Forest products and services

Legal and Sustainable Wood Programme

Micro, small and medium-scale forest enterprises

Sustainable Wood for a Sustainable World

Sustainable forest-based bioeconomy approaches

News

Vienna Call for Action urges progress on sustainable forest-based bioeconomy

26/02/2026

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) welcomed a call today for urgent action to accelerate progress towards a sustainable forest-based bioeconomy.

Global forest products trade and production show signs of recovery in 2024

24/12/2025

After a sharp decline in 2023, the global forest products sector saw signs of stabilization in 2024.

The women replanting Argentina’s future

05/11/2025

Amid deforestation, women are planting new roots, taking the climate into their own hands.

Publications

FAO Forestry Paper 177: Forestry for a low-carbon future

2016

This report brings together contributions from more than 100 experts on the different mitigation options offered by forests and wood products and on the enabling conditions for realizing their potential.

Unasylva 240: 300 years of sustainable forestry

2013

Three hundred years ago this year, a book was published that, according to some, marked the start of the modern concept of sustainable forest management. This edition of Unasylva explores this claim and reports on efforts worldwide to manage forests sustainably for the long-term benefit of people and the environment.

FAO Forestry Paper 173: Multiple-use forest management in the humid tropics

2013

Societal demands on tropical forests at the local, national and global scales are profound and varied: the regulation of the hydrological cycle; the mitigation of global climate change; the provision of timber and non-timber products; food security; recreation; biodiversity conservation; cultural and spiritual values; livelihoods and employment; and many others.

Videos

Communicating forestry innovation at FAO

24/10/2025

From fibre to packaging, building materials & even waterproof sinks - innovation in forestry has been on show in Rome, at the From Seeds to Food...

International Day of Forests 2024: New solutions for a better world

21/03/2024

Innovation is unlocking the forests’ long-kept secrets and allowing us to use trees in ways we never imagined possible.

Sustainable wood: The manifesto

06/12/2022

Over the centuries, we’ve moved away from using wood as a building material, at great cost to the planet.

Sustainable wood: Climate-friendly cities

01/12/2022

Find more videos on the FAO Forestry YouTube playlist

Sustainable wood: Housing a growing population

27/10/2022

A growing population means more buildings to fit everyone. By 2030, we will have to house an additional 3 billion people. Using wood from sustainably...

Sustainable Wood: Building the future

13/10/2022

Wood can be a material of the future, helping to build a bio-economy for the planet's health and economic recovery. Durable “cross-laminated timber”...

Forests and sustainable production and consumption

21/04/2022

For millions of people across the world, wood helps provide safe drinking water, food and shelter - but wood can do much more and is a renewable resource...

Is your toothbrush made of plastic or wood?

21/03/2022

Replacing more of the plastic things we use every day with wood-based products from sustainably managed forests can help combat climate change and achieve...

Sustainable forests: a powerful ally against climate change

24/02/2021

Climate change is subjecting our planet to unsustainable pressures. Forests and trees trap and store carbon as they grow – standing at the frontline...