International Slovenian Conference 09: Breakout group on Education/Communication on Close to Nature

October 25, 2009

Ideas below were submitted for sharing by audience of PS delegates

* points for PS Ireland to consider/discuss

Focus Question 1: EU-wide responses/ experiences of Education and Public Relations related to close to nature forestry

  • Teaching young people is more efficient*
  • Informative signs*
  • Useful to bring journalists to demonstration forests
  • Invite representatives from other stakeholder groups *do more
  • Booklets, films, websites
  • Teach the teachers*
  • Time and patience
  • Balance between theory and practice experiences
  • Tree marking exercises in groups
  • Field visits (forest)
  • Shared experiences
  • Visit and discuss many good examples
  • Discussion; learning by doing
  • Practical e.g’s of CTNF – objects, impact, practices, public
  • Exchange of excursions between countries etc
  • Pro Silva stands at NGO meetings*
  • Demonstration stands used as workshop objects ?
  • Guerrilla marketing – lo cost marketing ?


Focus Question 2: What are the main problems in spreading/communicating Pro Silva ideas

* Also in Ireland

  • Pro Silva principles are not mainstream*
  • Pro Silva ‘a closed group’*
  • No active dissemination of ideas
  • Pro Silva is unknown by other stakeholder groups*
  • Foresters conservative
  • Forestry universities are conservative*
  • Forestry students are taught wrong theories, age class models, clear-cutting etc*
  • Sticking to old thinking schemes
  • Most teachers have been taught in traditional methods*
  • Lack of common ideas
  • Slaughtering of foresters over last 20 years, less employed
  • No post-graduate training?
  • More complex practice to teach
  • Time and money
  • Low budget (funds) because of independence*
  • Industry resistance
  • Difficult to explain complex issues to public & stakeholders
  • Foresters need better communication skills*
  • Forestry is not recognised by public*

Focus Question 3: what are some ideas/solutions? * for things Ireland group may consider/discuss

  • Create summer jobs for forestry students with Pro Silva foresters (mentoring)*
  • Common platform of good examples (computer network)
  • Get teachers into Pro Silva*
  • Forest tours for secondary school teachers*
  • Create student conference about Pro Silva
  • Pro Silva Eramus programme
  • ‘training’ forests
  • Public use? of PS forests
  • Create Pro Silva diplomas for professionals (loggers)
  • Put PS symbol on gates of PS managed forests*
  • License foresters and re-wire them to get continuing education
  • Communication material on (wider) European situation*
  • Closer connections between national groups*
  • Pro Silva should make facebook page and use popular network tools*
  • More general info for the public about forestry and Pro Silva*
  • Inform the politicians*
  • Influence the policy makers*
  • Use images and symbols for communication*
  • Improve the network of demonstration forests (could put a google map on website)*
  • Be aware not to be used as a ‘label’ by other groups
  • Input and contribute to international processes*
  • Find partners and alliances*
  • Political lobbying = permanence for PS Europe
  • Need new allies
  • Make clones of Slovenian foresters!

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2018 Pro Silva Ireland study trip to France in September: now fully booked! Pro Silva Ireland has been delighted with the growing interest in our annual study trips. This year's trip planned for September is now fully subscribed and 24 members will be participating in examining Close-to-Nature managed forests in Eastern France.
Rodney was one of the original founding members of Pro Silva, a signatory of the declaration of Robanov Kot (1989), the Pro Silva founding document. It is his championing of Continuous Cover Forestry (CCF), a term he was instrumental in defining and promoting, that will stand perhaps as his greatest legacy. He was the first chairman of the Continuous Cover Forestry Group (CCFG) and was responsible for establishing a formal association with ProSilva.
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Phil Morgan, President of ProSilva Europe and known to many ProSilva Ireland members recently wrote an article on "The Case for Continuous Cover Forestry". The Forestry & Timber News Journal has kindly allowed us to re-publish the article here.
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