Forests cover 31% of the world’s total land area and provide renewable resources that are increasingly being harvested to meet human needs. Our session addresses two key determinants of forest dynamics that currently require robust scientific attention. The first research area relates to our ability to predict the long-term effects of forest management on the quality and quantity of forest resources in the context of global environmental changes (GECs). We need to better understand how GECs, such as atmospheric pollution and climate change, interact with silvicultural practices in controlling the performance of individual forest species as well as the dynamics of complex forest communities. The second research area relates to the vital role that understory communities play on soil and ecosystem functions. In recent years, exciting new advances have been made in understanding the causes and consequences of understory community composition, in both natural and managed forests. Our session will thus present six oral presentations pertaining to interactions between GEC and silvicultural treatments in controlling forest structure and function, as well as six oral presentations focused on the biogeochemical role of forest understories. Poster presentations divide evenly along these same two themes. Both oral and poster sessions are expected to foster scientific interactions and interdisciplinary collaborations among participants from different backgrounds.