Members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests

With over 800 staff across 60 countries, the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) brings together a robust network, including the Global Landscapes Forum and Resilient Landscapes, mobilizing diverse expertise to harness the potential of trees in addressing global crises. Formed through the merger of CIFOR and ICRAF, the organization builds on 75 years of combined expertise to lead sustainable forestry and agroforestry solutions worldwide.

CIFOR-ICRAF works at the nexus of five critical areas: biodiversity, climate, value chains, food, and equity. Through transdisciplinary research and inclusive partnerships, they bridge science and action to foster sustainable landscapes that benefit people and the planet.

Vision: A fair, resilient world where thriving landscapes enhance well-being.

Mission: To leverage science and innovation for sustainable management of forests, trees, and soils, aiming for a resilient, equitable, and prosperous future.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is the global, legally binding agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, opened for signature at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. Biological diversity - or biodiversity - means the variability among living organisms from all sources and includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems. 

The CBD has three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity; the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of genetic resources. The CBD Secretariat is the CPF focal point on forest biological diversity. Furthermore, the CBD supports several of the UNFF elements, in particular Traditional Forest Related Knowledge (TFRK), an issue for which the CBD Secretariat also serves as a CPF focal agency.

Mandate:

Decision 14/30. Cooperation with other conventions, international organizations, and initiatives

• 35.
  Requests the Executive Secretary to continue to engage with the Collaborative Partnership on Forests on the further development of its work plan and joint initiatives to implement the United Nations strategic plan for forests 2017-2030 and the Global Forest Goals and their alignment with the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and to report to the Subsidiary Body on Implementation at its third meeting, and encourages member organizations of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests to further coordinate on biodiversity-relevant data and methodologies for the development of spatial assessments of opportunities to advance on biodiversity commitments through the work of the Global Forest Goals, REDD+, and the Global Partnership on Forest and Landscape Restoration, as appropriate, as well as alternative adaptation and mitigation approaches contributing to forest restoration.
• 36.
  Requests the Executive Secretary, subject to the availability of resources, to provide further guidance on the type of support that may be available to Parties from members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests with regard to specific areas of implementation of the Convention, such as the Short- Term Action Plan on Ecosystem Restoration.
• XIII/7.
  Forest biodiversity: the role of international organizations in supporting the achievement of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets
• 5.
  Also invites the members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, in preparing the 2017-2030 work plan of the Partnership, to consider ways and means of further enhancing their individual and collective contributions to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and support a coordinated approach to the achievement of the forest-related multilateral commitments and goals, such as the following:
  (a) Sharing experiences and related information on the implementation of the forest-related Aichi Biodiversity Targets;
  (b) Identifying actions by which they could provide useful support to countries, including for the implementation of the Strategic Plan 2011-2020 and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, taking into account the different visions, approaches, models and tools to improve the integrated management of forests, including the development of technical capacity;
  (c) Examining their respective roles in order to leverage the comparative advantages of each of the members and to further enhance their joint contributions;
  (d) Improving monitoring of and reporting on progress, including the harmonization of indicators and reporting processes;
  (e) Improving knowledge management, including through open data platforms and interoperability to facilitate the sharing and synthesis of information;
• 7. 
  Requests the Executive Secretary to strengthen collaboration with the members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, including the Secretariat of the United Nations Forum on Forests, (…), to fully respond to the requests of the Conference of the Parties in paragraph 21 of decision XII/6, to support the implementation of the present decision, and to report on progress to the SBSTTA or the SBI, as appropriate, at a meeting prior to the fourteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties.
  
  

XIII/3. Strategic actions to enhance the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and the achievement of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, including concerning mainstreaming and the integration of biodiversity within and across sectors

• Notes the Voluntary Guidelines for the Sustainable Management of Natural Tropical Forests, the 2009 ITTO/IUCN guidelines for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in tropical timber production forests, as organizations of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests to operationalize sustainable forest management, ensuring the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity
  

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Because the trade in wild animals and plants crosses borders between countries, the effort to regulate it requires international cooperation to safeguard certain species from over-exploitation. CITES was conceived in the spirit of such cooperation. Today, it has 183 Parties, and accords varying degrees of protection to more than 36,000 species of animals and plants.

CITES joined the Collaborative Partnership on Forests in 2018, reflecting the long-standing collaboration with the CPF membership, and the growing role of CITES in the management of economically valuable forest products such as timbers.

