Successful biodiversity conservation does not depend on ecologic knowledge alone. Good conservation policies and policy implementation tools are equally important. Moreover, the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of local actors, directly in charge of operations in the field, are a key to successful policy implementation. The connections between policy objectives and their implementation as well as the involvement of local actors' efforts in implementing policy objectives largely depend on the governance model in use. This article assesses the knowledge of local actors in relation to the biodiversity conservation objectives and tools in Lithuanian forest management. As a main framework for this study, the needs assessment approach was applied. The study used both in-depth open-ended interviews and follow-up telephone interviews. Two state forest enterprises in Lithuania were selected as the study sites. The findings indicate that policy objectives in the field of forest biodiversity conservation and the related tools are well known but not well understood by those in charge of forest biodiversity policy implementation. To improve the situation, a transition toward adaptive learning and participatory governance as a means of facilitating conservation efforts is proposed.

We analyse whether the European Community provides for articulating a common set of priorities for society and supports openness and participation in the area of forest policy at the Community level. In doing so, we review the institutional framework and, using the results of the internet-based stakeholder consultation, assess the presence of interested parties at the level of the European Community. In addition, from the same consultation we learn about the opinions of the interest groups concerning possible areas for enhancing coherence in forest governance in the European Union.The results of the study demonstrate that there is a range of possibilities for participation of different interest groups and fl ow of information between the European Commission and the stakeholders. However, the number of interest groups prepared to actively participate in Community-level forest and forestry-related policy-and decision-making is relatively low.We conclude that the present institutional arrangements should be suffi cient for open and participatory priority setting in forest governance at the European Community level. However, based on the 'stakeholder consultation' we also conclude that co-ordination and co-operation, and hence coherence, in forest and forestry-related policy-and decisionmaking at the Community level should be improved.

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The current state of cooperation in private forestry in Lithuania is examined, with a focus on the analysis of objectives, organisational structure and the ways forest owners' cooperatives operate. A postal survey has been used as a main research instrument, the questionnaire consisting of a series of multiplechoice close-ended questions. This paper provides insights into the state forest enterprises and other private companies operating in the private forestry sector, and places forest owners' cooperatives in a broader context of the private forestry sector. A typical forest owner's cooperative in Lithuania has up to 10 members and about 20 clients to whom services are provided. The leaders of cooperatives indicate that the optimal number of clients using their services should not exceed 40. The main stated objectives of cooperatives are the provision of services to their members under the most attractive conditions, uniting members, and earning a profit for the members. These activities of cooperatives revolve around timber harvesting and trade. It is concluded that the process of cooperation of private forest owners in Lithuania is rather slow, although positive development can be observed.

Sustainable development has become the main priority of contemporary global society, and it is increasingly perceived not only in the context of environmental protection, but also as an entirety of processes in ecosystems, the society and different countries. Ecosystem stability and human well-being in an ecosystem, in the community, the society, and the country are greatly influenced by political, economic, social and cultural processes in the countryside, because rural territories make up a bigger part of the territories of contemporary countries. The article analyses Lithuanian rural development reviewing the damage done by Russian (Soviet) occupation to the Lithuanian countryside and assessing its development in the context of rural development and contemporary sustainable development in Western European countries and the world. It is concluded that the agricultural model in Lithuania as well as in all other countries that have freed themselves from the Soviet Union is based on Socialist (communist) doctrine and is an extreme contrast to the European Model of Agriculture.