Social dimensions of a forest-based bioeconomy: A summary and synthesis
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SOCIAL DIMENSIONS OF A FOREST-BASED BIOECONOMY
Social dimensions of a forest-based bioeconomy: A summary and synthesis Lea Ranacher, Ida Wallin, Lauri Valsta, Daniela Kleinschmit
Published online: 13 October 2020
Abstract How perceptions of the forest-based bioeconomy differ across country contexts and social groups is important as it opens possibilities for the development of more inclusive, locally and socially relevant bioeconomy policies and strategies. Therefore, this special section explores the social dimensions of the forest-based bioeconomy by focusing on discourses and perceptions of different actor groups in Europe. We introduce six articles that range from review and discursive approaches to consumer studies. The section adds to the existing literature by focusing not only on political decision makers, stakeholders, and experts but also on the public, media and students. Patterns in the presented discourses and perceptions can be identified but more is needed to validate these and respond to the question of representativeness.
perspectives and creating possibilities for more comprehensive and critical perspectives on the forest-based bioeconomy. This special section explores the social dimensions of the forest-based bioeconomy by focusing on discourses and perceptions of different actor groups in Europe. The articles included are grouped into two parts: Part 1 comprises articles on bioeconomy discourses and Part 2 covers empirical studies about perceptions. Below, we first situate our special section within the scientific literature on the bioeconomy topic and describe the socio-political context. We then briefly synthesize the main findings, introduce organizing questions and present conclusions about the social dimensions of the forest-based bioeconomy in Europe.
Keywords Forest sector Future directions Political sciences Stakeholder perceptions
THE BIOECONOMY: A CONCEPT SUBJECTED TO DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES AND ACTOR PERCEPTIONS
INTRODUCTION
Bioeconomy is an elusive concept that holds great promise for addressing some of the major global and national challenges of our times, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource scarcity, whilst at the same time strengthening economic growth and national competitiveness (Pavone and Goven 2017). While political strategies worldwide present bioeconomy as a pathway towards a new and sustainable economy (Bioo¨konomierat 2015), serious concerns are increasingly being raised regarding the impact of bioeconomy on the environment. Whilst the bioeconomy is envisioned to generate economic and environmental benefits focusing on large-scale industrial processes, it is unresponsive to local sustainability goals (McCormick and Kautto 2013). The bioeconomy may
Bioeconomy as a concept and political strategy conveys the basic idea of a sustainable economy where biobased and renewable materials have replaced non-renewables in all production stages. Forests are considered central suppliers of raw material in most European bioeconomy strategies. With high de
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