When CITES came into effect in 1975, it regulated international trade in 18 tree species. In recent years, Parties brought over 900 tree species under CITES trade controls, recognizing that CITES can effectively support  legal, sustainable and traceable trade in timber and other forest products. CITES has increasingly been involved in supporting sustainable forest management, and in halting loss of forest biodiversity by ensuring that international trade in wild species is conducted legally and at sustainable levels, and by combatting over-exploitation and illegal trade. CITES thereby contributes to several thematic areas for action of the United Nations strategic plan for forests 2017–2030 (UNSPF).

Mandate:

• The main contribution of CITES to the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the world's forests and forest genetic resources is through ensuring the proper implementation of the Convention for the plants listed in the Appendices, which total around 30,000 species. In the case of Appendix-II listed species, this entails ensuring that exports of specimens of such species are sustainable and regulated in order to maintain them throughout their range at a level that is consistent with their role in the ecosystems in which they occur.
• CITES provisions relevant to forests and forest genetic resources fall within five thematic categories: tree species, medicinal and aromatic plant species; ornamental plant species; crosscutting implementation; and cooperation matters.
• The following CITES provisions in effect after the 18th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP18, Geneva 2019) are particularly relevant for CPF:
  - Resolutions Conf. 10.13 (Rev. CoP18) on the Implementation of the Convention for tree species, and 16.7 (Rev. CoP17) on Non-detriment findings57; and
  - Forest-relevant Decisions58, of which are focused in strengthening the sustainability, legality and enforcement of the Convention for forestry species listed in the Appendices.
• In particular, the following Decisions might be of special interest for CPF in the development of its post-2020 Work plan:
  - 18.14 to 18.17 on the Tree Species Programme;
  - 18.307 to 18.308 on the Production of a CITES Checklist for Dalbergia spp.;
  - 18.79 on Enforcement (tree Task Force);
  - 18.188 to 18.93 to on Wildlife crime enforcement support in West and Central Africa (including African rosewood);
  - 18.94 to 18.99 on Malagasy palisanders and rosewoods and ebonies;
  - 18.140 to 18.143 and 16.58 (Rev. CoP18) on Identification of timber and other wood products;
  - 18.203 to 18.204 on Agarwood producing taxa;
  - 18.205 on Boswellia trees;
  - 18.234 to 18.237 on Rosewood tree species (and the development of non-detriment findings); and,
  - 18.300 to 18.303 on Trade in medicinal and aromatic plant species.
• On 20 December 2013, at its 68th session, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) proclaimed 3 March – the day of signature of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1973 – as UN World Wildlife Day to celebrate and raise awareness of the world's wild animals and plants.

The UNGA Resolution 68/205 also designated the CITES Secretariat as the facilitator for the global observance of this special day for wildlife on the UN calendar. WWD has now become the most important global annual event dedicated to wildlife.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was founded in 1945 with a mandate to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living, to improve agricultural productivity, and to better the condition of rural populations. Today, FAO is one of the largest specialized agencies in the United Nations system and the lead agency for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and rural development. An intergovernmental organization, FAO has 183 member countries plus one member organization, the European Community. 

FAO is the focal agency within CPF for:

• formulation and implementation of national forest programmes;
• forest health and productivity;
• criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management;
• monitoring, assessment and reporting and concepts, terminology and definitions; rehabilitation and restoration of
• degraded lands and the promotion of natural and planted forests;
• international cooperation in capacity-building and access to, and transfer of environmentally sound technologies to
• support sustainable forest management.

The CPF is chaired by FAO.

Mandate:

FAO Committee on Forestry (guidance from the 27th session) 

• 14.
  (c) recommended FAO to implement the FAO Forestry Roadmap through the Programme Priority Areas under the FAO Strategic Framework 2022–31, impactful partnerships, including the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, and relevant programmes and projects.
• 17.
  (d) recommended FAO to continue to collaborate with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and within the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) in advancing the mainstreaming of biodiversity in forestry, including on data and monitoring.
• 27.
  (d) appreciated FAO’s leadership role in the CPF and the joint initiatives under FAO’s lead, and invited FAO to continue leading the CPF and to implement, within its mandate, the agreed outcomes of the Mid-term Review of the International Arrangement on Forests (IAF).
  (e) encouraged FAO to:

i. continue facilitating the development of the CPF workplan, and joint initiatives with other CPF members, to support the implementation of the UNSPF and the achievement of its GFGs, as well as other multilaterally agreed forest-related goals and objectives;
ii. continue, in collaboration with other CPF members, working on the global core set of forest-related indicators to streamline reporting and data sharing, and explore ways to use the global core set of indicators in review and assessment processes;
iii. further enhance communication and advocacy with regard to the contribution of forests and joint initiatives of CPF members, and facilitate sending consistent and supportive messages on the work of the CPF to the respective governing bodies, as appropriate;
iv. continue contributing expertise, data and knowledge products to the policy and technical discussions of the United Nations Forum on Forests and to its next GFGs Report; and
v. support the assessment of options to strengthen collaboration within the CPF.

