BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGES TO FOREST SCIENTISTS

Abstract

The major challenges facing forest scientists in dealing with biodiversity can be considered in terms of five subject headings: how do the level and distribution of biodiversity affect ecosystem functioning; how do we measure biodiversity; how do we value it; how can we identify key areas for conservation; and how can we promote solutions to these challenges internationally? Many of the issues within each subject area are strongly inter-linked, particular two common themes, the need to study ecosystem processes, and the need to pay careful attention to problems of scale.