Forests are a major natural resource. The protective function of forests has in many parts of the world preference to other forest functions and forests are - not only in areas close to cities - important for recreation. The importance of functions of forests depends on the social and cultural impact.
Forest inventory must ensure that comprehensive information on forest ecosystems is obtained and presented to decision makers in a manner that is comprehensible. In designing forest surveys a compromise between simplicity and efficiency has to be found.
The procedings contain 33 contributions to topics concerning the controversy between simple versus efficient sampling desings and the assessment of non-timber functions.