FAO Council (guidance from the 176th session) 

• 26.
  (g) recommended FAO to continue to collaborate with the Convention on Biological Diversity and within the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) in advancing the mainstreaming of biodiversity in forestry, including on data and monitoring;
  (i) recommended that FAO continue collaborating with members of the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management and through the Sustainable Wildlife Management Programme; 
  (k) appreciated FAO’s leadership role in the CPF and the joint initiatives under FAO’s lead, and invited FAO to further align the United Nations Strategic Plan for Forests 2017-2030 and the Global Forest Goals in its programmes of work on forestry under FAO’s Strategic Framework 2022-31, and regularly report on progress at the Committee’s sessions.
  
  

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is a family of funds dedicated to confronting biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution, and strains on land and ocean health. Its grants, blended financing, and policy support helps developing countries address their biggest environmental priorities and adhere to international environmental conventions. Over the past three decades, the GEF has provided more than $22 billion and mobilized $120 billion in co-financing for more than 5,000 national and regional projects.

Mandate:

On June 21, 2022, the GEF Council adopted the Programming Directions for the 8th GEF cycle (2022-2026). These Programming Directions include several provisions to promote the Sustainable Management of Forests (SFM) in the GEF beneficiary countries. The GEF-8 strategy includes in particular a dedicated Program focused on the conservation of primary forest ”Amazon, Congo, and Critical Forest Biomes Integrated Program”. In addition, the new strategy offers other means to support SFM supporting a wide range of interventions in different types of forests through the Biodiversity, Climate Change and Land Degradation funding windows and through other forest-related Programs such as the Ecosystems Restoration, Wildlife Conservation for Development and Food Systems Integrated Programs. According to the Independent Evaluation Office of the GEF, in total, the GEF has invested in GEF-7 $943 million of grants in SFM-related projects and is expected to make at least a similar investment in GEF-8 to support the conservation and the sustainable management of forests worldwide.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is the world’s largest climate fund, mandated to support developing countries raise and realize their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) ambitions towards low-emissions, climate-resilient pathways. It was established as part of the financing mechanism of the UNFCCC and serves the historic Paris Agreement. Through its forest and land use result area and connected areas such as ecosystems and ecosystem services, GCF is among the world’s largest sources of international public financing for forests. With more than 200 accredited entities and delivery partners around the world, including many members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, it provides a variety of financial instruments including grants, equity, loans, results-based payments and guarantees with a focus on enhancing mitigation and adaptation across developing countries. 

The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) is an intergovernmental organization promoting the sustainable management and conservation of tropical forests and the expansion and diversification of international trade in tropical timber from sustainably managed and legally harvested forests.

ITTO:

• Develops internationally agreed policy guidelines and norms to encourage sustainable forest management (SFM) and sustainable tropical timber industries and trade.
• Assists tropical member countries to adapt such guidelines and norms to local circumstances and to implement them in the field through projects and other activities.
• Collects, analyzes and disseminates data on the production and trade of tropical timber.
• Promotes sustainable tropical timber supply chains.
• Helps develop capacity in tropical forestry.

ITTO is an action and field-oriented organization with more than 30 years of experience. It has funded and assisted in the implementation of more than 1,200 projects and other activities addressing the many aspects of SFM, such as forest restoration; wood-use efficiency; the competitiveness of wood products; market intelligence and transparency in the tropical timber trade and tropical timber supply chains; forest law enforcement and governance; illegal logging; biodiversity conservation; climate-change mitigation and adaptation; the contributions of non-timber forest products and environmental services; and the livelihoods of forest-dependent communities. ITTO’s membership represents about 90% of the global tropical timber trade and more than 80% of the world’s tropical forests.

