Forest management has suffered in recent decades a paradigm shift in both social and economic bases as in the ecological and technical. The forestry sector in developed countries fits through the modernization and diversification and adding value to products and goods and services obtained. However, in Spain this change has occurred at a much lower level, causing a loss of interest by society in managing scarce resources such as forestry, or be managed by clearly inadequate technologies against developments in other fields activity or other countries. As a result, Spain is a country with different forest use almost unique in Europe (eg. Cork, acorn, pine, resin), or where there are some extensive woodlands with traditional uses of wood, industries related to these themes are almost marginals. Moreover, management's response to new challenges: forest fires, biodiversity conservation, global change, water supply and protection, bioenergy production, and so on. not be characterized at the level demanded by society.
Spain has the highest plant diversity in Europe, but predictions indicate a high vulnerability to climate change. While Spain is among the European countries with forest area (in both absolute and relative) and greater volume of wood harvested from forests, the tail is in R & D in this field. The great potential of our wide range of species and variants within species: 1) give value to our forest systems 2) improve adaptation to climate change and 3) enhance carbon sequestration for mitigation of such change, are largely untapped. Optimize the use of this potential goes through innovative solutions and of sufficient scope.
In this special edition presents a selection of papers presented at the conference "Future Forests" organized in Ourense 25 and May 26, 2011 under the Special Strategic Project PSE-Forest "Forest Restoration and Management" (PSE-310000-2008-1). This project is funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation within the National Plan for Scientific Research, Development and Technological Innovation 2008-2011 and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). The publication has been funded by the Forest Platform of Galicia (DEVESA), whom we thank for their interest in collaborating in the dissemination of these works.
Articles published in this special issue are an important component of research and development groups from R + D + i have been working disconnected entity itself, in very different but all are essential to ensure progress in the forestry sector and to fight for the future of our forests:
Involvement of social partners and dissemination: Only the knowledge of the views of social partners (forest owners, foresters and management of private and public) may lead to design efficient policy of engagement and outreach contribute to achieving the objectives set by government. The use of qualitative research techniques can delve into the motivations and factors that may lead to the acceptance, support, involvement or otherwise of rejection of the proposed management and restoration.
Options for national planning and landscape: Facing climate change scenarios and current demands of society must advance sustainable forest management, combining technologies and growth modelling of forest dynamics, structure and production multiple-use forest systems.
Forests of the future: It is necessary to obtain reproductive material more suited to the needs of the future using a range of assessment tools and production. This will develop biotechnological techniques of identification (genotypes, populations), characterization (tolerance to different biotic and abiotic) and plant production models for routine use in reforestation programs.
Systems decision support: The analysis of different management alternatives and their impact on the evolution of forest ecosystems at different spatial and temporal scales through specific tools should support the generation of policies and decisions aimed at managers and those responsible of public administrations.
Singular Strategic Project Management and Forest Restoration, which is part of this special edition has been developed over 4 years and brought together 17 institutions and companies to develop materials and tools to improve multifunctional management of forests, and to spread the benefits of this management on the sectors involved.
Spanish Journal of Rural Development is a broad platform to offer to researchers and to all other interested stakeholders a great opportunity for disseminating forest-related issues that have the potential to really influence in the future forest activities.