Core Journal Databases
You can search for your topic using Summon. You may wish to limit your search to Scholarly & Peer Review.
You can also search one of these specialized databases to find scholarly journal articles. For more options, visit the Forestry Research Guide or research guides for other topics (e.g. law, public policy, etc.)
- Web of Science Core CollectionMultidisciplinary database of journal articles and conference proceedings, used for citation analysis of research. Includes access to EndNote Basic, a web-based version of EndNote.
- Scopus Search citations and abstracts for journal articles, conference proceedings, and other resources in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. Can also be used for cited reference searches, citation analysis of research and searching by affiliation.
- Agricultural & Environmental Science Database (AESD)The Agricultural & Environmental Science database (AESD) facilitates in-depth research and comprehensive literature reviews across the earth, atmospheric & aquatic sciences. Includes Agricola.
- CABI Digital LibraryArticles, ebooks, and data sheets on agriculture, animal health, crop protection, forestry, global health, human nutrition, horticulture, and natural resources management. Includes Cab Abstracts & Global Health databases.
Tips for Searching Databases
- Search for a phrase using quotation marks, e.g. "community forestry"
- Combine search terms with OR to expand a search, e.g. governance OR management
- Combine search terms with AND to narrow a search, e.g. "community forestry" AND governance
- Search variations of a word using truncation, e.g. forest* to search forest, forests, forestry
- Put it altogether using search boxes or parentheses, e.g. "community forest*" AND (governance OR management)
Wildcards
Wildcards are signs that stand in for a letter and allow you to search various spellings. For example:
col?r searches for "color" and "colour"
Note: the question mark is used for the UBC Library catalogue, but other databases may use other symbols such as ?, #, and $.
See this wiki page for a more comprehensive guide.
Search Worksheet
Before diving into your search, it's a good idea to spend a few minutes thinking about how you're going to search. This worksheet will help you identify the key concepts and databases, and create a search strategy using key techniques to build your search.
- Forestry Research Search Strategy DocumentationThis worksheet can help you develop your research question using PICO, translate it into an effective literature search, and track what you find.
Searching for Grey Literature
Grey literature can be defined as "multiple document types produced on all levels of government, academics, business, and organization in electronic and print formats not controlled by commercial publishing i.e. where publishing is not the primary activity of the producing body." (Greynet.org). This includes information such as government data, NGO reports, and patents.
Visit the Grey Literature Guide for the most common resources for finding grey literature as well as search tips