How private forest owners’ choices shape Sweden’s forest biodiversity

The researchers involved in the project aim to generate new knowledge about how individual forest owners view their role in supporting biodiversity, and whether economic incentives can accelerate a transition towards more biodiverse Swedish forests.

Society’s ambitions for greater biodiversity in the landscape are reflected in Sweden’s environmental quality objectives and in the EU biodiversity and forest strategies. These frameworks require the implementation of management practices that promote greater biodiversity.

Individuals and families own approximately half of Sweden’s production forests, making their actions crucial for achieving biodiversity goals. But will the more than 300,000 individual forest owners in Sweden be willing and able to adopt management methods that can enhance biodiversity? This is one of the questions that the researchers in the project attempt to answer.

The research team plans to gather information on how individual forest owners perceive biodiversity and how their actions affect forest ecosystems. They will also create cognitive maps to understand how forest owners view their own ability, opportunity, and motivation to adopt management methods that promote greater biodiversity. In addition, the team will examine the potential of financial compensation as an incentive for implementing biodiversity-enhancing management methods.

The project team plans to conduct interviews with forest owners on their properties to ensure that their understanding and perceptions are captured in their local context. A national survey will also be carried out.

Grounded in applied economics, psychology and forest modeling, the project will use selected analytical methods to capture the different opinions of forest owners and make the research as comprehensive as possible, directly complementing the WIFORCE initiative.

Ultimately, the aim is for the knowledge generated to help guide decision-makers in their efforts to increase biodiversity in Swedish forests.