Owners of small forest – tough cookies; Campaigning; Why are we campaigning? Essential reminders for campaigns Owners of small forests are partially difficult to reach. Some of them are not participating in a traditional forestry dialogue and are often inactive. Private property is well respected in Europe and there is no stringent obligation for forest management in a particular way. The situation becomes problematic as poorly managed forests may have
negative effects on the forests of neighbors or on public goods such as ecosystem services. Policy makers have three ways of addressing forest owners. A wide frame of appropriate forest management is defined by the national Forest Acts that can be understood as the ‘sticks’. Alternatively, forest owners can receive benefits such as subsidies
when implementing a particular forest management activity. Such benefits are understood as "carrots". Financial benefits are often perceived as marginally attractive for owners of small forests. A third option are campaigns or "sermons". The campaigns are often the method of choice when addressing owners of small forests.
