Special Session - Technology Transfer and Extension in Forest Landscape Ecology: What, to Whom and How? Chair(s): Perera, Ajith¹, ¹ Ontario Forest Research Institute, Sault Ste. Marie, ON
Thursday, April 1, 2004 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Apollo Room 2

Forest landscape ecology has evolved and matured to a point where we can begin to confidently transfer some science and tools for forest policy makers and practitioners. A substantial body of information, knowledge, and technology has accumulated during the last 10-15 years. Some forest/land management agencies, forest companies, and NGOs have recognized the importance of landscape ecology, and are making efforts to incorporate principles of LE and tools in to their management planning. However, they face many obstacles in this task. Technology transfer and extension is a relatively alien topic to forest landscape ecologists, and there has been very little dialogue on this topic among landscape ecology professional meetings.

Applying forest landscape ecological knowledge: Experiences in the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Buse, Lisa^*,1, Perera, Ajith¹, Naylor, Brian², Elkie, Phil³, ¹ OFRI - OMNR, Sault Ste. Marie, ON² SCSI - OMNR, North Bay, ON³ NWSI - OMNR, Thunder Bay, ON

ABSTRACT- The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources is the steward of over 45 million ha of forest land that is managed extensively for multiple values. Over the last decade, forest landscape ecological applications have become an integral part of Ontario's management policies, guidelines, and practices. Here we examine the evolution in landscape ecological knowledge in Ontario and its incorporation into forest management planning. Several higher-level influences supported the development and application of landscape ecology: a province-wide environmental assessment and subsequent changes in forest management guidelines, a socio-political policy program, and most importantly a new forestry act, which entrenched forest sustainability at the legislative level. Concurrently, an enabling infrastructure was developed by implementing GIS-based management planning and assigning trained people to ensure the transfer of new applications. At the same time, demand from practitioners for landscape ecological applications was increasing due to the shift from timber management to more holistic forest management. As a result, present forest policies, guidelines, and practices in Ontario reflect a high level of landscape ecology knowledge. Short-term challenges encountered include the time required to get new approaches accepted; the traditional stand-level educational background of most resource managers; and the scepticism inherent to a young science. Difficulties in setting clear multi-value management goals and complexities in the existing planning framework continue to be challenges. Based on experiences in Ontario, we conclude that to successfully develop, transfer, and apply landscape ecological knowledge requires a combination of political will, social pressure, enabling structure, and acceptance from forest managers.

KEY WORDS: forest management policy, forest landscape ecology, technology transfer, applications, Ontario