Anticipated future trends
Forestry is a leading industry in Michigan and will remain high. Academic forest research and education are needed to manage and conserve the forests for wood and biofuel production, recreation, and wildlife habitat.
All aspects of forestry have been and will continue to be impacted by rapid social change, economics, technology, biotechnology and politics. Climate change will affect all aspects of the discipline, including forest management practices, forest composition and prospects of biofuel industries.
The growth of data-intensive research is exponential. Grant-funded research will increasingly demand data management plan specifications, including considerations for publishing and sharing data. Relevant granting agencies such as the USDA, the US Forest Service and the National Science Foundation will soon include these data management requirements. This will increase the need for awareness of data publication venues.
Relationships with other resources
1. On campus branch or format collections, if any
Special Collections: Historic American forestry works
2. Regional or network resources, if any
Other strong collections in the region are at University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, and Penn State. The MSU Libraries borrow very little in the forestry subjects (relative to other areas in the applied sciences) and much of what is borrowed comes from the University of Minnesota and other land-grant established universities. The State Library of Michigan holds a large collection of historic Michigan forestry documents.
In 1990, the MSU Libraries became a charter institutional member of the United States Agricultural Information Network (USAIN).
In 2012, the MSU Libraries became and institutional member of the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL).
3. Relationships to Other Resources Treated in Other Policy Statements
Agriculture: agroforestry, biofuel production, land use
Biological Science/Natural History: applied areas of plant science related to natural forest communities
Botany: applied areas of plant science related to natural forest communities
Engineering: construction engineering
Digital Research Data
Environmental Studies: natural resources management, sustainable programs
U.S. Documents: Federal Forest Service and the Department of Interior