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ŠUMARSKI LIST 1-2/2012 str. 4     <-- 4 -->        PDF

A WORD FROM THE EDITOR


DEPARTURE OFA MAN WHOSE EDITORIALSHIP LEFT A PERMANENT AND
UNERASABLE TRACE IN OUR JOURNAL


For the first time, after the 41 years of editorship and care for the “Jornal of the Forestry Society of
Croatia”, deeply honored and widely respected name of professor emeritus dr. sc. Branimir Prpić, is leaving
its long lasting place within the journal’s editorial board and moving everlastingly into the written
pages of Croatian forestry and science. His name and personality are cherished in the memories of generations
of foresters and scientists, not only in Croatia. During the 135 year long period of the existence of
our journal, professor Prpić steered the journal in the role of the editor-in-chief for the longest time since
it’s founding back in 1877. He was appointed as an editor-in-chief of the “Journal of the Forestry Society
of Croatia” in 1970 and in the uninterrupted row of years he had this position until 2010. One year after
his last active year as an editor-in-chief professor Branimir Prpić died in Zagreb on January 1, 2012.


On the pages of our journal, professor Prpić writes the column “A word from the Editor” which he introduced
in 1975. In the beginning intermittently, but starting with the first issue in 1994, he writes and
signs this column regularly, until his latest active years. The themes he treated were varied, ranging from
strictly specialist to those which reflected the current moment in forestry and the forestry profession. In a
way, his column mirrored the history of forestry during the past 40 years. In order to write with authority
about such different topics and complement them with conclusions and messages which the profession
wholeheartedly adopted as its mission, Professor Prpić had to possess vast knowledge and experience,
which he certainly did. He had acquired and stored the knowledge and experience over many years of
work, first as a practicing forester after graduation, and thenat the Faculty of Forestry of the University
of Zagreb as junior researcher, assistant professor, associate professor, full professor and finally emeritus
professor. He also held the posts of Head of the Department of Silviculture, Head of the Department of Research
in Forestry, Vice Dean and Dean. Inheriting the course of Forest Ecology from Academician Anić,
he taught it as an independentsubject from the academic year 1968/69, when the majority of present-day
“experts”in this field did not have the least idea what the word ecology meant. This segment of his teaching
and scientific work and activity was treated in more detail in the text published on the occasion of his
receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award within the National Award for Science in 2010 (Forestry Journal
No. 9–10/2011).


In the said publication we made particular reference to the articles treating the topics from the column
A Word from the Editor. These articles can be divided into several units, depending on the field of forestry
which they deal with. These are, first of all, ecological topics, such as forest decline and ecosystem stability
on which fresh-water ecosystems depend,e.g. sources of potable water, since they are all connected
with forests by a number of factors.His main focus of interest wason non-market forest functions, which
he classified into three basic groups: ecological, social and socio-ecological, and for which he proposed a
method of determining their monetary value. We are currently witnessing the way in which the society
treats these forest functions: the financial means intended for the preservation of these values are again
being reduced by 50% and are being classed into parafiscal taxes. Those not familiar with this topic consider
the money invested into these functions an unnecessary tax, while quasi entrepreneurs are rubbing
their hands with satisfaction for not having to pay for them. Yet, neither doubt their right to clean air, sufficient
potable water, places for recreation, shade in hot days, beautiful scenery (or perhaps they find bare
stone land a prettier landscape?), protection from erosions and the other 15 non-market forest functions
listed in the Forest Law.


His editorship of the Forest Journal set high standards, owing to which the articles published in this
magazine are being cited in all the relevant biotechnical journals in the world.


Professor Prpić was an ideal, a teacher and a friend to all generations of Croatian foresters. He selflessly
offered both specialist and moral support to all the colleagues who turned to him for help. We are
absolutely certain that the forestry profession will show fullappreciation of his contribution to its development
and that it will continue to expand on the fundamental postulates of the profession which Professor
Prpić advocated using his scientific and specialist knowledge.


Editorial Board