Weaving forest knowledge into development

A special issue of Unasylva from 2007 looks back at 60 years of information and knowledge sharing in forestry.

Articles in this issue include:

An editorial from 1952 on “Spreading knowledge” indicates that the philosophy behind today’s “knowledge organization” was already in place more than half a century ago.

Articles from the 1960s'on “The electronic digital computer in forestry” and “The promise of technology” reflect an optimistic period of history.

In the 1990's, political changes in the 1990s also created new needs and concepts on how to make forestry extension effective were shifting away from one-way offering of solutions. In 1997, the Internet was a new tool for spreading information. All of these themes are represented in this issue.

What is the influence of knowledge sharing? An article from 2000 examines the extent to which seminal publications influence international or national forest policies by influencing conventional wisdom.