Mandate:

The governing body of the ITTO is the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC), being the highest authority and decision-making power of the ITTO. Governing statutes and relevant documentation relating to ITTO's work in collaboration with the CPF may be accessed through the links below:

• International Tropical Timber Agreement, 2006
  
• ITTO Strategic Action Plan 2013-2018 (extended to 2021)
  
• ITTO Biennial Work Programme for the Years 2021-2022
  
• ITTO Guidelines

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) was founded in 1948, brings together States, government agencies and a diverse range of non-governmental organizations in a unique world partnership: over 980 members in all, spread across some 140 countries.  IUCN's mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.

Forests are an important ecosystem treated within the mission of the IUCN and it has identified itself as a collaborating agency on issues such as forest conservation and rehabilitation.

The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) is a non-profit, non-governmental international network of forest scientists, which promotes global cooperation in forest-related research and enhances the understanding of the ecological, economic and social aspects of forests and trees. IUFRO is "the" global network for forest science cooperation.

The mission of IUFRO is to advance research excellence and knowledge sharing, and to foster the development of science-based solutions to forest-related challenges for the benefit of forests and people worldwide.

IUFRO’s activities are organized through its 280 specialized units in 9 permanent divisions, covering key forest research fields. IUFRO unites more than 15 000 scientists in about 650 Member Organizations in 125 countries. IUFRO leads and coordinates one joint initiative in the CPF, the Global Forest Expert Panels (GFEP).

IUFRO also serves as the focal agency within CPF for forest-related scientific knowledge together with CIFOR and ICRAF.

Mandate:

IUFRO’s governing bodies include the International Council, comprised of one member and one alternate from each of the 115 countries in which there are one or more IUFRO member organizations, and the IUFRO Board, which is approved by the International Council for a 5-year term. IUFRO’s Statutes and lnternal Regulations guide the governance and functions of these and all other structures and activities of the Union. CPF activities are regularly reported on to the IUFRO Board and International Council.

IUFRO’s post-2020 Strategy and associated Strategy Action Plan 2020-2024, which is updated periodically, focuses on three organizational Goals and related actions:

• Goal 1: Research Excellence: Strive for Quality, Relevance and Synergies;
• Goal 2: Network Cooperation: Improve Communication and Embrace Diversity; and
• Goal 3: Impact: Visibility, Outreach and Education.

IUFRO’s membership and active involvement in the work of the CPF, including leadership of the CPF Joint Initiative Global Forest Expert Panels (GFEP), directly supports IUFRO’s mission and goals.

• CPF Joint Initiative Global Forest Expert Panels (GFEP) is an example of how IUFRO strives to improve capacities for science cooperation, address emerging issues in a proactive manner, and increase collaboration with other scientific disciplines.
• As several CPF members are also member organizations of IUFRO, our collaboration with them supports the active participation of a diverse set of IUFRO’s member organizations, officeholders and scientists across the globe, and cooperation among these participants.
• IUFRO has established itself as one of the leading knowledge institutions regularly providing scientific input and policy support to global processes regarding forests and society. IUFRO’s research network and activities, including work on the science-society/policy interface ensure that our partners and stakeholders will have access to best science-based solutions for complex challenges and issues facing the world’s forests. IUFRO’s involvement in the CPF directly supports our institutional Goal 3 towards improving visibility, outreach and education.

IUFRO post-2020 Strategy: https://www.iufro.org/fileadmin/material/science/divisions/toolbox/iufro-strategy-2020-post.pdf 

Strategy Action Plan 2020-2024: https://www.iufro.org/fileadmin/material/science/divisions/toolbox/iufro-strategy-action-plan-2020-2024.pdf 

The objective of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought through National Action Programmes, which are long-term policy guidelines in this regard formulated by affected countries.

It entered into force in 1996 and its guiding principles are participation, partnership and decentralization. 

The participatory, bottom-up approach has ensured enduring and effective changes on the ground. By combating desertification, the Convention also aims to tackle poverty in and prevent forced migration from dryland rural areas. Desertification is a global problem that threatens the livelihood of over 1.2 billion people and affects more than 110 countries worldwide.

The preservation of forests is a crucial component of the Convention, as they are critical in preserving soil from wind and water erosion - which are among the primary causes of desertification. Afforestation and reforestation as means to rehabilitate degraded lands are an integral part of the work of the UNCCD. The UNCCD has therefore strengthened collaboration and coordination with UNFF and other CPF members.

