Forest Data Without Borders: Latin America and the Caribbean’s Roadmap for Their Commitment to Forest Transparency

From 7 to 11 July, forest officers and specialists from 17 Latin American and Caribbean countries gathered in Antigua Guatemala for the second in-person meeting of the National Forest Inventories Network for Latin American and the Caribbean  (IFN-LAC Network). The event marked a new milestone in the regional forest data harmonization process, strengthening technical capacities, promoting the use of innovative technologies, and fostering transparency in forest resource management.

Under the theme "Forest Data Without Borders: Sharing Knowledge on National Forest Inventories and Forest Biodiversity," the workshop served as a platform for technical dialogue on National Forest Inventories (NFIs), a pillar of National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMS) and a key source for the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA).

During the opening session, Mr Rafael Zavala, FAO Representative in Guatemala, highlighted in his remarks that "forest inventories are the principal tool for proper and relevant evaluation, which allows us not only to better conserve and protect but also to better coexist with our natural resources."

"It is obvious that forest and natural resources do not recognize borders, neither geographical nor administrative. It is obvious that ecosystems are ecosystems, each of them is different, and we must understand them better every day. And it is obvious that, in the face of climate change, what is important is to have information to make good decisions," said Bruno Arias (National Institute of Forests (in Spanish: Instituto Nacional de Bosques, INAB), Guatemala).

"Forest inventories have something in common: they must provide clarity and certainty on the forest’s quality, both in its allometric variables—height, diameter, volume, and all the characteristics of a forest—but also invite us not to think of the forest solely as the tree itself [...], biodiversity, to see that the forest is more than just trees, the forest is all that integrates nature," said Gerardo Pais (National Council for Protected Areas (in Spanish: Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas, CONAP), Guatemala).

The event was organized by the National Forest Inventories Network for Latin American and the Caribbean  (IFN-LAC Network), with the support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Institute of Forest Science (ICIFOR-INIA-CSIC), the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through the "Building global capacity to increase transparency in the forest sector (CBIT-Forest): accelerating capacity-building, knowledge-sharing and awareness raising" project, the United Kingdom’s Aim4Forests programme, and the Spanish Cooperation Agency (AECID).

"Regional networks, such as the one in Latin America and the Caribbean, contribute to this process by serving as forums for experience sharing and technical collaboration, improving the comparability and transparency of methodologies and data across regions," said Anssi Pekarinen (FAO).

One of the workshop components was training on Biodiversity Assessment, aimed at integrating non-tree indicators and functional aspects of biodiversity into NFIs. Countries shared methodologies and challenges for including fauna, epiphytes, and other taxonomic groups in their inventories, highlighting the experiences of Chile and Costa Rica.

"Because it is the nature of our country, and this places us in Guatemala with a great challenge—a challenge we must work on because, as a society, we manage one of the most important biodiversity reservoirs on planet Earth," said Gerardo Pais (Deputy Secretary of the National Council for Protected Areas, CONAP, Guatemala).

"One of the challenges we face is how to go a bit further to assess biodiversity and beyond classical structural indices," said Daniel Moreno (ICIFOR-INIA CSIC).

"So I wanted to raise what I think would be interesting at the level of national forest inventories: to also have a harmonized methodology at least regionally, to better understand the diversity of forest ecosystems," said Adrian Gálvez (CONAP, Guatemala).

The tenth harmonization meeting made progress on standardizing the volume variable, incorporating non-destructive technologies such as terrestrial LiDAR and the ForeStereo system, presented during the second day. These tools offer greater precision and traceability, key elements for regional comparability and transparency. A small practical session was held, allowing participants to observe and experience the use of non-destructive monitoring technologies applied in demonstration plots using Forestereo and terrestrial LiDAR (TLS). Participants highlighted the usefulness of both technologies to improve fieldwork accuracy and efficiency, as well as their potential to strengthen harmonization and comparability processes among countries.

The FAO also presented its new publication, "Towards the institutionalization of forest data: The importance of data management and sharing." This guide addresses how countries can practically improve forest data governance, ensuring that the information generated is accurate, protected, accessible, and used for concrete decision-making.

