Crosscutting Issues and Conservation Strategies

Throughout this book we have made the case that temperate and boreal rainforests are unique ecosystems globally and therefore worthy of stepped-up efforts for their study and conservation. Because entire ecosystems (and not just species) are at the brink of extinction (e.g., European relicts, old-growth coastal redwoods), a comprehensive vision is needed to ensure the persistence of rainforests in a time of unprecedented change brought about by the cumulative effects of climate change and ongoing land use.