Social representations of forest landscapes: A case study on the relationship between the dynamics of forest change, the sense of ownership and sustainable management in Spain

Abstract

In Southwest Europe the forest landscapes are threatened by degradation and abandonment. This research addresses how the different groups of local forest actors in southern Aragon, Spain, perceive, interpret and narrate their forest landscapes. From 30 qualitative interviews, four divergent socio-ecological discourses have been identified reflecting the social representations. It concludes by highlighting the directions in which public policies should be worked to increase the sustainability of forest landscapes and change the current and divergent socio-ecological discourses: revision of the relationships of property and use rights, increase of internal and external knowledge of the forest management and openness to new actors and new forms of interaction based on cooperation and social innovation.