FAO has been coordinating global forest resources assessments every five to ten years since 1946 (FAO, 2006), with the objective to provide a periodic global and uniform picture of existing forests, derived trends and statistics. Especially FAO’s periodically reported deforestation rates enjoy a high degree of public attention and are widely cited in literature.

The main aim of this study is to facilitat e access to comprehensive and comparable information on the current and past extent of mangroves in the 124 countries and areas where they are known to exist, highlighting information gaps and providing updated information that may serve as a tool for mangrove managers and policy- and decision-makers worldwide.

Mangroves, commonly found along sheltered coastlines in the tropics and subropics, fulfil important socio-economic and envioronmental functions: providing wood and non-wood forest products, protecting shores against wind, waves and water currents; conserving biological diversity; protecting coral reefs, sea-grass beds and shipping lanes against siltation; and providing habitat, spawning grounds and nutrients for a variety of fish and shellfish, including many commercial species.

Fire management is an essential part of sustainable forest management. This publication complements the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005 (FRA 2005) as an in-depth thematic study on the incidence, impact and management of forest fires in different regions of the world. It was developed from 12 regional papers prepared within the framework of the Global Wildland Fire Network of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.

The world’s mangroves 1980–2005 is a thematic study undertaken within the framework of the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005. It was led by FAO in collaboration with mangrove specialists throughout the world, and was co-funded by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). It builds on the 1980 assessment, on the FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000) and 2005 (FRA 2005), and on an extensive literature search and correspondence with mangrove and fo rest resources assessment specialists.

This compilation is based on analysis of secondary documentation as well as interviews with members of the Campaign for Survival and Dignity on the process behind the passing of the Forest Rights Act 2006. This document is not meant to be a comprehensive analytical paper on the issue of 'forests'; 'adivasis' or 'forest rights'. It merely touches upon these aspects to provide a background to the process of bringing about the legislation. As a result many dimensions and dynamics of adivasis and forest struggles have not been covered here.

Las aves rapaces constituyen un grupo potencialmente sensible a la pérdida y la fragmentación de su ambiente natural debido a sus requerimientos de hábitat extensos y a su baja densidad poblacional. Sin embargo, las rapaces parecen responder de modo diferente a la pérdida del hábitat en ecosistemas templados (donde se observan pocos efectos) y en selvas tropicales y subtropicales (con efectos más marcados). El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar la respuesta de un grupo de aves rapaces diurnas a la pérdida y la fragmentación de la Selva Paranaense.

Le Plan d’action du Haut Commissariat aux Eaux et Forêts et à la Lutte Contre la Désertification (HCEFLCD) s’inscrit dans le cadre d’un programme décennal (2005-2014) qui consacre la multifonctionnalité des écosystèmes forestiers et vise (i) la lutte contre la désertification, (ii) la conservation et le développement des ressources forestières et (iii) le développement humain dans les espaces forestiers et péri-forestiers.

El objetivo de este artículo es llamar la atención sobre la ocupación de la zona marítimo-terrestre (ZMT). En estos territorios coexisten situaciones legítimas, anómalas y anárquicas respecto con la tenencia de la tierra. La ingobernabilidad de la ZMT es producto de la inadecuada aplicación del marco legal y la ausencia de conocimiento sistematizado. La información sobre esta temática está muy dispersa, es escasa y además, poco accesible.

... Massive scale plantation forestry in Myanmar began in the early 1980s as a drastic measure to fulfil the increasing demand for timber and to prevent the conversion of deteriorated forestland to agricultural land. More than 30,000 ha of forest plantations have annually been formed since 1984 (Myanmar Forest Department 2000). Myanmar has also launched a Special Teak Plantation Program in 1998 which has an annual plantation target of 8000 ha in addition to the normal plantation scheme.

Abstract: In large parts of the world, forests remain the domain of the state in which the rights of forest-dependent
peoples are denied or insecure. E fforts to restore justice to, and alleviate the poverty of, these marginalized
communities have often focused on tenurial reforms. S ometimes those reforms have led to important improvements
in livelihoods, mainly by stabilizing communities’ land use systems and by giving them greater
security. H owever, these improvements have not prevented communities from suffering other forms of

To investigate the degree of forest degradation and the effect of land use change on selected soil quality attributes in loess-derived landforms, samples were taken from different land uses including forest, rangeland, degradated rangeland and farmland in Pasang watershed located in the Galikesh area of Golestan province (37°16'N, 55°30'E). The annual average temperature and mean precipitation of study area were 15°C and 730 mm respectively.