What motivates forest owners to join biodiversity restoration schemes?
A new study from the SUPERB project, published in Restoration Ecology, explored how forest owners in Denmark and Finland respond to different kinds of agreements for supporting biodiversity in their forests.
The research showed that many owners want much higher compensation to join result-based schemes, where payments depend on proven improvements in biodiversity. In Finland, owners asked for more than double compared to action-based schemes, which simply pay for carrying out agreed management practices (like planting or habitat protection).
Preferences also varied by country: Danish owners welcomed outside consultant support, while Finnish owners preferred to do self-monitoring under action-based contracts – but disliked monitoring when payments depended on biodiversity results.
Overall, the study highlights that restoring nature on private land will only succeed if agreements are designed to fit both the practical needs of forest owners and the ecological goals of restoration. This insight is particularly important as the EU shapes its new Forest Strategy for 2030.
Read the study here
Full reference: Süring, C. M., & Lundhede, T. H. (2025). Private forest owner preferences for action- and result-based biodiversity restoration contracts – A discrete choice experiment in Denmark and Finland. Forest Policy and Economics, 169, 103609. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2025.103609
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