Latvian Council of Science Grant Agreement No. lzp-2025/1-0478
Project partners: LSFRI "Silava" (leading partner) and Baltic International Centre for Economic Policy Studies (BICEPS).
Total budget: EUR 300,000.
The diversification of forest bioeconomy is one of the preconditions for sustainable development of the forest sector, and inclusion of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in the value chains will play a significant role in the future. As the significance of many NTFPs commonly used in Latvia and Baltic Sea region in general exceeds purely economic value and encompasses social and cultural importance rooted in experience and traditions, these aspcts should be considered in the bioeconomy development in a holistic way.
The aim of the study is, by studying the supply and demand of the NTFPs, to reveal the economic, social and cultural contribution of these products to the wellbeing of people in Latvia. The three work packages will
- Study the social and cultural aspects of NTFPs use,
- Analyze the economic aspects (real use vale), and
- by applying the Living Lab approach in two model areas, combine a detailed field assessment of NTFPs with the local ecological knowledge, to better understand the motivation for their gathering and use and to reveal the link between the NTFPs and biodiversity indicators. Within the Living Lab experiment, a methodology for assessment of NTFPs from both social-economic and ecological perspective will be developed and verified. The study results will provide theoretical and practical contribution to the NTFPs research and closer integration in a versatile and sustainable forest bioeconomy.
