U članku se izvještava o istraživanjima stajališta stanovništva o općem značenju i ulozi šuma i šumarstva na lokalnoj razini. Ciljanim upitnikom bilo je obuhvaćeno 50 ispitanika, pri čemu je približno polovica intervjuirana u urbanoj, a druga polovica u ruralnoj sredini. Stavovi stanovništva ispitivani su vezano za najznačajnije ekološke probleme i ulogu šuma, pojmove, održivi razvitak i potrajno gospodarenje, ocjenu stanja šuma u RH i najvažnije poslove vezane za šumske ekosustave, kvalitetu gospodarenja šumama i dr. Nalazi i izvješća iz predmetnog istraživanja za šumarsku struku mogu biti objektivna polazišta u oblikovanju strategije odnosa s javnošću. Za lokalne vlasti ta su istraživanja dobrodošao uvid u stanje i razinu upoznatosti stanovništva s najširim pitanjima zaštite okoliša, a za lokalne udruge putokaz u smislu definiranja područja i načina njihova djelovanja – posebno onih aktivnosti koja bi se odnosila na pitanja s kojima javnost nije upoznata ili ih nedovoljno razumije.The paper reports on the survey aimed at assessing the attitudes of the population on the general importance and role of forests and forestry at the local level. The target questionnaire involved 50 respondents, of which about half were interviewed in the urban and the other half in the rural community. The attidudes surveyed included the most important ecological problems and the role of forests, the concepts of sustainable development and sustainable management, the evaluation of the forest condition in the Republic of Croatia and the most important tasks related to forest ecosystems, the quality of forest management and others. Findings and reports from the survey provide the forestry profession with objective starting points for the establishment of a public relations strategy in the following segments:
• Improvement of the system of information – internal and outwards
• Promotion of ecological education
• Development and stimulation of media interest
• Strenghtening the economic role of forestry and the social role of the forestry profession
• Involvement of the public in making decisions concerning forest ecosystems.
In addition, this survey provides the local authority with a useful insight into the condition and level of population awareness of the broadest issues of environment quality. Moreover, local associations are given useful guidelines in the sense of defining areas and methods of their activities – in particular those activities concerned with the issues that are either unfamiliar or unsufficiently familiar to the general public
