Open Foris: strengthening climate transparency with free and open-source solutions
Reliable forest and land-use data are essential for credible climate reporting under the Paris Agreement's Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF). Yet Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) remains the most frequently reported capacity-building need across the first cycle of Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs). For many countries, the challenge is not understanding the IPCC guidance, but having the tools, data and systems needed to collect, manage and process forest and land-use information for climate reporting.
Open Foris, FAO's suite of free and open-source solutions for forest and land monitoring, helps countries close this gap — from field and satellite data collection to land-use change analysis, national forest inventory data management and quality control.
Digital publication — Transparency in practice: Country experiences using Open Foris for climate reporting
Transparency in practice: Country experiences using Open Foris for climate reporting
Drawing on the first cycle of Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs), National Inventory Documents (NIDs) and REDD+ Technical Annexes submitted under the ETF, this new FAO digital publication highlights how countries are using Open Foris to strengthen forest and land-use data, enhance transparency and support more robust climate reporting.
A review of submissions from 133 countries identified documented use of Open Foris solutions in 25 countries, with an additional 5 countries referencing Open Foris in improvement plans, capacity-development activities or ongoing initiatives — spanning Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean. The publication also presents practical pathways with Open Foris solutions for countries preparing their first or second BTR, building on existing REDD+ and national forest monitoring workflows.
Interactive dashboard — Open Foris in first-cycle ETF reporting
Explore the findings of the review through this interactive dashboard, showing where and how Open Foris solutions are referenced in first-cycle BTRs, NIDs and REDD+ Technical Annexes.
Join a global community of countries, practitioners and experts using Open Foris to advance forest and land-use data transparency for climate action.
In collaboration with:
This work was developed under the project "Building global capacity to increase transparency in the forest sector (CBIT-Forest)", funded by the Capacity-Building Initiative for Transparency trust fund of the Global Environment Facility, with additional support from the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland through the AIM4Forests initiative.