El fuego es a veces enemigo, a voces amigo, segn el uso a que se destine la tierra y segn el valor que asuman unas cuantas variables ambientales; en cualquier caso, siempre repercute en los ecosistemas de recursos naturales. Es esencial, por consiguiente, tener en cuenta su efecto probable (tanto positivo, como negativo) al formular planes y programas de desarrollo forestal.

Ce numro d'Unasylva se concentre sur les aspects techniques, mais aussi politiques et sociaux, de la rcupration de sites spcifiques, par des activits forestires.

The FRA 2000 estimates of forest area and change are largely based on national statistics and inventory reports, which contain detailed information on the forests of individual countries. However, differences among data sets from the various countries can be great owing to the methods applied, the terms and definitions employed and the currency of the information in the individual inventories. Despite adjustments made to accommodate these differences, uncertainties can still arise when statistics from different countries are compared, especially those relating to forest change.

This issue of Unasylva focuses on the special challenges concerning the conservation and use of trees outside forests.

The document is a compilation of detailed statistics on farming, livestock, fishery, forestry and nutrition in Asia-Pacific countries for the above period. The seventeenth issue of the series shows the changes in land use, farm inputs, and production indices for staple food crops - rice, wheat, maize, millet, cereals, cassava, a range of root and tuber crops, pulses, edible oil and fibre crops, fruit and cash crops like rubber and coffee. It also compares changes in livestock, fisheries and forestry production, agricultural trade and nutritional availability and intake for this period.

In this issue, we will be looking at work underway on the Voluntary Guidelines on responsible governance of tenure of land and other natural resources. We will also look at work done in Thailand and lessons learned by the German-financed Bioenergy and Food Security project.

This document contains the proceedings of the Subregional Workshop on Land Water Information Systems (LWRIS) in the Caribbean, held in Barbados in October 2000. The meeting was organized by FAO Land and Water Development Division (AGL), in collaboration with the Caribbean Agricultural and Research Development Institute.

Revue internationale des forts et des industries forestires