International Symposium on "Small-scale Forestry in a Changing Environment"

Dear Colleague,

On behalf of the IUFRO3.08 Small-scale Forestry Group, I would like to call to your attention to this Announcement and Call for papers.

The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) is a non-profit, non-governmental international network of forest scientists. Its objectives are to promote international cooperation in forestry and forest products research. It is an international scientific body founded in 1892; is open, non-discriminatory, voluntarily working and fully devoted to science; has a strong and coordinated presence all over the world; is non-profit, non-governmental and non-political; unites more than 15,000 cooperating member scientists in over 700 member institutions in over 100 countries; is an associate member of ICSU, the International Council for Science. The history of the Working Unit started at the IUFRO XVIII World Congress in 1986 when a project group on "Small-Scale Forestry" was founded as a co-operative effort of interested members. Since then this group has met twelve times with an interval of 1.5 years on the average.

IUFRO Research Group 3.08.00 - Small-scale Forestry has membership of about 700 scientists, extension professionals, policy makers, decision-makers, and post graduate students from: Australia, Estonia, Italy, Scotland, Austria, Fiji Islands, Japan, Slovakia, Belgium, Finland, Latvia, Slovenia, Bhutan, France, Lithuania, Spain, Bulgaria, Germany, Luxembourg, Sweden, Canada, Greece, Netherlands, Switzerland, Costa Rica, Hungary, New Zealand, Taiwan, Croatia, India, Norway, Thailand, Czech Republic, Ireland, Poland, United Kingdom, Denmark, Israel, Portugal, and United States. Dr. Pentii Hytinen, Dr. Ikuo Ota and Dr. John Herbohn are the Coordinator and Deputy Coordinators respectively of IUFRO 3.08.00.
IUFRO 3.08.00 Small-scale Forestry also produces the journal of Small-scale Forest Economics, Management and Policy.

Small-scale forestry faces many challenges in a rapidly changing environment. The objective of this symposium is to bring together scientists and practitioners from around the world to discuss research problems, results and practical applications related to small-scale forestry in this changing environment.

For instance, in the Baltic States the recent political changes and the recent addition of these countries into the EU have led to major changes in forest ownership and administration. Elsewhere in Europe and the US, changing demographics and land use patterns are leading to the parcelisation and fragmentation of forest lands, which poses many challenges for management. In Asia, a shift to community-based forest management in the past decade has resulted in many opportunities and also problems for smallholders and communities. There has also been a corresponding devolution of forest management from the State to communities in many countries, often without adequate funding.

Small-scale forestry in a changing environment topics to be discussed include, but are not limited to, problems at policy, economics and management of small-scale private forestry both in the countries with long traditions at private forestry and in countries in transition.
Possible areas of interest and topics of presentations may include, but are not restricted to, the following:
• Changes in forest ownership, policy and administration (e.g. land restitution, devolution, community forestry, cooperatives and associations).
• The changing goals and values of forest owners.
• Land-use changes in forestry (e.g. land fragmentation and parcelisation, landscape amenity).
• Nature and impacts of increasing rates of absentee ownership of family forests.
• Forestry and livelihoods and the role of small-scale forestry in rural development.
• Changes in forestry financing (e.g. grant schemes, joint ventures, venture capital, payments for ecosystem services).
• Small-scale forestry accounting systems and financial modeling and their role in a changing environment.
• Advances in forestry extension (e.g. targeting through landholder typologies).
• Timber marketing and product value-adding innovations.
• Changes in the market environment: timber, fuel wood and NTFPs.
• Changes in small-scale forestry technology.
• Changes in forest policy measures and new modes of governance.
• Other topics related to small-scale forestry in a changing environment.

Both oral and poster presentations will be accepted for the symposium. The proceedings will be distributed at the symposium. If you are interested in presenting a paper at the symposium you are most welcome to submit an abstract, of up to one page in length. Abstract submissions will be assessed by the Scientific Committee.

Agenda

Monday May 30 General session. Concurrent sessions.
Tuesday May 31 In-conference tour. Visiting Vilnius, Vilnius state forest enterprise, forest owners cooperatives, Trakai historical national park.
Wednesday June 01 Concurent sessions. General session.

Location

The international symposium on "Small-scale Forestry in a changing Environment" will be held in Vilnius, Lithuania. The symposium venue will be the conference centre "Karolina". This is the leading conference centre in Vilnius, and provides a full-service packages in organizing public events.
   
Submission of abstracts

First Call for Papers: October 1, 2004 deadline with October 31, 2004 notification of acceptance.
Second Call for Paper: December 1, 2004 deadline with December 31, 2004 notification of acceptance.
Completed paper submission deadline: March 1, 2005. This is the deadline for papers to be included in the proceedings.

Please submit registration form and abstracts up to one page in length by e-mail to:
Diana Mizaraite, ekonsk@mi.lt

Abstract should include the following sections:
Title.
Authors and affiliations.
Abstract text.
Contact details, including e-mail address.

