Forestry Projects Research Articles

Time for Decarbonization of Conservation and Development Projects? The Political Ecology of Carbon Projects

The globe's first carbon projects were designed and implemented approximately 20 years ago following scientific insights that emissions of greenhouse gases needed to be mitigated. Visible in some of these early projects were the important aspects of social governance and local benefit sharing. The projects promised to be a panacea to environmental, social and economic problems in remote rural areas of developing countries. However, it took another decade before a wave of hundreds of carbon projects were launched. Many of the projects were offered under the mechanism of REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, plus the role of conservation, sustainable forest management and carbon enhancement), as well as under a variety of voluntary schemes and national programs, public-private partnerships, and forestry-based investment initiatives. As decision-makers prepare the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climatic Change in Paris (COP21), Earthscan has released a book entitled `Carbon conflicts and forest landscapes in Africa', edited by Melissa Leach and Ian Scoones. According to the editors, the focus of the book is on what happens on the ground when carbon forestry projects arrive, what types of projects work, and, equally important, what doesn’t work.

Tradeoffs in carbon commodification: A political ecology of common property forest governance

Carbon markets have gained traction worldwide as an ostensibly win–win solution to climate change, providing low-cost emission reductions in the Global North and sustainable development in the Global South. However, sustainable development and livelihood co-benefits have largely failed to materialize in a range of carbon offset projects, particularly those in forest communities. While some scholars explain this failure as an outcome of fundamental tradeoffs between market efficiency and sustainable development, others argue that institutions of common property land tenure can resolve tradeoffs and generate important co-benefits for local communities. Using a political ecology approach, integrating insights of Karl Polanyi and Noel Castree on the commodification of nature and evidence from a carbon forestry project in Chiapas, Mexico, this article grapples with the ways in which carbon market requirements shape forest governance within common property tenure arrangements. I argue that the centralization of forest governance and decision making into the hands of project implementers and brokers, the necessity for legible land rights and boundaries, and the technical requirements for measurement, calculation, and monitoring of carbon have reshaped forest governance in ways that have undermined the social and ecological benefits often associated with common property management schemes. This research therefore demonstrates that so-called tradeoffs between market efficiency and equitable sustainable development goals may not be inherent to carbon forestry and calls into question the reliance on disembedding market mechanisms for climate change mitigation in forest ecosystems. As such, this work has important implications for REDD+.

Key factors which influence the success of community forestry in developing countries

While community forestry has shown promise to reduce rural poverty, improve reforestation and potentially offset carbon emissions, many projects have failed, either partly or completely. In order to understand why community forestry succeeds or fails, we examined in detail the literature related to community forestry from three countries, Mexico, Nepal and the Philippines. We also drew on experiences in other countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa. We identified five main interconnected factors which the literature suggests are often critical to the success of community forestry. To integrate the many ways in which community forestry projects can improve the state of these factors, we use the concept of ‘bonding social capital’, i.e. communities’ ability to work together towards a common aim and ‘bridging social capital’, i.e. their ability to liaise with the outside world. To understand the interaction of the five success factors and the way in which improvements to bonding or bridging social capital may affect them, we developed a causal diagram which depicts the interrelationships between the success factors and the key points at which project inputs may be best applied. It is clear from our analysis that failing to appreciate both the complexity and interaction of the various influences may lead to project failure.

Avaliação Financeira do Sequestro de Carbono na Serra de Baturité, Brasil, 2012

RESUMOEste estudo teve como objetivo quantificar a biomassa e o estoque de CO2 e avaliar a viabilidade econômica de geração de créditos de carbono na Área de Proteção Ambiental – APA da Serra de Baturité, Ceará. A quantificação da biomassa foi feita pelo método não destrutivo e foram avaliados financeiramente três mercados de carbono. O mercado regulado: Mecanismo de desenvolvimento limpo – MDL; e os mercados voluntários: Verified Carbon Stantard – VCS e o esquema de comércio de Emissões da Nova Zelândia – NZ ETS. Os critérios financeiros utilizados para a avaliação foram o Valor Presente Líquido (VPL) e a Taxa Interna de Retorno (TIR). Os resultados mostraram que a APA sequestra em média 84,63 MtCO2e. De acordo com os preços e custos do mercado para o ano 2012, os projetos florestais para sequestro de carbono podem gerar valor anual equivalente de R$ 1.336 e TIR de 21% por hectare, se vendido no mercado NZ ETS. No mercado VCS, a venda dos créditos gera VPL de R$ 2.138 e TIR de 18%. Entretanto, se os créditos forem comercializados no MDL, o VPL será de R$ -702,5, concluindo-se que o projeto é viável nos mercados voluntários e inviável no mercado regulado.

