Global research trends on forest rehabilitation and biodiversity: A bibliometric analysis

Nurlaily Lavianti, Jati Batoro, Fitri Candra Wardana, Muhammad Lubab, Muhammad Fathur Rouf Hasan, Maisuna Kundariati, Rochman Hidayat

Abstract


Forest ecosystems play a crucial role in maintaining biodiversity, regulating climate systems, and supporting human well-being. However, widespread deforestation, land-use change, and climate change have caused severe forest degradation worldwide, making forest rehabilitation and biodiversity a global environmental priority. Although the scientific literature linking forest rehabilitation and biodiversity has grown rapidly, a comprehensive understanding of research trends, major contributors, and thematic evolution remains limited. This study presents a global bibliometric analysis of scientific publications on forest rehabilitation and biodiversity from 2000 to 2026 using data retrieved from the Scopus database. A total of 562 peer-reviewed articles were analyzed using the Bibliometrix package in R and the Biblioshiny interface to examine publication trends, authorship patterns, international collaboration networks, influential journals and articles, and thematic structures. The results revealed a steady increase in publication output, with significant acceleration after 2015, coinciding with growing global attention to forest rehabilitation and environmental sustainability issues. Research in this field is highly collaborative, with strong contributions from developed countries, particularly the United States, the United Kingdom, and China. Thematic analysis showed that reforestation, biodiversity, and conservation are the most central and well-developed themes, while climate change, ecosystem services, and land-use dynamics represent emerging areas receiving increasing attention. Overall, this study provides a comprehensive overview of the scientific landscape of research on forest restoration and biodiversity while identifying knowledge gaps and future research directions. These findings offer valuable insights for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners in developing evidence-based strategies for ecological restoration and biodiversity conservation.


Keywords


bibliometric analysis; biodiversity; forest rehabilitation; R-studio

Full Text:

PDF

References


Adinugroho, W. C., Prasetyo, L. B., Kusmana, C., & Krisnawati, H. (2022). Forest degradation and biomass changes over forest area in Indonesia’s new capital city and surrounding area. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1109(1), 012073. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1109/1/012073

Adiwinata, A., Wicaksono, S. A., & Ichsan, A. C. (2022). A policy framework to facilitate integrated Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) to enhance local livelihoods in Indonesia. Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR). https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor/008541

Aguiar, S., Mastrángelo, M. E., Brancalion, P. H. S., & Meli, P. (2021). Transformative governance for linking forest and landscape restoration to human well-being in Latin America. Ecosystems and People, 17(1), 523–538. https://doi.org/10.1080/26395916.2021.1976838

Almeida, D. R. A., Stark, S. C., Chazdon, R., Nelson, B. W., Cesar, R. G., Meli, P., Gorgens, E. B., Duarte, M. M., Valbuena, R., Moreno, V. S., Mendes, A. F., Amazonas, N., Gonçalves, N. B., Silva, C. A., Schietti, J., & Brancalion, P. H. S. (2019). The effectiveness of lidar remote sensing for monitoring forest cover attributes and landscape restoration. Forest Ecology and Management, 438, 34–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.02.002

Bent, D., Vieira, E., & Madaleno, M. (2024). A Bibliometric Analysis of Biodiversity Reporting in Accounting. Loka: Journal Of Environmental Sciences, 1(3), 83–103. https://doi.org/10.38142/ljes.v1i3.166

Brancalion, P. H. S., Campoe, O., Mendes, J. C. T., Noel, C., Moreira, G. G., van Melis, J., Stape, J. L., & Guillemot, J. (2019). Intensive silviculture enhances biomass accumulation and tree diversity recovery in tropical forest restoration. Ecological Applications, 29(2). https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1847

Brancalion, P. H. S., Hua, F., Joyce, F. H., Antonelli, A., & Holl, K. D. (2025). Moving biodiversity from an afterthought to a key outcome of forest restoration. Nature Reviews Biodiversity, 1(4), 248–261. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00032-1

Brouwer, R., Bongers, F., Peña-Claros, M., Zuidema, P. A., Brancalion, P., Lohbeck, M., Hernández Guzmán, A., Heinze, A., Guillemot, J., Kramer, K., & Sheil, D. (2024). Forest restoration, biodiversity, and ecosystem services. In Restoring Forests and Trees for Sustainable Development (pp. 160–198). Oxford University PressNew York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197683958.003.0007

Buthelezi, M. N. M., Lottering, R. T., Peerbhay, K. Y., & Mutanga, O. (2025). Exploring forest rehabilitation and restoration: A brief systematic review. Trees, Forests and People, 20, 100898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tfp.2025.100898

Chen, W., Geng, Y., Zhong, S., Zhuang, M., & Pan, H. (2020). A bibliometric analysis of ecosystem services evaluation from 1997 to 2016. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 27(19), 23503–23513. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-08760-x

Di Sacco, A., Hardwick, K. A., Blakesley, D., Brancalion, P. H. S., Breman, E., Cecilio Rebola, L., Chomba, S., Dixon, K., Elliott, S., Ruyonga, G., Shaw, K., Smith, P., Smith, R. J., & Antonelli, A. (2021). Ten golden rules for reforestation to optimize carbon sequestration, biodiversity recovery and livelihood benefits. Global Change Biology, 27(7), 1328–1348. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15498

Djafar, E. M., Widayanti, T. F., Saidi, M. D., Muin, A. M., & Ratnawati. (2023). Forest management to Achieve Sustainable Forestry Policy in Indonesia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 1181(1), 012021. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1181/1/012021