Registration

IUFRO symposium
Small-Scale Forestry in a Changing Environment
May 30 - June 4, 2005
Vilnius, Lithuania
The registration fee for conference is EUR 200. The registration fee covers the conference hall rent, conference materials, coffee, lunches, dinners, in-conferences tour. Payment for Post-Conference Tour is EUR 250 per person. Methods of payment will be advised shortly.
Please fill up the Registration form, and send it by this E-mail: ekonsk@mi.lt, to Diana Mizaraite.

   The registration fee for conference is EUR 200. The registration fee covers the conference hall rent, conference materials, coffee, lunches, dinners, in-conferences tour. Payment for Post –Conference Tour is EUR 250 per person. Methods of payment will be advised shortly.

Please fill up this registration form and send it by this E-mail: ekonsk@mi.lt to Diana Mizaraite.

Accomodation

The participants are expected to make their own accommodation reservation. Some accommodation options follow.

Karolina Hotel
Sausio 13 street, 04343 Vilnius
Tel.: +370 5 2453939
Fax.: +370 5 2169341
E-mail: info@karolina.lt
Web site: http://hotel.karolina.lt
"Karolina" Hotel offers 100 rooms, including - 14 luxury suites and 86 standart rooms.

Prices :
Single - 190 Lt
Double - 210 Lt
Deluxe - 300 Lt

1 Euro = 3.45 Lt
1 $ = 2.85 Lt

For registration (on-line, e-mail, phone, fax) please use "Forest". We can help with any organizational problems with accomodation.
In-conference tour

The In-Conference Tour will visit historic sites in the city of Vilnius, the Vilnius State Forest Enterprise, a forest owners' cooperative and Trakai Historical National Park.

Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital and the most important town, and features remarkable architecture, cultural monuments, romantic alleyways, and a maze of courtyards. The Old Town of Vilnius, symbolising Lithuania's history and present, has been included in UNESCO's list of World Heritage cultural sites.

Trakai was once the Lithuanian capital. Of all the tourists who come to Vilnius, only a few do not find the time to visit this historical national park with its famous historical relics, including the island castle, the museums and other buildings of distinctive architecture. We have been blessed with a unique landscape, a string of lakes and fine woods. Our lives are closely linked to nature, which we try to preserve and use for recreation and tourism.

Vilnius state forest enterprise was established in 1939. The SFE consists of 14 forest districts. Forest area - 47 thousand ha. The forest is pine dominated covering 56% of the total area, with followed by spruce (26%).
Forest owners cooperative Jungtiniai miskai (United forests) is located in Vilnius. The main activities are: consulting, contracting, trade.

Post-conference tour

Thursday June 02 Rumsiskes Museum of traditional Lituanian countryside. Lithuanian Forest Research Institute. Forest Research objects. Departure for Curonian Spit National Park (The Baltic Sea coast, in western Lituania).
Friday June 03 Curonian Spit National Park. Departure for Kaunas.
Saturday June 04 Highly productive forest stands. Grutas Park of monuments from the Soviet times. Private forest holding (southern Lithuania)
More information: www.neringainfo.lt
www.grutoparkas.lt
www.mi.lt

Contacts

Stasys Mizaras
Chair of conference
Lituanian Forest Research Institute
Liepu 1, Girionys, LT-53101
Kaunas distr., Lithuania
Secretary: +370 837 547221
Fax: +370 837 547446
E-mail: ekonsk@mi.lt
WebPage: www.mi.lt
Aidas Pivoriunas
Contac person
Phone: +37068218001
E-mail: aidas@forestry.lt

Scientific committee

Remigijus Ozolincius (Co-Chair) Lithuanian Forest Research Institute
John Herbohn (Co-Chair) University of Queensland, Australia
Steve Harrison (Co-Chair) University of Queensland, Australia
Stasys Mizaras Lithuanian Forest Research Institute
Valdas Vaiciunas Ministry of Environment of Republic of Lithuania
John Bliss Oregon State University, USA
Gerard Buttoud French Institute of Forestry, Agricultural and Environmental Engineering (ENGREF)
Jim Johnson Virginia Tech, USA
Bill Slee University of Gloucestershire, UK

Organizers

The Symposium is organized under the auspices of IUFRO Research Group 3.08.00, Small-scale Forestry, in conjunction with IUFRO Extension Working Party 6.06.03, and is hosted by:
Lithuanian Forest Research Institute
Ministry of Environment of Republic of Lithuania
Lithuanian State Forest Enterprises
Curonian Spit National Park
Forest Owners Association of Lithuania

You can read more details at the symposium homepage : www.smallscaleforestry.mi.lt

Regards,
Dr. Stasys Mizaras
Deputy director
Lithuanian Forest Research Institute
Liepų 1, Girionys, LT-53101
Kaunas distr., Lithuania
Secretary: 370 837 547221
Fax: 370 837 547446
Email: ekonsk@mi.lt
WebPage:http://www.mi.lt