Addressing Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Together: A Global Assessment of Agriculture and Forestry Projects.

Adaptation and mitigation share the ultimate purpose of reducing climate change impacts. However, they tend to be considered separately in projects and policies because of their different objectives and scales. Agriculture and forestry are related to both adaptation and mitigation: they contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and removals, are vulnerable to climate variations, and form part of adaptive strategies for rural livelihoods. We assessed how climate change project design documents (PDDs) considered a joint contribution to adaptation and mitigation in forestry and agriculture in the tropics, by analyzing 201 PDDs from adaptation funds, mitigation instruments, and project standards [e.g., climate community and biodiversity (CCB)]. We analyzed whether PDDs established for one goal reported an explicit contribution to the other (i.e., whether mitigation PDDs contributed to adaptation and vice versa). We also examined whether the proposed activities or expected outcomes allowed for potential contributions to the two goals. Despite the separation between the two goals in international and national institutions, 37% of the PDDs explicitly mentioned a contribution to the other objective, although only half of those substantiated it. In addition, most adaptation (90%) and all mitigation PDDs could potentially report a contribution to at least partially to the other goal. Some adaptation project developers were interested in mitigation for the prospect of carbon funding, whereas mitigation project developers integrated adaptation to achieve greater long-term sustainability or to attain CCB certification. International and national institutions can provide incentives for projects to harness synergies and avoid trade-offs between adaptation and mitigation.

Carbon storage in a bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris) plantation in the degraded tropical forests: Implications for policy development

Tropical forests potentially contribute to global climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration, hence a global carbon pool. In order to mitigate the global climate change impact, the Kyoto protocol developed the clean development mechanism (CDM) which supports carbon credits for plantation activities in developing countries. Unfortunately, none of the CDM forestry projects included bamboo as a carbon reservoir. Although bamboo is an integrating part of tropical forest ecosystems, it was overlooked in the initial negotiating process. The present study, therefore, investigated the carbon storage potential of a common bamboo species, Bambusa vulgaris at Lawachara forest reserve of Bangladesh. Results showed that five-year-old B. vulgaris stand stored in total 77.67tCha−1 of which 50.44tCha−1 were stored in the above ground biomass (culms, branches and leaves), 2.52tCha−1 in the below ground biomass and 24.71tCha−1 in the soils. This amount of carbon storage is much more promising than the carbon storage of many other tree species considered in the CDM projects. These findings demonstrate the potential of B. vulgaris to be considered in CDM projects as a plantation species and thereby mitigate climate change impact more efficiently.

Linking Mitigation and Adaptation in Carbon Forestry Projects: Evidence from Belize

Summary Committed action to deal with climate change requires reducing greenhouse gas emissions, i.e., mitigation, as well as dealing with its ensuing consequences, i.e., adaptation. To date, most policies and projects have promoted mitigation and adaptation separately, and they have very rarely considered integrating these two objectives. In this article, we develop a multi-dimensional framework to explore the extent to which climate mitigation forestry projects bring adaptation concerns into their design and implementation phases, using three Belizean projects as case-study material. We demonstrate that linking mitigation and adaptation has not been possible, because the mandate of forest carbon markets does not incorporate adaptation concerns. The projects’ contribution to forest ecosystems’ adaptation, for instance, by reducing human encroachments and by increasing ecosystem connectivity, has been limited. The projects’ contribution to improve local livelihoods has also been limited, and projects have even been contested by neighboring communities on the grounds of tenure conflicts and food security concerns. Furthermore, the projects’ mitigation potential is constrained by their poor additionality and lack of rigorous enforcement. We then conclude that the integration of mitigation and adaptation in Belize’s carbon forestry projects remains a laudable but elusive goal. Consequently, we request climate change donors to refrain from providing support to narrowly designed projects and we urge them instead to promote more holistic and territorial-based approaches targeting both mitigation and adaptation goals.

Quantifying surface albedo and other direct biogeophysical climate forcings of forestry activities.

