Here is, for the first time, a Europe-wide overview of the state of recreation and nature tourism in forests. It describes the current situation and conflicts in the different regions of Europe and provides solutions illustrated by good practice examples.
Ulrike Probstl is Professor for Landscape Development, Recreation and Tourism at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria. She received her PhD in forest policy, and has been the director of a planning and research consultancy in Germany. Her current research interests focus on recreation and conservation planning, adaptation to climate change, and nature based tourism.
Veronika Wirth is research assistant and a PhD candidate at the Institute of Landscape Development, Recreation and Conservation Planning, University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria. Her current research interests include recreation and conservation planning, sustainable forestmanagement as well as nature based tourism and possible adaptation to climate change.
Birgit Elands is Assistant Professor in the Forest and Nature Conservation Policy Group of Wageningen University in the Netherlands. She received her doctor's degree on a study focussing on tourist behaviour as an outcome of a search for meaningful experiences. Her research interests include all aspects related to human-nature interaction, such as recreational behaviour, public experiences and meanings of nature, and recreational conflicts.
Simon Bell is Associate Director of OPENspace at Edinburgh College of Art and Professor of Landscape Architecture in the Institute of Agriculture and Environment at the Estonian University of Life Sciences, Tartu, Estonia. He recently gained his PhD at the Estonian University of Life Sciences. He is an international expert on forest and park landscapes, outdoor recreation and large-scale landscape evaluation and design.