Enríquez-de-Salamanca, Á. (2022). Climate Change Mitigation in Forestry: Paying for Carbon Stock or for Sequestration? Atmosphere, 13(10). https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13101611

Ge, J., & Lin, B. (2021). Does the Kyoto Protocol as an International Environmental Policy Promote Forest Carbon Sinks? Journal of Global Information Management, 30(6), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.4018/JGIM.289651

Gunawan, H., Mulyanto, B., Suharti, S., Subarudi, S., Ekawati, S., Karlina, E., Pratiwi, P., Yeny, I., Nurlia, A., Effendi, R., Widarti, A., Martin, E., Kalima, T., Desmiwati, D., Takandjandji, M., Heriyanto, N. M., Garsetiasih, R., Sawitri, R., Rianti, A., Marsandi, F. (2024). Forest land redistribution and its relevance to biodiversity conservation and climate change issues in Indonesia. Forest Science and Technology, 20(2), 213–228. https://doi.org/10.1080/21580103.2024.2347902

Guzman-Molina, J., Sannou, R. O., & Caucci, S. (2025). Growing sustainability: Analysis of socioecological drivers of urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) under multiple framework assessments. A review. Journal of Urban Management. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jum.2025.06.008

Hallaj, Z., Bijani, M., Karamidehkordi, E., Yousefpour, R., & Yousefzadeh, H. (2024). Forest land use change effects on biodiversity ecosystem services and human well-being: A systematic analysis. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 23, 100445. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2024.100445

Hayati, D., Samsudin, Y. B., Armanda, F., Zikria, V., Muslih, A. M., Andini, S., & Rahman, S. A. (2025). Trends In Forest Conservation Research In Aceh Province, Indonesia Through 2023: A Bibliometric Analysis. Indonesian Journal of Forestry Research, 12(1), 83–98. https://doi.org/10.59465/ijfr.2025.12.1.83-98

Hermosilla-Palma, K., Pliscoff, P., & Folchi, M. (2021). Sixty years of land-use and land-cover change dynamics in a global biodiversity hotspot under threat from global change. Journal of Land Use Science, 16(5–6), 467–478. https://doi.org/10.1080/1747423X.2021.2011970

Huang, Y., Huang, Q., Ali, S., Zhai, X., Bi, X., & Liu, R. (2016). Rehabilitation using virtual reality technology: a bibliometric analysis, 1996–2015. Scientometrics, 109(3), 1547–1559. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2117-9

Jain, J., Walia, N., Singh, S., & Jain, E. (2022). Mapping the field of behavioural biases: a literature review using bibliometric analysis. Management Review Quarterly, 72(3), 823–855. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11301-021-00215-y

Jelvehgaran Esfahani, H., Tavasoli, K., & Jabbarzadeh, A. (2019). Big data and social media: A scientometrics analysis. International Journal of Data and Network Science, 145–164. https://doi.org/10.5267/j.ijdns.2019.2.007

Kundariati, M., Rohman, F., Ibrohim, Nida, S., Razak, S. A., & Fardhani, I. (2024). Above Ground Biomass and Carbon Stock at Pesanggrahan Preserve Area, Malang, East Java, Indonesia. Biosaintifika, 16(2), 297–308. https://doi.org/10.15294/biosaintifika.v16i2.3485

Latawiec, A. E., Strassburg, B. B., Brancalion, P. H., Rodrigues, R. R., & Gardner, T. (2015). Creating space for large‐scale restoration in tropical agricultural landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 13(4), 211–218. https://doi.org/10.1890/140052

Lim, W. M., Kumar, S., & Donthu, N. (2024). How to combine and clean bibliometric data and use bibliometric tools synergistically: Guidelines using metaverse research. Journal of Business Research, 182, 114760. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2024.114760

Mantoani, M. C., Guerra, L. C. C., Andrade, M. F., Dias, M. A. F. S., Dias, P. L. S., Rodrigues, F., Silva, D. M. C., Filho, V. B. D., Rudke, A. P., Martins, J. A., Martins, L. D., Torezan, J. M. D., Brancalion, P. H. S., Guillemot, J., Campoe, O. C., Phillips, V., Carotenuto, F., Šantl-Temkiv, T., Morris, C. E., & Gonçalves, F. L. T. (2024). Land-use patterns and fungal bioaerosols in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome. Discover Environment, 2(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44274-024-00049-x

Psistaki, K., Tsantopoulos, G., & Paschalidou, A. K. (2024). An Overview of the Role of Forests in Climate Change Mitigation. Sustainability, 16(14), 6089. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16146089

Priyono, D. S., Sofyantoro, F., Putri, W. A., Septriani, N. I., Rabbani, A., & Arisuryanti, T. (2023). A Bibliometric Analysis of Indonesia Biodiversity Identification through DNA Barcoding Research from 2004-2021. Natural and Life Sciences Communications, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.12982/NLSC.2023.006

Schweizer, D., Petter, G., Gomes César, R., Ferraz, S., de Souza Moreno, V., Brancalion, P. H. S., & Bugmann, H. (2022). Natural forest regrowth under different land use intensities and landscape configurations in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Forest Ecology and Management, 508, 120012. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120012

Shen, Z., Tian, Y., Yao, Y., Jiang, W., Dong, J., Huang, X., Wu, X., Farooq, T. H., & Yan, W. (2023). Ecological restoration research progress and prospects: A bibliometric analysis. Ecological Indicators, 155, 110968. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.110968




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.30821/biolokus.v9i1.5309

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2026 Jurnal Biolokus : Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan Biologi dan Biologi

indexed by :