Natural Forest Management in the Tropics: Adaptive Management, Applied Ecology, Silviculture

Managers of natural forests in the tropics need to draw on the expertise of a multitude of disciplines, including the traditional fields of forestry and ecology as well as the equally important disciplines of environmental engineering, geography, sociology, and economics. Whereas there was a time when tropical forests were mostly valued for their timber, modern forest managers are often called upon to manage for timber as well as tourists, to maximize biodiversity and carbon retention, and to strive for a balance between water quality and quantity. The challenges for today’s natural forest managers are considerable given that they are expected to ply their multi-disciplinary trade in a cost-effective manner in the most biologically diverse and least well understood ecosystems in the world.  

In this overview of natural forest management in the tropics the following questions are addressed:

1. Management for what?

2. Management for whom?

3. What sort of forest?

4. How to achieve the intended management goals?