By altering fluxes of heat, momentum, and moisture exchanges between the land surface and atmosphere, forestry and other land-use activities affect climate. Although long recognized scientifically as being important, these so-called biogeophysical forcings are rarely included in climate policies for forestry and other land management projects due to the many challenges associated with their quantification. Here, we review the scientific literature in the fields of atmospheric science and terrestrial ecology in light of three main objectives: (i) to elucidate the challenges associated with quantifying biogeophysical climate forcings connected to land use and land management, with a focus on the forestry sector; (ii) to identify and describe scientific approaches and/or metrics facilitating the quantification and interpretation of direct biogeophysical climate forcings; and (iii) to identify and recommend research priorities that can help overcome the challenges of their attribution to specific land-use activities, bridging the knowledge gap between the climate modeling, forest ecology, and resource management communities. We find that ignoring surface biogeophysics may mislead climate mitigation policies, yet existing metrics are unlikely to be sufficient. Successful metrics ought to (i) include both radiative and nonradiative climate forcings; (ii) reconcile disparities between biogeophysical and biogeochemical forcings, and (iii) acknowledge trade-offs between global and local climate benefits. We call for more coordinated research among terrestrial ecologists, resource managers, and coupled climate modelers to harmonize datasets, refine analytical techniques, and corroborate and validate metrics that are more amenable to analyses at the scale of an individual site or region.

Carbon markets as a financial instrument in the forestry sector in Turkey

SUMMARY Forests play a crucial role in mitigating climate change, and carbon markets offer a good alternative for financing forestry sector projects. However, the forestry sector in Turkey has not attempted to benefit from these markets yet. This paper presents the current situation of the Turkish forestry sector in carbon markets and evaluates the viability of these markets for financing forestry projects. This paper argues that under current international restrictions, the Turkish forestry sector can benefit only from voluntary carbon markets through afforestation, reforestation, improved forest management, and agro-forestry activities. To do this, Turkey will have to establish an institutional framework and estimate the national carbon sequestration potential for the forestry sector. If forestry activities were financed through compliance and voluntary carbon markets, it is possible that substantial funds could be raised through these markets. Carbon markets thus offer viable options for financing fore...

The impact of afforestation on soil organic carbon sequestration on the Qinghai Plateau, China.

Afforestation, the conversion of non-forested land into forest, is widespread in China. However, the dynamics of soil organic carbon (SOC) after afforestation are not well understood, especially in plateau climate zones. For a total of 48 shrub- and/or tree-dominated afforestation sites on the Qinghai Plateau, Northwestern China, post-afforestation changes in SOC, total nitrogen (TN), the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C/N) and soil bulk density (BD) were investigated to a soil depth of 60 cm using the paired-plots method. SOC and TN accumulated at rates of 138.2 g C m-2 yr-1 and 4.6 g N m-2 yr-1, respectively, in shrub-dominated afforestation sites and at rates of 113.3 g C m-2 yr--1 and 6.7 g N m-2yr-1, respectively, in tree-dominated afforestation sites. Soil BD was slightly reduced in all layers in the shrub-dominated afforestation plots, and significantly reduced in soil layers from 0–40cm in the tree-dominated afforestation plots. The C/N ratio was higher in afforested sites relative to the reference sites. SOC accumulation was closely related to TN accumulation following afforestation, and the inclusion of N-fixing species in tree-dominated afforestation sites additionally increased the soil accumulation capacity for SOC (p < 0.05). Multiple regression models including the age of an afforestation plot and total number of plant species explained 75% of the variation in relative SOC content change at depth of 0–20 cm, in tree-dominated afforestation sites. We conclude that afforestation on the Qinghai Plateau is associated with great capability of SOC and TN sequestration. This study improves our understanding of the mechanisms underlying SOC and TN accumulation in a plateau climate, and provides evidence on the C sequestration potentials associated with forestry projects in China.

Characteristics of Colorado Forestry Contractors and Their Role in Current Forest Health Issues

Abstract Overcrowded forests have allowed several catastrophic wildfires to burn in Colorado. Many of these fires have received national attention and inspired large public expenditures into community wildfire mitigation projects. Forestry projects in Colorado have shifted away from traditional logging and toward service-type projects, such as forest thinning and defensible space, and Colorado's forestry contractors are essential in realizing forest management objectives in the state. Many southeastern and northeastern states conduct regular surveys of forestry contractors to better understand their attributes and ability to adapt to changing conditions. This article presents results of a Colorado forestry contractor survey conducted in 2014. Objectives of this survey were to gain statistical information about the contractors, establish a baseline for future surveys, and determine the capacity of the workforce to address the state's forest health issues. The survey revealed a diminished workforce that has struggled to find identity following policy changes and economic events of the 21st century. This survey also revealed that with the current contractor capacity, Colorado will be unable to face the many threats to forest health and prevent catastrophic wildfire.

