What is a forest?

A forest can be seen from many perspectives. Drag the layers over the picture of the forest to see the same forest from different perspectives!

Forests can serve many purposes all at once: forestry, recreation, reindeer grazing grounds, landscapes, animal habitats, summer cottage grounds, mushroom and berry-picking, hunting – they are not called multiple-use forests for nothing! However, reconciling the different forms of forest use is not always without conflicts. There are other parties involved in forests besides visitors and forest creatures, namely the Finnish Government, laws and decrees, and different ownership relations. Although Finland’s forests belong to everyone, there is always an actual owner who decides how their forest will be used – within the applicable laws and decrees, of course. 

The goal of the Forest Act is to provide forest owners with an increasing supply of alternatives for forest management, depending on their own values and preferences. In addition, forest management guidelines are in place to safeguard the biodiversity in Finnish forests. What would you do with your own forest?