Fuzzy methods for assessing criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management

This paper describes the general concepts, meaning, and definitions of sustainability and proposes the use of soft methodologies, particularly fuzzy set theory, for its assessment. Criteria and indicators (C&I) are described as instruments to assess forest sustainability. Basic elements and concepts of fuzzy sets are described, including membership functions and their interpretations in the context of sustainable forest management. Moreover, fuzzy operators that can combine the operational concepts of sustainability, namely criteria and indicators are described. A simple illustrative example is described to demonstrate the application of these methodologies.