基于粒度反推法的景观生态安全格局优化——以海口市秀英区为例

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 基于粒度反推法的景观生态安全格局优化——以海口市秀英区为例 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201402170274 作者: 作者单位: 中南林业科技大学,中南林业科技大学 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国家林业行业公益性项目(201004032);海南省林业厅重点科研项目(LK20118478);湖南省"十二五"重点学科——森林经理学科(034-0014) ; Landscape ecological security pattern optimization based on the granularity inverse method: a case study in Xiuying District, Haikou Author: Affiliation: Central South University of Forestry and Technology,Central South University of Forestry and Technology Fund Project: 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:景观生态安全格局优化是改善生态环境、促进人与自然和谐发展的有效途径。为给海口市秀英区生态环境建设提供科学依据和景观生态安全格局优化方法改进提供参考,提出了粒度反推法和生态阻力面综合构建法,结合GIS技术和最小耗费距离模型探讨了海口市秀英区景观生态安全格局优化途径。结果表明:(1)400m粒度生态景观组分是秀英区生态源地选取的合适参照,秀英区有生态源地18块、生态廊道17条、生态节点11个,新增生态源地建设的参考规模为38.5hm2,生态源地的生态服务极限距离为800m,需将现有的11块非生态景观类型斑块转换为生态景观类型,总面积20.26 hm2。(2)粒度反推法能为生态源地选取提供客观参考,在生态源地选择方面比传统方法具有更强的理论基础和客观性,解决了客观选取生态源地的问题。(3)综合生态阻力面能对生态阻力的实际情况进行较好地模拟。显、隐性生态阻力面之间存在显著差异,能反映生态系统中潜在的生态薄弱点,这些生态薄弱点往往是容易被忽略而又需要重点建设的区域。 Abstract:The Landscape Ecological Security Pattern Optimization Approach (LESPOA) is an effective way of promoting healthier ecosystems and harmonious relationships between people and their surrounding environment. Currently, there are shortcomings to this approach because it lacks objectivity in ecological site selection, and when simulating ecological resistances, it doesn't consider the interactions between these resistances. In order to address these issues, this paper uses the granularity inverse method and the comprehensive construction method of ecological surface resistance, which combines the technology of GIS with a least-cost distance model, to apply the LESPOA in Xiuying district. We aimed to provide a scientific basis for ecological environment construction and a method for improving the LESPOA. The results were: (1) When the granularity of ecological landscape component is 400 m, the ecological landscape component is an appropriate method for selecting ecological sources. According to the above appropriate method, there were 18 ecological sources (8 primary and 10 secondary), 17 ecological corridors, and 11 ecological nodes in Xiuying district. The reference scale of new ecological sources was 38.5 hm2. The maximum ecological service distance for whole ecological source structure was about 800 m. When the distance between different ecological patches is approximately 200 m, we should enhance the ecological connections between them. Currently, there are 11 non-ecological landscape patches (with a total area of 20.26 hm2) in Xiuying district that need to be converted to ecological landscape patch;(2) The granularity inverse method has a stronger theoretical basis and greater objectivity than traditional methods of ecological source selection, and it also can reflects the connective characteristics of landscape pattern. Therefore, the results from this method can supply more accurate references for ecological construction than traditional methods. (3) The comprehensive ecological resistance surface considers the interaction between resistances and thus can better simulate the physical characteristics of ecological resistances than the traditional ecological resistance surface that just considers land use type. There are significant differences between dominant ecological resistance and recessive ecological resistance, which can reflect potential ecological weak points. Most of the ecological weak points in Xiuying district are woodlands that are surrounded by farmland, unused land, and construction land. Although these ecological weak points can easily be neglected, it is important to focus on enhancing the connections between the weak points and ecological sources in order to restore natural ecologic processes. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Ensuring Better Natural Resource Management Through Gender Mainstreaming

With a view to bring women in mainstream of life and involve them in the forest and environment conservation, Forest Department, Haryana initiated women development programme with implementation of European Union aided Haryana Community Forestry Project in the State from 1999–2008. Self Help Groups (SHGs) were constituted for women and the success achieved in this direction as a result of right approach, led to believe that the participation of women in various development activities strengthen the programme and hence the need for institutionalizing this in the regular working of forest department in the state. Accordingly, SHGs were constituted under Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) project as well. SHGs constituted by Haryana Forest Department were evaluated in seventeen districts of Haryana state of India and while carrying out the evaluation on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of United Nations were also kept in view. It was found that on all these parameters, the women in SHG villages performed better than the non-SHG villages.

