The central theme of the XIV World Forestry Congress (WFC) is Forests and People: Investing in a Sustainable Future. The aim is to show that investment in forestry is an investment in people and, in turn, an investment in sustainable development. The XIV WFC will emphasize the role of forests in income generation, employment creation and equity and the vital links between forests and climate change, biodiversity conservation and sustainable water resources. It will explore the governance structures that best promote implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests.
The key cross-cutting focus of the XIV WFC is investment in forestry. The XIV WFC will examine the need for, and the advantages of, investing in:
- the enabling environment – especially policy and institutional;
- people – building capacity at all levels, knowledge and education in forestry, community-based forest institutions, and other human capital;
- assets – such as forests and value-added production, largely by the private sector.
Investment opportunities will increase and forestry will become more attractive as an investment prospect in light of the growing importance of forests in reducing poverty, achieving food and nutritional security, addressing climate change, conserving water, producing energy and improving urban environments.
What change is needed? What information is needed? What dialogue is needed?
Overarching focus: investing in the enabling environment, human capital, knowledge and assets
FORESTS FOR SOCIO-ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT AND FOOD SECURITY | BUILDING RESILIENCE
WITH FORESTS | INTEGRATING FORESTS
AND OTHER LAND USES |
Putting people at the centre - Boosting forest income to improve food security and nutrition
- Organizing people and communities for greater local control in forestry
- Involving women and youth in sustainable forest management
- Forests and trees as drivers of socioeconomic development
- Managing forest-related conflicts
- Wildlife in local livelihood development
Acknowledging forests’ cultural and recreational roles - Traditional forest-related knowledge
- Public perceptions of forests
- Archaeology, anthropology and forests
- Art and forests
Accounting for the multiple benefits of forests - Forests in national economic measures
- Forests and the bioeconomy
- Forest environmental services
| Forests as buffers against environmental change - Forests and climate change
- Enhancing adaptation to, and the mitigation of, climate change
- The future of REDD+
- Forests and water
- The conservation of forest biodiversity
Increasing forest resilience to natural disasters and shocks - Restoring the resilience of forests in drylands
- Pests, diseases, fire and floods
| The role of forests in sustaining landscapes - Addressing the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation
- Forests and landscape restoration
- Planted forests versus forest plantations – a new era of forest management
Integrating approaches to landscape management - Finding synergies between forestry, agriculture, water and energy
- Agroforestry and trees outside forests
- The role of urban forests in fuelling and feeding cities and providing environmental and social services
|
ENCOURAGING PRODUCT INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABLE TRADE | MONITORING FORESTS FOR BETTER DECISION-MAKING | IMPROVING GOVERNANCE BY BUILDING CAPACITY |
Increasing the range of products from sustainably managed forests - Energy: formalizing the woodfuel supply
- Innovative wood-based products:
- The use of wood in infrastructure and building
- Biomaterials and nanomaterials
- Innovative non-wood forest products
- Shaping the dialogue on biotechnology
Towards sustainable trade - Domestic, regional and international trade
- Linking producers to markets
- Improving trade transparency
- The impacts of certification
| What the data tells us - The state of forests and forestry
- Information gaps
Progress in forest monitoring - Developments in national forest monitoring system
- Information on forest policies and governance
- Innovative technologies for data collection and sharing
- Remote sensing
- Open-source applications
- Smallholder access to technologies and data
- Information needs on forests and other land uses for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
| Capacities, knowledge and communication - New era for forestry as long term profession and business
- Increasing institutional capacities at all levels
- Using traditional and indigenous knowledge
- Fostering participation and partnerships in sustainable forest management
- Adapting forestry education and research to new realities
- Modernizing extension and training
- Communicating effectively with multiple audiences
Reshaping forest governance architecture - Bringing forests to the fore in international policy development and negotiations
- Coordinating policies among the sectors
- Implementing national forest programmes
- Securing forest tenure
|