UNCCD serves as focal agency, along with FAO and ICRAF, for rehabilitation and restoration of degraded lands, and promotion of natural and planted forests.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN's global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. Present on the ground in 166 countries, UNDP works to help local partners develop solutions to global and national development challenges through development of local capacity.

 UNDP helps developing countries attract and use aid effectively. In all its activities, it encourages the protection of human rights and the impowerment of women.  Given important role forests play in poverty reduction and the environment, the UNDP has dedicated itself to the issue of promoting national public participation within the UNFF process, serving as the CPF focal agency on this topic.

UNDP focus has been helping countries build and share solutions to the challenges of:

• Democratic governance
  
• Poverty reduction
  
• Crisis prevention and recovery
  
• Energy and environment
  
• Information and communications technology
  
• HIV/AIDS

The United Nations Environment Programme's (UNEP) mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of the future generations.

Its present priorities include: environmental information, assessment and research, including environmental emergency response capacity and strengthening of early warning and assessment functions; enhanced coordination of environmental conventions and development of policy instruments; fresh water; technology transfer and industry; and support to Africa.

Within the CPF, UNEP is the focal agency for the issues of combating deforestation and forest degradation; forest conservation and protection of unique types of forests and fragile ecosystems; and rehabilitation and conservation strategies for countries with low forest cover.

The issue of forests has been a priority on the international policy and political agendas for the past 15 years. At the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development the forest issue was among the most controversial, polarizing developing and developed countries.

After the Rio Summit in 1992, the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests (IPF), from 1995-1997, and the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IFF) from 1997-2000, both under the auspices of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development, were the main intergovernmental fora for international forest policy development in the eight years.

The United Nations Forum on Forests was established by ECOSOCResolution/2000/35 as part of a new international arrangement on forests, to carry on the work of the IPF and IFF processes. The UNFF1 Report outlines the UNFF Plan of Action and Multi-Year Programme of Work. The UNFF and its member countries rely upon the Collaborative Partnership on Forests for much of the technical background, analysis and implementation of the IPF/IFF Proposals for Action.

The UN Forum on Forests Secretariat supports the Collaborative Partnership on Forests and provides secretariat services to the Partnership.

Mandate:

UNFF17 resolution

Implementation of the United Nations Strategic Plan for Forests

• Also invites the CPF to continue strengthen its collaboration and support to the work of the Forum and its Members for the implementation of the Forum’s quadrennial programme of work for the period 2021–2024 and the UN Strategic Plan for Forests.
• Encourages Members of the Forum to implement the Global Forest Goals, taking into account national circumstances, to contribute to the implementation of forest-related multilateral instruments, processes, commitments and goals, and in this respect, invites CPF member organizations to enhance cooperation and collaborations and strengthen their support to the Forum and its Members.

Means of implementation, including operations and resources of the Global Forest Financing Facilitation Network

• Invites members of the CPF to consider seconding staff to the secretariat to enhance the capacity of the Global Forest Financing Facilitation Network with a view to providing adequate and timely support to members of the Forum, and to scale up support to the activities of the Global Forest Financing Facilitation Network.
• Further requests the Secretariat, within the existing resources, to regularly update the Global Forest Financing Facilitation Network clearing house databases, and communicate information to familiarize Members of the Forum with the databases, and in this respect, invites members of the CPF to contribute, as appropriate, within their mandates and available resources.

Monitoring, assessment, and reporting

• Further requests that the secretariat of the Forum, through voluntary contributions and in consultation with Members of the Forum, to organize jointly with the FAO and other relevant CPF member organizations, a global workshop on national voluntary reporting on progress towards Global Forest Goals and targets, with a focus on data sources, collection, and methodologies for which there is a lack of systematic data, with modalities for inclusive participation, and with due regard to all UN official languages subject to availability of extrabudgetary resources.
• Also invites members of the Forum and the governing bodies of member organizations of the CPF to make use of the global core set of forest-related indicators and invites the secretariat of the Forum, in collaboration with FAO and other relevant CPF member organizations, to arrange further work on tier 3 indicators, including the improvement of concepts, definitions, and voluntary testing in the field.

Preparations for the midterm review in 2024 of the effectiveness of the International Arrangement on Forests

• 30. Further decides:
  (d) That actions contained in the annex to this resolution should be implemented, in a transparent and independent manner, and in close consultation with Members of the Forum, as well as CPF member organizations and other relevant stakeholders, including through questionnaires, where appropriate.

