"Southern forests provide innumerable benefits. Forest scientists, managers, owners, and users have in common the desire to improve the condition of these forests and the ecosystems they support. A first step is to understand the contributions science has made and continues to make to the care and management of forests. This book represents a celebration of past accomplishments, summarizes the current state of knowledge, and creates a vision for the future of southern forestry research and management. Chapters are organized into seven sections: "Looking Back," "Productivity," "Forest Health," "Water and Soils," "Socioeconomic," "Biodiversity," and "Climate Change." Each section is preceded by a brief introductory chapter. Authors were encouraged to focus on the most important aspects of their topics; citations are included to guide readers to further information."

This proceedings volume has been edited from sixty-nine full text papers of the 132 papers presented to the IUFRO (International Union of Forestry Research Organizations) Conference on Environmental Forest Science, which was jointly organized by IUFRO Division 8, "Forest Environment", and Kyoto University in Kyoto, Japan, on 19-23 October 1998. The International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO) is one of the oldest scientific societies. It was founded in 1892 to foster cooperation of research units on forestry. IUFRO consists of 650 research organizations from 100 countries. IUFRO th Division 8 is the latest division, founded at the 20 World Congress in 1995 by subdividing the previous Division 1, "Forest Environment and Silviculture". The objective of this first general Conference of Division 8 is to consider research needs in the 21 sl century for forest environment, and the integration of related fields of sciences to a new concept of environmental forest science.

Forests are valuable in our daily lives, crucial to our nation's ecomony, and integral to the long-term health of the environment. Yet, forestry research has been critically underfunded, and the data generated under current research programs is not enough to meet the diverse needs of our society. Forestry Research provides a research agenda that should yield the information we need to develop responsible policies for forest use and management. In this consensus of forestry experts, the volume explores: The diverse and competing concerns of the timber industry, recreational interests, and wildlife and environmental organizations. The gap between our need for information and the current output of the forestry research program. Areas of research requiring attention: biology of forest organisms, ecosystem function and management, human-forest interactions, wood as raw material, and international trade and competition. Forestry Research is an important book of special interest to federal and state policymakers involved in forestry issues, research managers, researchers, faculty, and students in the field.

Compiles papers presented by extensionists, natural resource specialists, tech. transfer specialists, and others at a conf. that examined tech. transfer theories, methods, and case studies. Topics included: adult educ., extension, diffusion of innovations, social marketing, tech. transfer, etc. Descriptions of methods and case studies included combined digital media, engagement of users and commun. specialists in research, integrated forestry applications, Internet-based systems, science writing, training, video conf., Web-based ency., etc. Innovations transferred were best mgmt. practices for water quality, reforestation practices, land mgmt. system, portable timber bridges, reduced impact logging, silvicultural practices, urban forestry, etc. Illustrations.

Forests are major components of the earth's natural resources and they are increasingly critical to the welfare of the U.S. economy, environment, and population. Desires to improve forest management and productivity, preserve biodiversity, maintain ecologic integrity, and provide societal services, such as recreation and tourism, necessitate a strong forestry-research base. Given the clear importance of forestry research in sustaining forests for the future, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service asked the Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources of the National Academies to undertake a study of the nation's capacity in forestry research. The Committee on National Capacity in Forestry Research was appointed to carry out the study, which was conducted to review the current expertise and status of forestry research and to examine the approaches of natural resources education and forestry-research organizations to meet future needs.

Forest management should allow the sustainable use of forests. This is only possible through solid knowledge in the disciplines that forest science encompasses. The readers of New Perspectives in Forest Science have an excellent source of information on actual trends of forest research and knowledge about the use of forest and landscape. This book has been written by specialists focusing on the following aspects of forest science: C cycle, biomass, forest restoration, forest resources and biodiversity. The authors of this book are of different nationalities and specialties, thus providing diverse perspectives on the subject of forestry. We hope that the chapters of this book can serve both students and researchers, as excellent guides to improve their knowledge on forest science.