climate change adaptation in swedish forestry: driving forces, risks and opportunities

The report examines how stakeholders in Swedish forestry perceive climate change risks and opportunities. It finds that while some anticipate increased growth, others fear storm damage and pests. Adaptation is driven by personal experience of extreme weather and trust in advisers, but hindered by distrust of climate science and conflicting views on effective management strategies. The document emphasizes the need for user-oriented, interactive communication between researchers and practitioners to foster adaptation.

• Forest owners and forestry advisers have mixed perceptions of climate change; at least one-third believe it poses serious risks, while more than one-fourth believe it will have a positive effect on Swedish forestry.
• Positive expectations include increased forest growth and new markets for forest products driven by efforts to reduce fossil emissions, while risks include changed precipitation, storm damages, insects, pests, and spring frosts.
• Personal experience with extreme weather events, such as the storms Gudrun and Per, significantly increases risk awareness and the willingness of forest owners to implement adaptation measures.
• There is a notable gap between forest owners and forestry advisers regarding the effectiveness of specific adaptation measures; for instance, over 40% of owners view avoiding clear-cutting as effective, compared to only 17% of advisers.
• Distrust of climate science, rooted in past experiences such as the acidification debate of the 1980s, acts as a barrier to adaptation that is difficult to overcome through standard education.
• Forestry advisers are critical intermediaries for disseminating research, though many forest owners still rely primarily on journals, radio, and newspapers for climate change information.
• The Swedish forestry industry may face indirect climate risks through its global markets, such as vulnerability in North Africa and the Middle East, or competition with North American suppliers affected by climate-linked insect attacks.
• Effective climate communication must be relevant, credible, and legitimate, avoiding alarming messages that can lead recipients to feel powerless or deny risks.
• National adaptation policy in Sweden was significantly accelerated after the 2005 storm Gudrun, leading to the 2009 Climate and Energy Bill which assigned coordinating roles to County Administrative Boards.

APA

André, K., Swartling, Å. G., Vulturius, G., Olsson, O., & Carlsen, H. (2016). climate change adaptation in swedish forestry: driving forces, risks and opportunities. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/MSW-2016-07-Climate-adaptation-Swedish-forestry.pdf

Chicago

André, Karin, Åsa Gerger Swartling, Gregor Vulturius, Olle Olsson, and Henrik Carlsen. climate change adaptation in swedish forestry: driving forces, risks and opportunities. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2016. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/MSW-2016-07-Climate-adaptation-Swedish-forestry.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=André |first1=Karin |last2=Swartling |first2=Åsa Gerger |last3=Vulturius |first3=Gregor |last4=Olsson |first4=Olle |last5=Carlsen |first5=Henrik |title=climate change adaptation in swedish forestry: driving forces, risks and opportunities |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2016 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/MSW-2016-07-Climate-adaptation-Swedish-forestry.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{andr2016climate, author = {André, Karin and Swartling, Åsa Gerger and Vulturius, Gregor and Olsson, Olle and Carlsen, Henrik}, title = {{climate change adaptation in swedish forestry: driving forces, risks and opportunities}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2016}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/MSW-2016-07-Climate-adaptation-Swedish-forestry.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }