Abstract

In addition to providing key ecological functions, large old trees are a part of a social realm and as such provide numerous social-cultural benefits to people. However, their social and cultural values are often neglected when designing conservation policies and management guidelines. We believe that awareness of large old trees as a part of human identity and cultural heritage is essential when addressing the issue of their decline worldwide. Large old trees provide humans with aesthetic, symbolic, religious, and historic values, as well as concrete tangible benefits, such as leaves, branches, or nuts. In many cultures particularly large trees are treated with reverence. Also, contemporary popular culture utilizes the image of trees as sentient beings and builds on the ancient myths that attribute great powers to large trees. Although the social and cultural role of large old trees is usually not taken into account in conservation, accounting for human-related values of these trees is an important part of conservation policy because it may strengthen conservation by highlighting the potential synergies in protecting ecological and social values.

Keywords

cultural values; ecosystem services; large trees; natural heritage; old trees; policy; social values; arboles anejos; arboles grandes; patrimonio natural; politica; servicios del ecosistema; valores culturales; valores sociales

Published in

Conservation Biology
2014, Volume: 28, number: 6, pages: 1558-1567

SLU Authors

• Mikusinski, Grzegorz

  • School for Forest Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • Department of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Blicharska, Malgorzata

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Associated SLU-program

SLU Swedish Biodiversity Centre


Sustainable Development Goals

SDG11 Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable


UKÄ Subject classification

Other Biological Topics
Botany


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12341

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/63551