Long-term growth is the objective of Södra’s members. This far-sightedness not only applies to growth in our own forests but also in our own industries.
The fact that Södra is an economic association also means that it is the members who, together, decide on the direction Södra takes. It is a democratic organisation in which each member has a voice.
The basis of the economic association is the 31 forestry areas. Each year, annual meetings are held where elected representatives are chosen to be the link between members and the central level, the assembly and the board.
There are also opportunities here for influencing the business by coming up with ideas and suggestions.
There is no such thing as a typical member of Södra. Södra includes young and old people and men and women on large and small estates. On the other hand, the membership corps is changing character. More and more members are resident in another area, which means that they do not live on their estates all year round. That is why Södra also holds members’ meetings in Stockholm, where there are about 1,500 members.
An important task for Södra is looking after its members’ interests with regard to economic policy. No other organisation pursues forest owners’ and forest conservation interests in politics in the same way.
This became clear after the Gudrun and Per storms. Södra then became an important working partner for politicians and played a major role in influencing political decisions.
Södra has a total of 35,000 forest properties and 50,000 people as members. A total of 700 elected representatives take care of our members’ interests.