Financial Feasibility of Ghg Reduction. The Case of Baturité Mountain – Brazil – 2013

Forest carbon sequestration is a mechanism to remove greenhouse gases. Trees, through the process of photosynthesis, absorb carbon dioxide – CO2 from the atmosphere and store it as biomass. The objective of this study was to quantify and assess the financial viability of the generation of carbon credits in the Baturite Mountain, an area of 7,000 ha of tropical montane sub humid forest in Ceara state of Brazil. GHG reduction was estimated by nondestructive methods (based on forest inventory estimates). Economic criteria used to evaluate the project were the Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR). The results showed that, as a result of project activitiesin the Baturite MountainGHG emissions were reduced annually by 903,120 Tones of CO2. Based on prices and costs in 2013, forestry projects for carbon sequestration are non-viable if traded under the Clean Development Mechanism. The project is financially viable with returns under the New Zealand Emission Trading Scheme (IRR=28%) and in the Voluntary Carbon Standard (VCS, IRR=27%). This study provides methodological guidelines for economic evaluation of carbon capture projects. In the right environments and with the right financial incentives, keeping standing forests intact can provide benefits for the environment and higher economic benefits compared with other extractive uses.

Phytochemical Composition, Antimicrobial Effect of Azadirachta indica and Carica papaya Extracts on Fungi Isolated From Gmelina arborea Seedling

Gmelina arborea Roxb has important economic value in Nigeria and worldwide. It has been used as timber, for pulp and paper, furniture, plywood and for particle board. Due to the menace caused by fungal diseases in nurseries and sites where the seedlings are raised and the observed disease severity at the Awi Gmelina Forestry Project Nursery in Cross River State, Nigeria. It became necessary to provide a viable environmentally friendly measure to curb the diseases, hence, a trial on the antifungal effects of leaf extracts of Carica papaya and Azadirachta indica in-vitro using different extract solvents on some pathogenic fungi isolated from Gmelina arborea seedlings. The isolated fungi were Trichoderma viride (from stem and leaf) and Mucor mucedo (stem and leaf). The solvents used were ethanol, methanol, propanol, butanol, acetone, chloroform and distilled water. Phytochemical screening of extracts of C. papaya from the different solvents showed that there was no tannin and hydroxymethyl anthraquinine. Flavonoids and polyphenols were in excess in acetone and methanol extracts respectively. For A. indica, polyphenols were only found in excess in ethanol and methanol extracts. Application of the extracts at different percentages of 0% (control), 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90% and 100% showed that Carica papaya extracted with butanol was more potent on Trichoderma viride and Mucor mucedo at 60%, 70%, 80% and 100% while the growth of Trichoderma viride and Mucor mucedo was checked by butanol extracts of A. indica at 70%, 80%, 90% and 100%. Conclusively, butanol extracts of C. papaya and A. indica at higher concentrations is recommended for use as spray to control the diseases.

Participation dynamics and institutional change in the Scolel Té carbon forestry project, Chiapas, Mexico

Carbon forestry has become a cornerstone of attempted climate change mitigation in developing countries. As such, dozens of projects have been developed to supply carbon offsets to both voluntary and regulated carbon markets. In this paper we shed further light on the effects of such projects on communities and households by studying the implementation of a carbon forestry project in four communities in the state of Chiapas, Mexico. The project pays farmers to carry out a number of tree-planting activities depending on the local agro-ecological systems. We investigate how such activities have been promoted in and adopted by communities and we identify a series of community-based, institutional, resource management and asset-related factors that explain farmers’ willingness to participate in the projects. Our analysis highlights a number of shared motivations for joining the project but varied levels of understanding about the project rationale. We also show how community norms, access to land tenure, financial and physical assets differ among participants and non-participants which translates in increasing inequalities in access to income and to other development projects. However, we also demonstrate that project activities, as currently designed, motivate some farmers to participate because of the potential of the project to act as a mechanism to bridge existing social divides through cooperation in the project and therefore financially and politically benefit from participation. Overall, the paper demonstrates that the project contributes to transforming local livelihoods and institutions, unfortunately not always as originally designed.