Annex: Actions in preparations for the midterm review in 2024, of the effectiveness of the International Arrangement on Forests

C. Actions related to the Collaborative Partnership on Forests

• Assess the progress made by the CPF in carrying out its functions towards the objectives of the international arrangement on forests, as defined in ECOSOC resolution 2015/33.
• Assess the effectiveness, impact and added value of the CPF’s activities as outlined in its workplan, including with regard to its resources; output delivery; joint initiatives, including how the Forum can provide input thereto, and recurrent activities to foster the implementation of the strategic plan and the achievement of the global forest goals and the Sustainable Development Goals.
• Consider the suitability of establishing criteria for membership of the CPF.
• Assess how the CPF could provide greater support to the policy development work of the Forum and assist countries to strengthen their implementation of the strategic plan, Forum resolutions and decisions on the ground, including the means to further benefit from the capacities of other international and regional stakeholders and partners.
• Assess the efficacy of internal communications within the CPF to promote mutual synergies, reduce duplication and enhance the Partnership’s communications and outreach externally to promote awareness-raising of the multiple benefits of forests and raise the visibility of the strategic plan and the global forest goals within other forest-related processes.
• To carry out the above-mentioned tasks, an independent study could be carried out, in consultation with the Partnership and Forum members. The result of the study should be presented at an intersessional meeting to be organized by the Partnership (the organization-led initiative) for discussion, with a view to making proposals regarding the Partnership to the open-ended intergovernmental ad hoc expert group referred to in paragraph 30 of the present resolution.

UN Strategic Plan for Forests 2017-2030

• The work of the UNFF is supported by its Secretariat, the Trust Fund for the UNFF, and the CPF. The CPF is a voluntary partnership chaired by FAO and comprising 14 international organizations with significant programmes on forests. The functions of the UNFF, its Secretariat, and the CPF are contained in ECOSOC resolution 2015/33 of 22 July 2015.
• The GFGs and targets are intended to stimulate and provide a framework for voluntary actions, contributions, and enhanced cooperation by countries and international, regional, subregional, and non-governmental partners and stakeholders. They also provide a reference for enhanced coherence and collaboration on forests within the UN system and among member organizations of the CPF, as well as among other forest-related organizations and processes.
• Global Forest Goal 6
  Enhance cooperation, coordination, coherence, and synergies on forest-related issues at all levels, including within the UN system and across member organizations of the CPF, as well as across sectors and relevant stakeholders
• 6.2 Forest-related programmes across member organizations of the CPF are coherent and complementary and together encompass the multiple contributions of forests and the forest sector to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• The UNFF is the responsible intergovernmental body for follow-up and review of the implementation of the UNSPF, including through providing guidance to the CPF and ensuring the smooth interplay between its odd- and even-year sessions.
• Member organizations of the CPF play an important role in implementing the UNSPF and are encouraged to integrate relevant GFGs and targets into their forest-related plans and programmes, where appropriate and consistent with their respective mandates.
• The CPF is invited to support the UNFF and its members in advancing the GFGs and targets, including through cooperation and partnership among its members, implementing a joint work plan with the CPF which is aligned with the UNFF’s quadrennial programmes of work; and by identifying collective actions by all or subsets of the CPF's members, as well as associated resource needs.
• Members of the UNFF are encouraged to support the CPF workplan as an essential strategy for improving cooperation, synergies, and coherence among member organizations of the CPF. Members of the UNFF are also encouraged to provide voluntary financial contributions to support the activities of the CPF and its member organizations.
• Effective attainment of the GFGs and targets also requires the mobilization of the best available scientific and traditional forest-related knowledge. The scientific community, in cooperation with the Forum and its members, is encouraged to support the implementation of the strategic plan, through scientific inputs presented to the UNFF. In doing so, the UNFF is invited to build upon existing joint initiatives of the CPF and further strengthen these initiatives.
• The GFFFN of the UNFF, in close cooperation with members of the CPF, contributes to the scaling-up of sustainable forest management by facilitating access by countries to resources to implement the UNSPF and to achieve its GFGs and targets. To this end, the priorities for the GFFFN are:
  (a) To promote and assist members in designing national forest financing strategies to mobilize resources for sustainable forest management, including existing national initiatives, within the framework of national forest programmes or other appropriate national frameworks;
  (b) To assist countries in mobilizing, accessing, and enhancing the effective use of existing financial resources from all sources for sustainable forest management, taking into account national policies and strategies;
  (c) To serve as a clearinghouse and database on existing, new, and emerging financing opportunities and as a tool for sharing lessons learned and best practices from successful projects, building on the CPF online sourcebook for forest financing;
  (d) To contribute to the achievement of the GFGs and targets, as well as priorities contained in the quadrennial programmes of work.
• The assessment should take into account voluntary national reporting on the implementation of the UNSPF, the UNFI, voluntary national contributions, and the results of the most recent Global Forest Resources Assessment of FAO, as well as inputs from the CPF and its member organizations and other partners within and outside the UN system, including regional and subregional organizations and relevant stakeholders.
• The UNFF, as a functional commission of the ECOSOC, should contribute to the follow-up to and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs, including through the work of the CPF on global forest indicators, as well as highlight the contribution of forests to the SDGs, to be reviewed in-depth at the annual sessions of the high-level political forum on sustainable development.
• The UN system, the CPF, and its member organizations and other partners are encouraged to enhance cooperation and synergies on forest-related communication and outreach to increase the impact of their messaging and to consider joint events and products with national, regional, subregional, and non-governmental organizations and processes.

