Several Indonesian plywood industry companies involved in logging are beginning to adopt improved harvesting practices. A number of organizations and individuals have undertaken analyses of the costs and impacts of implementing selected reduced impact logging (RIL) components. These analyses include cost estimates of the impact of RIL compared with conventional logging (CL). This work has been undertaken in an attempt to provide support for the adoption of the various RIL components.

Increasing forest financing requires better communication and understanding between the forestry and finance sectors. This can take the form of joint development of financing strategies, instruments and business cases. Limited forest financing is often less about money availability than about poor access.

This policy brief analyses forest policies in Burkina Faso, Ghana and Mali and their implication for adaptation and conflicts under climate change. It presents results of studies undertaken by Tropical Forest and Climate Change Adaptation (TroFCCA). The policy brief tracks the flow of specific forest ecosystem goods and services and the potential for social conflicts in the form of disagreement. Divergent views, arguments and clashes are identified.

The First International Forum on Water and Food of the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) was held in Vientiane, Laos from November 12 to 17, 2006. The Forum had two overarching objectives:

• to link people together to discover what they are doing within the CPWF and in the world of water and food beyond the Program;

• to articulate the links between research, policy and practice.

This paper first provides a brief overview of what are and what represent forest ecosystem services. Then it considers the issues of price and valuation, and shows that valuation itself is not a solution but merely a tool. Considering then the reasons of the overall degradation of forest ecosystem services it shows that the main reasons tend to be fundamental: deforestation most often happens because it pays for local people - not so much because the institutionally created arrangements are perverse.

Forest harvesting and transportation operations are essential components of sustainable forestry. Recognition of these important factors was consistent with the theme of the XX IUFRO World Congress, "Caring for the Forest: Research in a Changing World". The Congress was held in Tampere, Finland, in August 1995. As part of the proceedings a forum was provided for discussion of new techniques for planning, implementing and controlling forest operations in ways that promote sustainable management of tropical forests.

The purpose of this manual is to help trainers in future scenario better facilitate training workshops for field officers such as forestry managers, extension officers and researchers who are keen to facilitate future scenarios in their forest management projects. Future scenarios are a diverse and flexible set of methods that can be used to help forest user groups and decision makers define clear unified objectives, identify opportunities or obstacles in the path to their management goals, or prepare strategies and action plans for alternate future situations.