25 political scientists met in Vienna last week to start drafting the most comprehensive scientific report on the international forest regime. The report will be officially published in January 2011 on the occasion of the 9^th session of the United Nations Forum on Forests.

More specifically, the assessment aims to contribute to

• the international forest deliberations and international  forest-related processes such as the ninth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (January  2011), the tenth Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (October 2010), and the discussion on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD);
• the improvement of coordination among political actors, policy instruments and institutions;
• the International Year of Forests 2011 by raising awareness about the role of international instruments and institutions affecting forests.

PHOTOS FROM THE FIRST MEETING