The International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO) is a non-profit, non-governmental international network of forest scientists. IUFRO now has approximately 15,000 cooperating member scientists in over 700 member institutions from more than 100 countries. In short succession, Silva Voc, IUFRO's service unit on multilingual forest →terminology at the Secretariat, and the IUFRO Working Party 6.03.02 "Trends in forest terminology" have been created to address terminological issues. As the co-ordinators of these initiatives, we believe that our activities are mutually beneficial and complementary.
SilvaVoc was conceived to continue IUFRO's traditional activities in forest →terminology. It represents a clearing-house her terminological activities within the IUFRO Secretariat, and offers consultation and database services. In a first phase it focussed on compiling information and meta-information on existing terminological publications in forestry. At present its activities emphasize co-operation with the IUFRO structure and Japan, e.g. for the publication of a multilingual Terminology of Forest Management Planning, and on other thematic studies on forest genetic resources and agroforestry. In parallel, the IUFRO Working Parties are invited to contribute to the terminological database managed by SilvaVoc.
Working Party 6.03.02 "Trends in forest terminology" relies on a network of experts in forest-related fields in the broadest sense, including for example forest economists and sociologists, as well as terminologist. These experts contribute to a terminological watch for the early identification of emerging forest-related issues, inventory terminological divergences and discuss them within thematic electronic discussion groups and maintain a terminological hotline for telematic-based terminological assistance.
The activities of both initiatives aim at ensuring the high quality and continuity of →terminology work in forestry within IUFRO. We intend to point out terminological differences rather than concealing them. We follow descriptive rather than prescriptive principles, focus on co-operation from the many forestry experts of the IUFRO structure and include all languages.