Sub-theme 5 had the following objective:

Stimulate conversations on key topics, initiatives and technological advances that can ensure progress in the forestry sector. Dissemination of data and information on forests, and forest products and initiatives, is key to making evidence-based decisions that facilitate transformation across the forest sector and increase the impact of forestry in global narratives, including climate change, biodiversity and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, through forest education, knowledge management and enhanced communication.

Key messages:

• Innovative, accurate and accessible technologies for providing forest information and data are necessary for effective climate action that halts deforestation and restores forest ecosystems.
• Forest education at all levels must be strengthened, from early education of young children to university curricula to sensitize an increasingly urbanized population to the importance of forests for humankind  and the planet and to attract new generations of foresters to the sector that are well equipped to address current and future forest-related challenges.
• We need effective forest communication that inspires hope and action, targeting both policymakers and the general public.

This session highlighted the mechanisms and work streams that are contributing to open and transparent dissemination of forest data. Panelists presented work from the Global Forest Resource Assessment and the Capacity Building Initiative for Transparency.  Forest monitoring systems from Uganda, Brazil, Papua New Guinea and the Republic of Korea were also highlighted.

The objective of session 1 was:

• To raise awareness of the importance of disseminating open and transparent data in the forest sector to increase credibility and consistency and tackle global challenges such as climate change.

Key messages: 

• Open and transparent collection and dissemination of forest data can improve accuracy and lead to better decision-making that result in effective climate action, halting of deforestation and forest ecosystem restoration.
• Increasing the transparency of forest data collection, analysis and dissemination is not only essential for building trust in the data, but is also a fundamental requirement of the Paris Agreement and many performance-based payment schemes.
• Not all countries have the capacity to meet international reporting requirements. It is thus necessary to develop technical, institutional and other capacities, for example, through more frequent and standardized collection and reporting of forest data.

More event details and session recordings are available here.

This session presented innovative forest monitoring tools and technologies provided by the international community as global public goods to help governments, as well as the private sector, to make informed decisions.

The objectives of session 2 were:

• To encourage the use of freely accessible data sets to track progress towards national policy objectives related to forests.
• To enhance collaboration between science and policy to increase the uptake of freely accessible data and technologies.

Key messages:

• A large number of countries and users benefit from free access to very-high-resolution optical, lidar and radar data. The continued provision of these datasets as global public goods should be encouraged. 
• Data combined with appropriate computing infrastructure and provided as a global public good allows the widest possible audience to be reached and offers new insights into deforestation and its drivers as well as measures of forest degradation. Such work is vital for efficient forest mapping and monitoring, including for understanding the global carbon cycle, and should be continued and expanded. 
• Effective forest monitoring requires innovative and accessible technologies at all levels. Forest monitoring and research programmes should be developed and implemented inclusively to meet the data and information requirements of policymakers and assist the development of coherent forest and land use policies. 

More event details and session recordings are available here.

This session highlighted innovations and emerging trends in field-based forest assessments and the benefit of forest monitoring activities for communities and forest-dependent people.

The objective of session 3 was:

• To stimulate learning and discussion on field-based forest inventories, technologies and benefits for forest-dependent communities. 

Key messages:

• Field-based assessments are necessary because they produce detailed data on species, quality and other biophysical attributes and provide validation data for remote-sensing-based models and products. The collection of biophysical and socio-economic data in the field needs continued support.
• There is a need to demonstrate to policymakers the value of forest assessments, including field-based components, to ensure their continued political and financial support.

  More event details and session recordings are available here.

The vision of the Task Force on Monitoring is that a science-based restoration movement should be informed by the best available technology and data for planning and monitoring restoration actions on the ground. And, that the latest innovations should be broadly accessible to restoration stakeholders – this can help turn commitments into actions and can help scale investments in restoration.

This session highlighted progress and technical innovations from the Task Force for Monitoring working in support to the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. The Framework for Ecosystem Restoration Monitoring (FERM) registry was launched at this session, which also featured updates to the FERM geospatial platform and progress on the indicator database for monitoring restoration progress through the UN Decade. Panelists featured examples of successful initiatives and country experiences in restoration monitoring.

The objective of session 4 was:

• To spotlight key solutions for restoration monitoring and launch the FERM registry and new features in the FERM geospatial platform, including indicators for monitoring progress on the UN Decade

Key messages:

• The launch of the Framework for Ecosystem Restoration Monitoring (FERM) represents significant methodological progress in restoration monitoring towards a harmonized monitoring and reporting framework. The capacity of countries and restoration stakeholders needs strengthening to ensure the transparent monitoring and reporting of progress towards agreed commitments.

 More event details and session recordings are available here. 

This first half of the session explored how we can be brave in our communication about forests to create greater impact and reach broader audiences, including by:

• Joining an interactive and thought-provoking panel discussion with international experts from the Regional Forest Communicators Networks and the global advertising industry.
• Finding out what people in the street really think about sustainable forest management.
• Learning why forestry needs a new narrative that inspires hope and action, and attracts new generations of foresters to the sector.
• Discovering how to craft strategies to produce more powerful and impactful communication, within and beyond the forest sector.
• Exploring ways forward for effective forest communication at country, regional and global levels.
• Bringing some forest communication challenges from the floor for expert discussion.

The second half of the session provided a snapshot of the status of forest education globally, and highlighted needs for greater investment, innovation and new approaches to meet the requirements of different stakeholders, but especially of young people. In an interactive discussion, educators and youth representatives explored how this can be achieved.

The objective of session 5 was:

• To outline ways forward for effective forest communication and education at country, regional and global levels to secure a sustainable future for forests.

Key Messages:

• A new narrative on forests and increased capacity development for forest communicators are needed to strengthen understanding and awareness of the benefits of sustainably managed forests and trees among decision-makers and the public and to influence global dialogues.  
• Forest education requires strengthening at all levels, from early childhood to university curricula, to sensitize increasingly urbanized populations on the importance of forests and the use of sustainably produced wood and to attract new generations of foresters equipped to address diverse forest-related challenges.

More event details and session recordings are available here.