20.500.12556/RUL-171387 Navigating the international forest policy labyrinth domestic drivers of participation in the UNFF from Czechia, Finland, Slovakia, and Slovenia International forest policy is fragmented, multi-centric, and legally non-binding. Globally, the only intergovernmental political process focused explicitly on forest issues is the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF). Debates persist regarding the efficiency and relevance of this process for participating countries. The theoretical framework introduced by Börzel (2002) proposes a bottom-up approach to internationalization, which assumes that a country's participation at the international level depends on its capacity to act and its policy preferences. This article aims to test these theoretical assumptions from the perspective of four highly forested European countries Czechia, Finland, Slovakia, and Slovenia. The results show significant differences: Finland demonstrates strong engagement by leveraging its capacity and involving diverse actors, while Czechia and Slovakia participate minimally, sending governmental representatives but not prioritizing the process. Slovenia, despite having the capacity to act, does not utilize its potential within the UNFF. Notably, capacity to act and forestry sector regulation were not central determinants of participation. Instead, the recognition and support of the UNFF by domestic actors exhibited full conformity between theoretical assumptions and the observed reality. These findings suggest that domestic actors´ support is the primary driver of participation in this global, non-binding political process. domestic actors international forest policy participation United Nations Forum on Forests uploading domači akterji mednarodna gozdna politika participacija Forum Združenih narodov za gozdove prenos true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2025-08-25 09:38:56 2025-08-25 09:39:01 2025-08-31 03:58:21 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2025 0 0 11 str. art. 103596 Vol. 178 Sep. 2025 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 630*97(437.31+480+497.4) 1872-7050 10.1016/j.forpol.2025.103596 246457603 RAZ_Haluskova_Lenka_2025.pdf RAZ_Haluskova_Lenka_2025.pdf 1 CF4A11117AE6A16D53549819661B67EF 63c30fedcd2042f65ffc6910e26a53502b8365fd0bd58d46a29551ac1a8ef011 c09a1042-8186-11f0-9328-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=214676 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389934125001753 1 73848953-8186-11f0-9328-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=214675 Biotehniška fakulteta 0 0 0