The publication explores key aspects such as data quality and management, equitable access, the design of sustainable digital platforms, and the creation of legal and institutional frameworks that support long-term sustainability. Through real country examples—Brazil, Uganda, Costa Rica, Ghana, Guatemala, and Italy—it highlights how cooperation and trust among actors are essential to turn data into action, promoting effective forest governance and informed climate action.

Forest data transparency was another highlight. A specific session addressed how to facilitate access to NFI data to improve public policy formulation, stimulate research, and foster innovation. This commitment to transparency positions the NFI-LAC Network as a regional reference.

"There is a great demand for forest dynamics data to be integrated into federal open government data due to climate change and other issues. With AIM4Forests' support, we are conducting a study on the capabilities, tools, and technologies that can be incorporated into the forest inventory at different stages—from field planning, botanical identification, data collection, analysis, and data availability," said Renata Françoso (Brazil).

“For the data, we are currently relying on the FAM at this initial stage, to be able, let’s say, to make it available.” — Miguel Chinchero (Ecuador)

Finally, on Friday, a technical session was held dedicated to the voluntary update of national reports for the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA). In this space, national correspondents received direct guidance from the FAO team on how to complete the standardized templates, clarified methodological doubts, and shared common challenges in data collection, validation, and reporting.

FRA is the most extensive and consistent global process for assessing the state of the world’s forests. The 2025 edition examines over 60 forest-related variables—including forest area, biomass, carbon, biodiversity, fires, restoration, and more—in 236 countries and territories. Data are collected by a network of officially designated national correspondents using commonly agreed terms and definitions under a transparent and traceable process.

The goal is to generate a robust information base to guide forest policies, support international environmental commitments, and improve evidence-based decision-making. The IFN-LAC Network plays a key role in this process, strengthening countries’ capacity to report in a harmonized and comparable manner.

The FRA 2025 results will be presented in October during the 2025 Plenary of the Global Forest Observations Initiative (GFOI), to be held from 21 to 23 October in Bali, Indonesia, and also virtually. This plenary is the main global meeting of countries, donors, and technical partners working in forest monitoring, and this year its central theme is "Forests and the Wonder of Monitoring."

"Most FRA data rely on national systems or National Forest Monitoring Systems, or on National Forest Inventories. These processes are fundamental to producing updated, verified, and government-approved data," said Anssi Pekarinen (FAO).

Conclusions: Learning, Integration, and Regional Commitment

The event culminated in a collective reflection session where participating countries shared their impressions on the technical progress achieved, capacity strengthening, and regional cooperation opportunities identified during the week.

Delegations emphasized the value of in-person spaces to foster peer exchange, generate new ideas, and strengthen technical networks. The usefulness of jointly addressing emerging topics such as non-tree biodiversity, landscape connectivity, and non-destructive technologies, as well as reviewing and harmonizing key variables like volume, was especially highlighted.

Countries also emphasized the importance of informal interaction, both in plenary sessions and bilateral conversations, as a fundamental element to enrich technical work and build long-term trust and collaboration.

"We are not only physically united, but we also share a common interest in developing, conserving, and understanding our forest resources, and I leave with a very rewarding experience in that sense," said Armando Alanís (Mexico).

The collective commitment to continue strengthening National Forest Inventories (NFIs) as the foundation for more robust, open, and transparent monitoring systems that meet national needs and effectively contribute to international processes, particularly the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA), was reaffirmed.

The workshop reaffirmed the role of the National Forest Inventories Network for Latin American and the Caribbean  (IFN-LAC Network) as a strategic platform for advancing data harmonization, South-South cooperation, and technical capacity development in the region. The shared experiences, learned tools, and strengthened relationships during the meeting will continue to drive joint progress towards more informed, efficient, and sustainable forest management.

“I really appreciate that these meetings are very motivating to be able to continue increasing, let’s say, strengthening the transparency of forest inventory information, which is indeed an invaluable tool.” (Guatemala)

“So, it has always been a space to understand that we are equals, we have many things in common, we face challenges in different ways, but we move forward and we want to continue.” — Miguel Chinchero (Ecuador)