Designing Sustainable Forest Landscape: Ecosystem Services for the Future

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The future of global forest resources is a daily concern, which is reflected in international policy debate and processes. If we are to safeguard the remaining forests, we need to boost understanding of forest ecosystem services, including those not traditionally marketed. International and national initiatives to sustain the economic potential of forest landscapes under the increasing pressure of population growth need to be strengthened.

In addition, new challenges such as adaptation to uncertain climatic conditions, competing land uses as well as concerns on food security and biofuels are examples of major problems forest-dependent communities and decision makers worldwide face every day. All these drivers of change call for integrated and multidisciplinary approaches to incorporate landscape management in a way that simultaneously encourages immediate innovative action while setting targets for finding sustainable solutions.

Forests and industrial plantations have become an important part of the global natural resource puzzle. A broader framework should thus include flexible management schemes to allow for effective participation of local communities, as well as the establishment of cost efficient production systems (e.g. plantations, agroforestry), which can simultaneously generate an adequate flow of commercial products, ecosystems services, and livelihood improvements. For a functional framework, however, international and national initiatives for good governance, transparency, efficiency and equity must be integrated into the planning process.

The course focuses on the following aspects:

• Threats affecting sustainable forest landscapes and the balance of ecosystem services. These include climate change, agricultural frontiers, agribusiness, international transferable land rights, mining, population growth, globalized markets;
• Positive and negative landscape interactions between forest management and alternative land uses. These include carbon sequestration, conservation of biodiversity, sustaining water resources, guaranteeing food security, improving human wellbeing;
• Innovations to promote sustainable utilisation and enhancement of ecosystem services. These include valuation and rewarding of ecosystem services, participatory tools, agroforestry, redistribution of risks, responsible investments, and ecosystem-based adaptation.

EXCURSION TO HYYTIÄLÄ RESEARCH STATION
The course programme includes a mandatory excursion to the Hyytiälä research station on August 7 to 9. Additional fee 50EUR (incl. travel expenses, accommodation and food). For more information please have a look at the preliminary course programme.

COURSE OBJECTIVE
The objective of this intensive course is to provide learning tools and methods to analyse and identify opportunities for and threats to forest landscapes as they fulfill multiple expectations.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For additional information on the course content and requirements please visit the course website at www.helsinkisummerschool.fi. Also, you may direct any questions concerning the content of this course to the Coordinator, Mr. Adrián Monge Monge, adrian.mongemonge(at)helsinki.fi.

Any concerns about the general arrangements (accommodation, scholarship, etc.) should be addressed to the Summer School's office at summer-school(at)helsinki.fi