European advisory and and extension networks on forestry (FORADVISE)

FORADVISE is a Horizon Europe project dedicated to strengthening and expanding forest advisory networks across Europe. Through digital tools, training, and peer-to-peer collaboration, the project aims to modernize knowledge exchange and improve decision-making in the forestry sector.

Within this framework, our team is developing a toolkit to address recurring questions arising from forestry's long planning horizons, particularly how timber and non-timber values are considered in forest decision-making. The toolkit is intended to complement conventional forest management and advisory approaches that often place primary emphasis on roundwood production.The framework used in this work broadens the assessment beyond roundwood production costs and revenues, to also include diverse non-timber costs and benefits associated with ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, biodiversity, recreation, clean water, and non-timber forest products including berries, mushrooms, and game. It also considers how these costs and benefits are included over time using a discounted time horizon.

An analysis based on costs and benefits over time, also referred to as 'cost-benefit analysis (CBA)', can help forest owners and managers better understand and, where possible, quantify the economic and social implications of different forest management decisions.

The FORADVISE project is currently conducting two surveys related to the development of a CBA (cost-benefit analysis) toolkit. The first survey is aimed at forestry advisors, while the second is directed at forest owners and individuals responsible for forest management. An internal data protection notice has been prepared at Luke regarding the handling of the Finnish data collected through these surveys.

Further information on FORADVISE project: https://www.foradviseproject.eu/.