Diversifying forest expertise: forest journals narrating policy change

ABSTRACT

During policy change, the role of the actors communicating the change to different audiences is accentuated. The media plays an increasing role, either as an actor or by providing a stage for other actors. In particular, specialised journals represent an influential, albeit understudied, sphere of policy studies. We use the narrative policy framework complemented with frame analysis to trace how specialised media can affect policy implementation through implicit suggestions for action. Using this combined approach, we analyse how specialised forest journals, which are the most important forest information source for Finnish forest owners, have conveyed the renewal of forest legislation in Finland. The core message of the journals is that forest owners should, despite their new freedom granted by the reform, rely on experts rather than experimenting when managing their forests. This suggests that the media contributes to a path-dependent continuation of a forest policy that is based on a rationalistic exploitation ethos. The innovative potential, which the policy change aimed at encouraging, is thereby partially undermined. However, the analysis of the narratives also reveals that forest expertise and professionalism are diversifying. This notion is important as diversity can eventually lead to narratives supporting more fundamental change in forests management.

KEYWORDS:

• Forest policy
• forest media
• policy implementation
• narrative policy framework
• frame analysis
• natural resource governance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributors

Juha Peltomaa is a Senior Researcher at the Finnish Environment Institute. His work and research is focused on the national and local level implementation of policies related to ecological and social sustainability.

Mikael Hildén is professor and Director of the Climate Change Programme at the Finnish Environment Institute. His research focuses on policy evaluation, with an emphasis on the role of policies in societal transformations.

Suvi Huttunen works as a Senior Lecturer in social sciences at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. Her research focuses on different level actors and their practices in relation to sustainability transitions and policies.

ORCID

Juha Peltomaa http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7703-9822

Notes

1 Henceforth we use the term journals.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry under project POLKEVA and the Academy of Finland under Grant 259929 GREENPOL; Kone Foundation.