Forestry research must become more interdisciplinary

"Forestry research is still very much compartmentalised by the different disciplines that make it up. It needs to move towards greater interdisciplinarity if it is to respond better to current challenges, particularly in the face of climate change". Plinio Sist is Director of the Forests and Societies research unit at CIRAD. He and Daniel Barthélemy are CIRAD's scientific representatives for the PEPR FORESTT. Both researchers are convinced that their field of research needs to evolve.  
The forest is a socio-ecosystem," explains Daniel Barthélemy, an expert in plant biodiversity at CIRAD and director of the "Agriculture, Environment, Biodiversity" cluster at the University of Montpellier. It forms direct and indirect links with several economic sectors, such as agriculture. It provides crucial environmental services. And beyond these economic and ecological aspects, forests are full of symbolism for our societies. A member of the public, a nature conservation association and a forestry company, for example, will all perceive a forested area in different and sometimes opposing ways".
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From a news item on the CIRAD website