Gopal Shukla ^1,2* Arun Jyoti Nath ³ Sumit Chakravarty ⁴ Pankaj Panwar ⁵ Ajay Sharma ⁶

• ¹ North Eastern Hill University, Shillong, India
• ² Department of Forestry, North-Eastern Hill University, Tura Campus, Tura, West Garo Hills, India
• ³ Assam University, Silchar, Assam, India
• ⁴ Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Coochbehar, West Bengal, India
• ⁵ CAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation Research Center- Chandigarh, Chanigarh, India
• ⁶ University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States

conservation with responsible forest resource use, degraded forested lands can be restored while, improving resiliency against climate change. This editorial calls for a multifaceted approach to forested land management that recognizes the interconnectedness of forests and non-forest land use systems with community involvement, innovative technologies, and suitable policy frameworks. The research article by Kumar et al. (2023) highlights the factors influencing tree biomass and carbon stock in the Western Himalayas, India which are significant reservoirs of tree biomass and carbon stock. The carbon stock is primarily influenced by structural attributes like tree diameter (DBH), total basal area (TBA), and tree height while, species diversity, elevation, and climatic factors play a minor role. A few dominant large-diameter species contribute most of the carbon stock, stressing the need for regulated harvesting to ensure long-term ecosystem sustainability. The study concluded with emphasizing the importance of protected areas for achieving carbon neutrality of Western Himalayan Temperate forests. In addition to legal protection of these forests, stricter monitoring and periodic evaluation are recommended for regulating the human activities like tourism. Lastly, the study emphasized the need of further research to explore the factors influencing the forest biomass and carbon storage.The research article by Bueno et al. (2024) highlights the potential of Opuntia ficusindica (prickly pear cactus) towards ecosystem resilience, forest restoration, and restricting desertification for restoring Mediterranean forests. The species is highly drought-resistant, adaptable to arid conditions, and capable of improving soil fertility and structure. Planting the species in degraded areas can help combat soil erosion, increase organic matter, and enhance water retention, making the environment more suitable for the re-establishment of native forest species.The research article by Li et al. (2024) emphasises the need to understand the spatial patterns of ecological risk for effective management and conservation planning in Qilian Mountain National Park, particularly in addressing biodiversity protection and regulating anthropogenic activities. There is significant spatial variation in ecological risks, with higher risks in areas with more anthropogenic activities (like grazing and infrastructure development) as compared to remote, and undisturbed areas.The research article by Negi et al. (2024) reports significant changes in species composition, plant diversity, and biomass distribution with altitude at mountain ecosystems of the eastern Himalayas, India i.e., vegetation shifts from diverse, dense forests to sparser, less diverse communities from lower to higher altitudes. These elevation-driven changes in vegetation are found closely linked to temperature, soil properties, and moisture availability.The review article by Wani et al. (2024) presents a bibliometric analysis of studies on threat assessment and species prioritization for conservation discussing key methodologies used in threat assessments (including the IUCN Red List criteria), regions and species groups.The review emphasized conservation prioritization and better resource allocation using GIS and machine learning particularly for the underrepresented regions and species. The study by Verma et al. (2024) reveals that parasitism affects the growth rates and physiological traits of sandalwood, leading to reduced biomass and altered nutrient uptake.These complex host-parasite interactions need a better understanding of host responses to improve sandalwood cultivation and management practices to improve plant health and productivity of the sandalwood.The study by Sur et al. (2024) integrates multi-sensor data (e.g., satellite imagery from various sources) with advanced machine learning algorithms for achieving accuracy and reliability of vegetation degradation assessments. In addition to distinct patterns of degradation related to factors such as land use changes, urbanization, and climate variability, short-term fluctuations and long-term trends in vegetation health were also detected.Understanding the plant distribution, ecological traits, and diversity patterns in subtropical managed forests are important for developing effective forest management strategies (Waheed et al., 2024). Species diversity and composition are the function of management practices, soil characteristics, and climate. Adaptive management approaches considering these ecological insights can enhance biodiversity conservation, improve forest resilience, and optimize resource use. Spatial patterns and quantum of deforestation in the Eastern Carpathians of Romania was assessed using fractal algorithms by Diaconu et al. (2024). Superiority of fractal analysis in estimating forest loss over traditional methods that overlook complex patterns of fragmentation and degradation was highlighted. The study identifies land use changes and topographical variations as the primary drivers of irregular deforestation patterns and thus recommends fractal algorithms-based forest management and conservation strategies for effective forest restoration.The review by Gunawardena et al. (2024) highlights the importance of integrating management options with collaborative frameworks to achieve both land degradation and carbon neutrality for improving ecosystem services and conserving biodiversity. Conflicting interests in land use, data gaps, and lesser stakeholder engagement were identified as the main challenges to achieve the neutrality goals.Importance of seed traits, germination rates, and seedling growth in understanding the mechanism of adaptation by tree species in harsh treeline environment of western Himalayas was reported by Singh et al. (2024). Seed size and dispersal mechanisms significantly For. Glob. Change. 7:1432739. doi: 10.3389/ffgc.2024.1432739 Gunawardena MA, Lokupitiya E and Gunawardena P (2024) Land degradation neutrality and carbon neutrality: approaches, synergies, and challenges. Front. For. Glob. Change. 7:1398864. doi: 10.3389/ffgc.2024.1398864 Hashim M, Bushra E, Dasti AA, Abbasi A, Ali HM, Maqsood S, Farooq TH, Aslam A, Abbas Z and Khan MT (2023) Exploration of species diversity and vegetation pattern in temperate conifer forests along altitudinal gradients in the Western Himalayas.