The experience of China's forest reforms: What they mean for China and what they suggest for the world

The intent of this Special Issue is to address: what has been done in China's recent forest reforms, what remains for China, and what from this experience transfers usefully to the rest of the world. This introductory paper begins with a review of the early reforms and the initial evidence of their merit, which forms a necessary preface to more recent research summarizing the effects of a second round of reforms beginning in the mid-1990s. After the early review, this introduction introduces the papers in this Special Issue that a) continue with additional perspective on the early reforms, b) review subsequent experience with China's more recent second round of market reforms and newer environmental policies, and c) discuss current considerations regarding potential reforms of China's state-owned forest enterprises, and d) the global implications that might be drawn from all of China's experience to date.