Special issue on forest investments profitability

In this special issue, a sample of the papers presented and discussions held are provided. The selected articles are partly presented in the context of the cost–benefit analysis of forests investments. Public budgeting process nowadays requires in most countries a thorough economic analysis of the annual projects and programmes. Forestry institutions are no exception. However, in the public arena and international organisations, the records of appropriate cost–benefit of forestry projects are scant. A recent review of the use of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) by the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank which spread the use of CBA to justify development projects, shows that the economic analysis of projects has been diminishing compared to their uses in the 70s. For natural resources, and forestry in particular, the presence of recognised positive externalities seems to have diminished the reason to undertake this analysis. In the context of budgeting constraints encountered by many countries following the 2008 financial crisis, the need for a proper analysis of natural resources investments has been made more acute.

Estimating the soil carbon sequestration potential of China's Grain for Green Project

AbstractThe largest area of planted forest in the world has been established in China through implementation of key forestry projects in recent years. These projects have played an important role in sequestering CO2 from the atmosphere, which is considered to be a potential mitigation strategy for the effects of global climate change. However, carbon sequestration in soil (soil organic carbon, SOC) after afforestation or reforestation is not well understood, particularly for specific key forestry projects. In this study, the SOC change in the top 20 cm of soil for each type of restoration implemented under China's Grain for Green Project (GGP) was quantified by a meta‐analysis of data from published literature and direct field measurements. Soil carbon sequestration due to the GGP during 1999–2012 was estimated using data on the annual restoration area at provincial level and functions that relate SOC stock change to controlling factors (e.g., plantation age, forest zone, and type of forestation). Soil carbon sequestration of the GGP was estimated to be 156±108 Tg C (95% confidence interval) for current restoration areas prior to 2013, with a mean accumulation rate of 12±8 Tg C yr−1. The soil carbon sequestration potential of existing plantation zones is predicted to increase from 156±108 Tg C in 2013 to 383±188 Tg C in 2050 under the assumption that all plantation areas are well preserved. Plantations in northwestern, southern, and southwestern zones contributed nearly 80% of total soil carbon sequestration, while soil C sequestration in northeastern China was much more variable. Improved data sources, measurements of SOC in the organic layer, greater sampling depth, and better distribution of sampling sites among GGP regions will reduce the uncertainty of the estimates made by this study.

Leaders of Sustainable Development Projects: Resources Used and Lessons Learned in a Context of Environmental Education?

In our day, leaders involved in ingenious sustainable development projects plan spaces and implement practices that are beneficial to the environment. These initiatives represent a fertile source of information on the competences linked to environmental design that we should nurture in our students. In view of improving our understanding of the competences that should be developed in environmental education (EE), this study sought to identify the competences used by leaders who participated in five sustainable development projects (in sustainable urban planning and forestry). The analysis of documents and data from individual interviews revealed that the main competences (cognitive, social and affective) used by the leaders interviewed, depended on creative, complex, flexible, longitudinal, adapted, patient, collaborative, humanistic and environmental planning. Finally, this study, of which we present the effects on EE, shows that leaders use competences which are associated with creative individuals.

Analysis on the determinants of farmer households' willingness to participate into forestry standardization project management.

As a propeller to promote the transformation and upgrading of forestry industry, standardized forestry management is also an important measure to accelerate the transformation of scientific and technological achievements of forestry. This paper used the Binary Logistic modeling to analyze farmer households' willingness to participate into forestry standardization project management based on a survey of farmer households in Anji County and Linhai City, Zhejiang Province. The research findings indicated the major determinants of farmer households' willingness to participate into forestry standardization project management included their forestland fragmentation degree, possession of sufficient or insufficient funds, family members' training experience in the forestry production technology, existence of forest products cooperatives in their towns or townships, and their anticipation of the forestry standardization projects. And based on the research findings, the paper gave the following suggestions on improving farmer households' willingness to participate into forestry standardization project management. Forestry standardization publicity should be enhanced to improve farmer households' awareness of standardization management; support funds for forestry standardization project should be raised to increase farmer households' willingness to participate into the standardization management; technical trainings of forestry production should be strengthened to improve farmer households' enthusiasm to participate into standardization management; the construction of forest products cooperatives should be improved to increase the institutional safeguard for the services regarding forest products.