Forest Sector Modeling- A critical analysis from the perspective of the notions of space, place, and scale[Modèle de secteur forestier - Une analyse critique sous l'angle des notions d'espace, de lieu et d'échelle]

This work aims to explore the relevance of new economic theories to improve the common economic structure of Forest Sector Models and, in particular, its spatial representation of wood flows. To do that, we rely on modern international trade theories and more especially on the work of P. Krugman and the New Economic Geography. We then gain interest in the Economic Geography approach that suggests "geographical space" shapes economic activity. Assuming that improving the representation of wood flows lies in better representing spatial features in economic theories, we define three notions that provide a complete comprehen- sion of what implies "geographical space", from a geographical perspective: space, place, and scale. We then derive major economic theories of international trade - those of P. Samuelson, P. Armington, P. Krugman, and M. J. Melitz - and confront the way they represent spatial features with those three geographical notions. We find that new economic theories qualita- tively improve the spatial representation of wood flows. To assess what could be the impact of changing the economic structure of Forest Sector Models, we build two simple models de- scribing Armington's and Krugman's equilibrium respectively that are explicitly comparable. Using FAOSTAT data as input, we run the model and test their sensitivity to different key parameters in Forest Sector Modeling. The preliminary results suggest shifting toward new economic theories may improve the way we model the forest sector.