Forests are home to most of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity, yet forests and their biodiversity continue to be lost at an alarming rate. Deforestation is the greatest driver of the loss of valuable plants and animals, with almost 8 million hectares of forest cleared every year, mainly for agricultural expansion. Other threats include over-harvesting of timber, invasive species, climate change, desertification and forest fires.

The conservation of the world’s biodiversity is utterly dependent on the way in which we interact with and use the world’s forests. The critical importance of sustainable forest management in halting deforestation and forest degradation, and the associated decline in supply of ecosystem services, is well recognized. However, much more needs to be done to make sure that the conservation and sustainable utilization of biodiversity are embedded at every level of forest management.

COFO 25 requested FAO to conduct a review of biodiversity mainstreaming in forestry and share good practices on solutions that balance conservation and sustainable use of forest biodiversity, and report on progress made at COFO 26.

The objectives of this special event are to:

• report on the key findings of the review on biodiversity mainstreaming in forestry;
• launch and disseminate the FAO Forestry Paper ‘Mainstreaming biodiversity in forestry’;
• discuss the way forward with member countries and partner organizations to validate and support the implementation of recommendations from the review on the ground.