On 12 June 2026, WaldBeiderBasel and the Forstkammer Baden-Württemberg organised an excursion to the Therwil marteloscope as part of the Small4Good research project. Around 20 private forest owners and forestry professionals from Germany and Switzerland came together to exchange ideas on innovative digital approaches to forest management.
The excursion focused on results from the “Sustainable Forestry” research group at WSL (Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research). These included individual tree mapping with a 360° camera and modelled forest development under different management scenarios. The programme also included an introduction to the marteloscope, with a focus on non-monetary values such as habitats, biodiversity and deadwood, as well as a virtual tree-marking exercise in small groups.
A marteloscope is a defined forest area, often one hectare, in which every tree has been measured and numbered. Marteloscopes serve as demonstration and training sites where people with and without a forestry background can discuss many aspects of forest management from a wide range of perspectives. The Therwil marteloscope was set up by the Amt für Wald und Wild beider Basel and is located in the forest of the Bürgergemeinde Therwil, the local citizens’ community. It lies in an uneven-aged mixed forest with a high proportion of oak.
Within Small4Good, the marteloscope has also been digitised using novel methods. This digital twin forms the basis for modelling future forest development under different management and climate scenarios with ForClim, a forest growth model developed at ETH Zurich.
The Therwil marteloscope offers ideal conditions for practical discussions on the challenges of climate change and the future of forest management. Participants gained insights into new digital methods and shared their experiences of sustainable, forward-looking forest management. The discussions were lively, and participants showed strong interest in the opportunities offered by digital forestry.
