Special Issue "Innovation, Transition and Reconstruction of Forestry Oriented by Policies"

Dear Colleagues,

Forestry worldwide is at a crossroads due to the rapidly changing climate; energy, biodiversity, financial and food security crises; and socioeconomic and political uncertainties that deepen deforestation and forest degradation. Innovation, transition and reconstruction of forestry, oriented by policies at the local level and across scales, are necessary to respond to challenges and build green, healthy, prosperous and resilient futures. Global and national policies and actions to be taken are equally important, as they trigger sustainable governance, management and the use of forests by transforming economic, political and social/cultural relationships across places, countries, regions and continents. In the light of recent policy documents, this Special Issue is planned to address the following questions of high importance (yet it is not limited to only these topics):

• How could forest policies foster sustainable governance of forests and what are the roles of diverse stakeholders (e.g., businesses, NGOs, local communities, and international organisations) in putting multifunctional forestry (in different spatial and temporary settings/contexts) on sustainable paths?
• How could bottom-up and top-down approaches in forestry (and their combinations) change “the rules and play of the game” (and promote a sustainable forest bioeconomy, the involvement of businesses in the financing of forest restoration/afforestation projects, the creation of green jobs and improving the well-being of forest-dependent communities and a wider society, etc.)?
• How can the valuation of forest natural assets and ecosystem services help finance nature-based solutions, help resolve conflicts, and prevent and alleviate forest losses that inflict costs on society?

Submitted manuscripts must be original contributions that have not been previously published or submitted to other journals. Specifically, this Special Issue will also highlight articles presented at relevant sessions of the XXVI IUFRO World Congress 2024.

Prof. Dr. Maria Nijnik
Dr. Mariana Melnykovych
Guest Editors

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 2000 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.

• institutions
• governance
• social innovation
• transformative changes
• transdisciplinary approaches
• stakeholder engagement