production might not always be
welcomed by all stakeholders anymore; perhaps based on the idea that
through such intervention, naturalness might be lost. So, what one party
sees as ethical or respectful, might be seen by another as exactly the
opposite.
"Controversies about humans' relations with nature have become increasingly
widespread and intense. A lot, if not most, of such controversies arise
from underlying conflicts involving differences in value commitments and
ethical judgments.
"However, these values and ethical commitments are often not explicitly
articulated, or perhaps even realized as such – so it's not a question of
deliberate omission," he said.
And identifying underlying values and ethical positions is often done
indirectly, he added. "Sometimes that means inferring from what kind of
prioritizations are made and, perhaps, through the kind of justification
given for certain actions and management interventions. Less often are such
values and positions explicitly stated.
"We need to address the concerns of all stakeholders and try to understand
what value commitments might be underlying their positions. Partly in line
with this is the perennial question of defining, or interpreting, what
sustainability in SFM (Sustainable Forest Management) should entail," he
said.
"Accepting the plurality of views and opinions is a first step, but
obviously not a silver bullet in any way. It might, however, help start
dialogues that can lead to mutual commitments on the future of forests and
their protection, management and use.
"Nature professionals need to get a better understanding of such
controversies, to be able to form reasoned judgments and subsequently use
these judgments to inform management decisions related to forests,
recreation and wildlife,"
Dr. Gamborg added.
His session, he said, will "flag the importance of identifying and
understanding value commitments and ethical judgments underlying management
of nature. By so doing, we can reduce conflict and increase robust
compromises that hold benefits for both forests and people."
"Conflicts can occur over the means as well as the ends. Disagreement can
be over what the land use should be (e.g. designating a certain tract as a
nature reserve or using water as a resource for electricity generation –
hydro power).
"But even if agreement exists on the goals, the way a certain decision or
project is carried out, can give rise to conflict. For example, if there is
a perceived lack of local stakeholder consultation," he said.
"Consequently, consensus among stakeholders must not only be reached on
goals but also on the means employed to reach these objectives."
There are many well-known factors that can cause conflict. He noted
scarcity of resources, poverty, imbalances in power and in distribution of
benefits and harms.
"But," he added, "we can also point to the lack of careful, rigorous
thought. This session – and forest and environmental and natural resource
ethics as such - aims to help develop such thought, especially for those
who manage landscapes and-or forest resources, or who carry out research
about nature, or those who aspire to do so.
"An example of an area where those underlying values and commitments are
key to understand conflict – though it's been going on in various forms for
decades – would be human-wildlife conflict," he said. "It is about the
competing values – e.g. the conversion of forest land to agriculture with
ensuing loss in habitat, ecosystem services and biodiversity.
"Having said that, there are certainly places where there are fewer
controversies, and examples in most regions of the world where people are
striving to implement SFM in a transparent way, assisted by certifying
organizations and by decision makers being able to secure society's basic
needs," Dr. Gamborg said.
For session attendees, gaining a clearer understanding of a range of values
and ethical positions will help equip them to enter into dialogue with
those who hold other points of view. "Something that is particularly timely
now, and probably, for years to come," he said.
At the session there will be a range of presentations focusing on case
studies and theoretical reflections from all over the world. Among them:
wildlife management by recreational hunting; valuation of ecosystems
services; public values and forest management in relation to combatting
climate change; pest control and population conservation.
*Dr. Gamborg is Coordinator of IUFRO Research Group 6.05.00 – Forest
ethics: https://www.iufro.org/science/divisions/division-6/60000/60500/
<https://www.iufro.org/science/divisions/division-6/60000/60500/>*
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------------------------------------------------
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------------------------------------------------
*IUFRO Congress Spotlight #69 published in July 2019 by IUFRO Headquarters,
Vienna, Austria. Available for download at:
**https://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/
<https://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/>*
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visit https://www.iufro.org/ <https://www.iufro.org/?id=104>*
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