Decision Making in Tree Selection – Contemplating Conflicting Goals via Marteloscope Exercises

The paper analyses decision-making processes in Marteloscope exercises, where participants must balance timber-production goals with biodiversity values such as the retention of habitat trees and microhabitats. Using a practice-based, qualitative research approach, the authors observe how foresters, conservationists, and students evaluate trees and negotiate trade-offs under different constraints.

Rather than treating choices as purely rational or rule-based, the study shows that decisions emerge from a mixture of professional training, personal experience, institutional expectations, and emotional responses. Professional foresters often prioritise production-oriented indicators, while conservationists emphasise microhabitats and structural diversity. Students’ decisions vary depending on their background.

The findings demonstrate that implementing biodiversity-friendly forestry is not only a technical or ecological matter but also a social one. Institutional cultures, routines, and professional values significantly shape outcomes. The article concludes that meaningful integration of conservation within production forests requires acknowledging and engaging with these social dimensions.