Active management: a definition and considerations for implementation in forests of temperate Australia

Abstract

Active management is often mentioned but rarely defined in current policies and strategies for native forests of temperate Australia. Lack of clarity about active management could mean that policies to support forest health and human involvement with forests are not fit for purpose. In this paper, we summarise the policy context for active management in Victoria (as a case study for temperate Australia) and review representations of active management in the broader temperate-forest literature, including its place in relation to associated concepts like adaptive management. Based on the review, we provide a definition of active management that focuses on human activities in forests–deliberate practices for diverse purposes and goals–situated within broader operational approaches (e.g. adaptive management frameworks) that enact the overarching philosophy and paradigm(s) of forest management. Our definition acknowledges multiple potential framings of active management that encompass diverse philosophies and sociocultural relationships with forests and require governance structures that foster inclusive understandings. Additional considerations for implementing active management in Australia’s temperate forests include refreshed visions for forest management, clearly stated goals for active management, criteria for choosing among practices under uncertainty, revised operational guidelines for diverse practices, and commitment to building the evidence base for active management through iterative learning and targeted experiments within an adaptive management or analogous framework.