This research reports a comparative analysis of the communication strategy that forest owners' associations across Europe use to influence society on one side and the decision-makers on the other, in order to fulfill forest owners' interests. 60% of Europe's forests are privately owned by an estimated number of 16 million forest owners, who are represented by forest owners associations. One of its main functions is to influence the public perceptions on forests and forestry. In this article it is analyzed how a specific forestry stakeholder fixes its strategies to communicate with and lobby society in order to get acceptability for their proposals/demands. Open-end surveys have been used as a source of information in 2006 and repeated in 2012. Besides of the comparison among countries, a comparison along the time has been also performed. The whole communication frame is analyzed, considering the objectives, the structure, the messages, the channels, and the evaluation. The main conclusions that arise are: first, the temporary comparison (2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012) results into an improvement in several issues; second, there is room for improvement of professionalization of communication in forest owners' associations in Europe; third, social research into public perception of forestry might help to define communication strategies.

Are the policies designed by decision-makers differing from society's wishes and preferences? The present paper analyzes the divergences between forest policy and public opinion in the Region of Valencia (Comunidad Valenciana) in Eastern Spain. The data is based on an extensive telephone survey of the general public on their perception of forestry issues. The issues studied include attitudes regarding forest fires, silvicultural treatments, the externalities produced by forest owners, and the state forest service's role related to these issues. In total, the answers of 823 respondents were analyzed using classification trees. The results of the analysis showed a large divergence between the desires, preferences and priorities of society, on the one hand, and the policies implemented by the regional government, on the other. The study concludes that communication strategies concerning sustainable forest management need to be further developed by the responsible authorities, with the input of the research community.Key words: environmental communication; society-policy interface; natural resources management; forest governance; forest attitudes; rurality classification. ResumenPercepción pública sobre el sector forestal en la Comunidad Valenciana (Este de España): ¿divergiendo de los responsables de la toma de decisiones? ¿Difieren las políticas diseñadas por los responsables de la toma de decisiones, de los deseos y preferencias de la sociedad? El presente artículo analiza las divergencias entre la política forestal y la opinión pública en la Comunidad Valenciana. Los datos están basados en una amplia encuesta telefónica dirigida al público en general sobre su percepción en temas forestales. Los temas estudiados incluyen actitudes hacia los incendios forestales, los tratamientos silvícolas, las externalidades generadas por los propietarios forestales, y el papel de la administración forestal hacia estos temas. En total se analizaron las respuestas de 823 encuestados utilizando árboles de clasificación. Los resultados del análisis mostraron una amplia divergencia entre los deseos, preferencias y prioridades de la sociedad, por una parte, y las políticas implementadas por el gobierno regional, por la otra. El estudio concluye que las estrategias de comunicación referentes a la gestión forestal sostenible necesitan ser desarrolladas por las autoridades responsables, con el aporte de la comunidad científica. Palabras

Aim of study: The aim of this paper is to analyze how the news media influences the construction of the social perception of forests and forestry.Area of study: The area covered by this study is Spain. Material and Methods:The materials used for the analysis were the online news related to items such as forest, bioenergy and biodiversity, in two leading newspapers in Spain from 2009 to 2012. The hypotheses tested were divided into two sets, one focused on the messages and another focused on the sources on these messages. Summative content analysis was applied, combining both quantitative and qualitative data analysis. The messages and sources were systematically explored and monitored.Main results: As main results, forest wildfires news is the most frequent issue mentioned in the media, however they require deeper reflection and debate. Keywords such as forest management, owners, harvesting, products, etc. are rarely found anymore; furthermore, new terms such as biomass, are not yet prevalent. On sources, official institutions, primarily the regional governments, dominate the news sources with a share of over 50%.Research highlights: Mass media analysis is considered the most appropriate complement for perception studies as it provides relevant basic information needed to design a communication plan. Further research is required on the role mass media plays in how we perceive and react to the environmental problems around us.

Fabra-Crespo, M. Perceptions, realities and forest communication. Dissertationes Forestales 199. 46 p.