Trees and People

In a global perspective, the human impact on forest §ecosystems varies greatly in type, frequency and §magnitude. Knowledge of the history of forest use is §crucial for understanding the development of §forests, which in turn helps to understand how §societies react to forest development. Culturally §modified trees (CMTs) are features that can be dated §precisely, and they bear witness to unique events of §human activity. CMTs are traces from historical uses §of forest resources that reflect the activities of §local communities and extend far back in time, and §therefore offer information not usually available §from other sources. CMTs have high potential for §assessing human activity and possibly human impacts§on forest ecosystems, particularly those concerning §local indigenous uses. Periods of increased activity §in a certain area are reflected in peaks in the §distribution of CMT dates. These also show the time §period and speed of abandonment of a traditional §forest use in a landscape. CMTs contradict the idea §of pristine forests but symbolize the traditional §view that people are part of nature rather than §separate from it.