Contests of natural beauty

What kinds of images are associated with forests? Are there any similarities and differences in various cultural contexts? Such questions are hard to explore empirically. Nonetheless, the outcomes could be rewarding. If such ‘shared images’ can be identified, the role of foresters, forestry management practices and their relationships to forests can be explored from the perspective of the general public. This book describes an empirical enquiry into the types of forest-related symbols and images that are widely shared in contemporary German and Japanese societies, using prize-wining photographic images from photo contests. At present, both German and Japanese forestry organisations find themselves at a transition point that necessitates dialogue with the general public on a range of forestry issues. Consequently, the forestry industries in both countries are in search of a lingua franca that bridges the gap between forestry experts and the general public. Such issues are becoming increasingly apparent as forestry organisations are being required to provide the public with an improved understanding of efforts made to maintain multiple forest service functions in sustainable forest management (SFM) practices. As demands on forests are becoming more diverse in nature, the existence of any shared forest images or icons of forests by a heterogeneous public is of particular interest.