Start here
Climate Change and its Impact on Forest Ecosystems
An overview of how warming, shifting rainfall and extreme events are changing forests, from tree growth and timing to pests, fire, soils and species.
Forests
Understand forests, from roots to canopy.
Plain-language guides to forest ecosystems, climate, restoration, sustainable forestry, wildlife and the communities that depend on forests.
155 in-depth guides 19 topics Oct 2026 latest guide
Featured guides
Guides to start with
Each one links on to more specific articles in its topic.
The Role of Forests in Regulating the Global Carbon Cycle
How carbon moves between air, oceans, soil and trees, and why forests act as both sinks and sources depending on growth, disturbance and human land use.
The Role of Forests in Regulating the Global Water Cycle
How forests move water into the air through transpiration, help form clouds and shape regional rainfall, and why large-scale forest loss can change weather.
The Role of Forests in Supporting Biodiversity Hotspots
Why some forest regions hold exceptional numbers of species, how the hotspot idea is defined, and why these places are treated as conservation priorities.
The Effects of Over-Harvesting on Forest Ecosystems
Over-harvesting means taking more from a forest than it can regrow. Learn how timber, firewood and wild products can overshoot a forest's capacity to recover.
Browse
Explore by topic
How Forests Work
Climate, carbon, water, soil and wildlife.
Climate and Forests How a changing climate affects forest life, water and soil. 8 guides Forest Carbon How forests store carbon and how that fits into climate action. 8 guides Water and Soil How forests shape water flow and protect soil. 6 guides Wildlife and Biodiversity Habitats, species and the effects of splitting up forests. 8 guides
Threats and Recovery
What damages forests and how they are restored.
People and Land Use
Farming, communities and sustainable use.
Agroforestry Growing trees together with crops and livestock. 5 guides Communities and Culture People who live with and manage forests. 5 guides Sustainable Use Using forests, in the countryside and in cities, without wearing them out. 4 guides Owning Woodland Plain background for people who own or care for a small forest. 10 guides
Forest Types and Biology
Tropical, temperate, boreal and coastal forests, and how trees themselves work.
Tropical Rainforests Structure, soils, rainfall and pressures in the wet tropics. 11 guides Temperate and Boreal Forests Forests of the mid and high latitudes and how they change over time. 11 guides Tree Biology and Forest Life How trees grow, feed, reproduce and defend themselves. 11 guides Mangroves and Wetland Forests Coastal, riverside and waterlogged forests. 10 guides
Managing and Measuring Forests
How forests are grown, measured, governed and turned into products.
Measurement and Monitoring How people count, measure and track forests. 11 guides Silviculture and Harvest Methods The craft of growing, tending and harvesting stands. 11 guides Policy, Rights and Certification Laws, ownership and labels that shape how forests are used. 10 guides Wood and Forest Products What comes out of forests and how it is used. 10 guides