ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to define the extent to which global wood sourcing transition is occurring. Wood has been a vital natural resource for humans. It has been the primary source of fuel for most of human existence and central to building, tool making, information sharing and shipping. The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) global datasets on roundwood production include all sources of roundwood: natural forests, plantations, planted forests and trees not from forests. The FAO estimates of total roundwood include roundwood from forests and non-forest sources such as woodlands and trees not from forests. The magnitude of the shift in wood sourcing from natural forests to cultivated sources raises significant questions for sustainable forest management, forest and biodiversity conservation, and ecosystem services delivery. Natural forest roundwood production estimates were derived by subtracting cultivated wood variants from total roundwood production figures.
