The COVID-19 pandemic affected people all over the world, including the Czech Republic (CZ). In the CZ, a number of measures were applied in 2020 to reduce the contact between people and their mobility. This article dealt with the importance of forests during the pandemic. Data from 2019 and 2020 were compared. The qualitative data were obtained from two nationwide surveys, the first focused on forest attendance and forest fruit collection (about 1000 respondents per year), the second on the motivation to visit the forests (about 3700 respondents per year). The quantitative data were obtained on the regional level by analysing data from mobility counters. The impact of government restrictions was assessed. Findings: (1) there was a significant increase in the number of people who frequently visited the forest in 2020; (2) in 2020, the amount of households that collected forest fruits increased and was the highest for the monitored period; (3) the increased forest attendance significantly corresponded to the government restrictions. The analysis confirmed the great importance of forests for the citizens and, at the same time, the increased pressure on the forests’ use—forest attendance and forest crops picking—(especially suburban ones) in times of COVID-19 restrictions.

Tourism has experienced dynamic development in recent decades and has become one of the fastest growing industries; however, the COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented changes and declines in revenues and tourism trends. With the strong support of bioeconomy (BE) this period brings a great opportunity to transform the entire tourism sector into a model responding to that concept. The main aim of this article is to prove whether and under what possible conditions tourism is a part of the concept of BE. Selected European Union (EU) countries have been chosen so that every geographical area is represented. This analysis was therefore carried out for a total of 12 states and the EU as a whole (13 entities). Of these 13 entities, seven have their own BE strategy and six do not. According to the level of emphasis on the field of tourism in the examined documents, we divided the states into three categories. Although the selected and analysed countries mention tourism in their BE strategies with various emphasis and approach, the inclusion of tourism under this concept is evident. Bioeconomy-based tourism has been designed as a new concept that considers the approach of BE. It focuses above all on a sustainable level of tourism in the connection of economic and environmental pillars, where the main emphasis is placed on the effective use of natural resources and maximum effort not to waste these resources, as well as to support economic growth.

Forests and forest ecosystems are vital for providing habitats to wildlife while also supporting economic activities beneficial to society. Among these, hunting tourism represents a valuable economic opportunity across European regions, particularly in remote rural areas, and its integration into sustainable forest management can amplify the value of forest ecosystems. Integrating hunting tourism into sustainable forest management can enhance the long-term environmental, social, and economic value of forest ecosystems. The aim of this study is to assess the economic impact of hunting tourism as an integral part of sustainable forest management and restoration efforts in Czechia, with a particular focus on its contribution to the national economy between 2019 and 2022. Utilizing an input–output model and multiplier analysis, it quantifies both direct and indirect economic impacts based on domestic and foreign hunting tourist numbers, their expenditures, and symmetric input–output tables (SIOT), highlighting interdependencies among economic sectors. Results showed that hunting tourism contributes over 80 million euros annually to Czechia’s economy, though income saw a decline in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The findings emphasize the role of forest management in sustaining wildlife resources, alongside the importance of data-driven decision-making, enabling policymakers and stakeholders to develop growth strategies that support both economic resilience and ecological restoration.

The globally accepted concept of a bioeconomy includes the field of forestry; however, the concept of a forest bioeconomy (FBE) does not appear to be defined uniformly. The concepts of bioeconomy and sustainable development are interlinked. In many countries, the bioeconomy is often the subject of efforts to quantify it from the state level, and therefore, the question arises as to whether the data regarding the financial support of an FBE in individual countries can be considered mutually comparable, with the aim of including them, for example, among the criteria for measuring sustainability (e.g., indicators of sustainable development—SDI). This option has political implications for political representation, taking the form of a comparable indicator in the approaches of individual states. This article analytically compares FBEs and our understanding of them in selected countries: Czechia, Slovakia, Finland, Italy, and Germany. Czechia financially supports various areas of forestry through European funds (Rural Development Programme, RDP CZ). In this article, we assess this support from the point of view of the perceptions of the FBE in the studied states, with an emphasis on the view of Czechia. First, an FBE analysis of the selected official and supporting documents of the studied countries was performed. The total financial data from the supported projects from the RDP CZ were subsequently assigned to these areas. Thus, the idea of financial support for the FBE through the RDP CZ from the perspectives of the selected countries was born. The differences in the perception of the FBE according to the description derived from the analysis were also confirmed by the different financial quantifications (hypothetical) of these different views. The obtained results demonstrate an incomparable state of perception of the FBE among the selected countries. For these reasons, it is currently inappropriate to use the level of FBE financial support to measure sustainability.

The transition towards a sustainable future is increasingly understood to rely on further development of the bioeconomy. In this, both public and private sectors play pivotal roles. Government agencies and public institutions are instrumental in shaping the trajectory of the bioeconomy through strategic frameworks, regulatory measures, and policies. These instruments may create a conducive environment by clearing away bureaucratic impediments and establishing favourable conditions. Concurrently, private sector entities, including industry interest groups and companies, have the important task of advocating for these favourable conditions and driving the bioeconomy’s growth through active involvement, strategic business decisions, capital investments, and bringing bio-based innovations to market. Throughout these processes, perceptions of the bioeconomy held by actors in both sectors shape the outcomes of their actions. Hence, this study delves into the perceptions of the bioeconomy among stakeholders from both the public and private sectors across nine European regions regarding barriers and supporting conditions impacting its development, particularly important bioeconomy value chains, and the willingness and perceived responsibility to advance the bioeconomy. Findings from 534 online survey responses (288 public sector and 246 private sector) reveal that key factors identified as propelling the development of the bioeconomy forward include access to investment and scientific knowledge, while obstacles such as limited cooperation among stakeholders and inadequate supportive policies and legislative environments were noted as primary hindrances. Among the value chains highlighted, bioenergy was frequently recognised as having high growth potential, while not necessarily being the one with the most significant environmental benefits. Both the public and the private sector demonstrated a high willingness to develop the bioeconomy, yet both also assigned more responsibility to the public sector in three main areas: enhancing societal awareness and communication about the bioeconomy, ensuring beneficial environmental and social impacts, and investing in the bioeconomy's growth. Graphical

The bioeconomy, as a new phenomenon using renewable resources, significantly affects the forestry sector in many countries. Individual countries have implemented forest policies by financially supporting forestry in different ways and for different reasons. The nature and targeting of this support vary from country to country. In a simplified way, it is possible to divide them into two categories: production support and environmental protection support (e.g., to ensure sustainable development). The aim of this article is to analyse the substantive focus of forestry subsidies from national sources in the Czech Republic and, subsequently, compare them with the Czech focus of a forest bioeconomy (FBE). The objective of this analysis is to analyse the financial support provided by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic (MoA) between 2018 and 2021. As the Czech Republic’s FBE is not clearly defined, it was analysed and described with the help of the relevant national strategic and political documents. Subsequently, the obtained results were compared with each other to see if the financial subsidies were in line with the Czech FBE. The focus of the subsidies in the years under review is influenced by the situation in Czech forestry, which has faced a severe bark beetle outbreak, causing the financial sources provided to forest owners to increase significantly due to the bark beetle outbreak, which has affected the whole forest sector. The results show that some types of support are provided in accordance with FBE, while others are not. The general conclusions are that the financial support for forestry does not fully represent the Czech FBE.