Project Description

Scientific research on non timber forest products in the United States is fragmented and underfunded, and the number of scholars with expertise in NTFP issues is small.  To provide a cohesive and vital picture of the current and potential role of NTFPs, we have brought together in one volume research from multiple scientific disciplines and analytical perspectives.  The primary purpose of the book is to illustrate the many different ways in which NTFPs are important to society and sustainable forest management, to whom they are important, and the steps that different individuals and interest groups are taking or have taken to ensure that they have access to NTFPs now and in the future.

The book describes the ways in which NTFPs are important in the U.S.,  including their socio-cultural, economic, and ecological values. The last three sections focus on NTFP-related tenure conflicts, including tensions over who has a voice in policy and management decisions that affect NTFPs and NTFP harvesters, buyers, and processors. 

By providing managers and researchers with deeper understandings of the complexities of social, ecological, and economic aspects of NTFPs, we expect that the book will contribute toward the development of more sophisticated forest policy and management frameworks. We see the contributions to this volume as useful to a broad audience, ranging from NTFP harvesters and buyers, environmentalist organizations, rural development groups, Native American tribal members, scientists, and public and private forest land managers.