Well-being in extension work among private land owners:A forest planning case

摘要

Urbanization, value diversification and the possibilities of new technology are altering the management of natural resources in western societies. Consequently, the approaches and tools of contacting and communicating with private land owners are facing change pressures. In our present case of Finnish forest planning, forestry extension practices are studied and developed with a focus on professional foresters' object-dependent well-being. The professional forest planners' view on their present work duties was first acquired through 19 semi-structured interviews. Developmental sessions with a group of planners in a statutory regional Forestry Centre were secondly conducted to find out new models for planning work. There were 10 sessions aiming at an expansive transformation of planning practice. As a conclusion, the motivating and meaningful extension role of a planner might include two sub-roles. A mediator mainly informs the owner about forest and its long-term opportunities while being sensitive to the owner's needs. An activator, in turn, assists the suggested operations to become realized in forest. This role is principally concentrating on the instant consequences of forestry operations.