International Arrangement on Forests

• Notes the ongoing efforts of the CPF and its members and other relevant entities and processes to work jointly to further streamline and harmonize reporting, reduce reporting burdens and synchronize data collection, taking into account the collaborative forest resources questionnaire developed as part of the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015, in order to foster synergy and coherence.
• Decides that the Forum secretariat should manage the GFFFN and implement its activities in collaboration with relevant members of the CPF.
• Encourages the CPF and its member organizations: (a) to strengthen the Partnership by formalizing its working modalities, including through consideration of a multilateral memorandum of understanding, and by developing procedures for its effective functioning and operation; (b) to identify ways to stimulate broader participation by existing member organizations in its various activities; (c) to assess its membership and the potential added value of additional members with significant forest-related expertise; (d) to identify ways to actively involve major groups and other stakeholders in activities of the Partnership; (e) to develop a work plan, aligned with the UNSPF, to identify priorities for collective actions by all of the members of the CPF or subsets of members and the resource implications of such actions; (f) to prepare periodic reports on the CPF activities, achievements and resource allocations suitable for a wide range of audiences, including potential donors; (g) to further develop and expand its thematic joint initiatives, taking into account the strengths and focuses of the members of the CPF.
  
  

The overarching objective of the Convention and related legal instruments such as the Kyoto Protocol is to achieve:

"The stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level should be achieved within a time-frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner."

Forests play an important role in the climate system. They are a major reservoir of carbon, containing some 80% of all the carbon stored in land vegetation, and about 40% of the carbon residing in soils. Large quantities of carbon are emitted into the atmosphere through land-use change primarily in the tropics. Terrestrial ecosystems, such as temperate and boreal forests, approximately balance the emissions from land-use change in tropics. The Convention and the Kyoto Protocol recognise the role of forests as an option to mitigate climate change.

Founded in 1944, the World Bank is one of the world's largest sources of development assistance. In Fiscal Year 2011, it provided US$43 billion in loans, credits and grants to reduce poverty in developing countries.

The World Bank's work in the forest sector is guided by its 2002 Forest Policy and Strategy, endorsed after an exhaustive two-year consultative process with stakeholders around the world. 

The strategy aims to:  

• Harness the potential of forests to reduce poverty
  
• Integrate forests into sustainable economic development
  
• Protect vital local and global environmental services and values
  

Because the drivers of deforestation often lie outside the forest sector, the Bank Group seeks to work across sectors with partners (for example in agriculture, energy, water and mining), to define integrated, “climate-smart” solutions at the scale of entire landscapes.

The Bank also tries to leverage and blend different sources of financing to tip the balance in favor of sustainable practices. Jointly with other multilateral development banks, the World Bank serves as an implementing agency for the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Forest Investment Program (FIP) and the BioCarbon Fund. It also serves as the Trustee and Secretariat of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF). Through these partnerships,the Bank Group is exploring a wide range of opportunities to help developing countries reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and to conserve, sustainably manage and enhance forest carbon stocks.

The Bank’s reach is further amplified through the knowledge it shares with other stakeholders. The Program on Forests (PROFOR), a multidonor partnership housed at the Bank since 2002, has funded over 100 knowledge activities and published targeted analysis on a broad range of forest topics related to livelihoods, governance, financing and cross-sectoral issues.