International Day of Forests 2022: Forests, Trees and Poverty Alleviation in Africa
By Dikshya Devkota, GFEP Project Manager, IUFRO
On the occasion of the International Day of Forests 2022, our member IUFRO presents its latest Policy Brief “Forests, Trees and Poverty Alleviation in Africa.” This brief aims to help decision-makers, stakeholders, and practitioners better understand the potential role of forests and trees in sustainable development in Africa.
Women in Malawi carrying firewood, a basic resource in their daily lives (Photo Jennifer Zavaleta Cheek)Read more…
Supporting the Forest Science Community in Economically Disadvantaged Countries
An Interview with Michael Kleine and Janice Burns, Coordinator and Deputy Coordinator, respectively, of IUFRO’s Special Programme for Development of Capacities (IUFRO-SPDC) https://www.iufro.org/science/special/spdc/
Michael Kleine has been the Coordinator of IUFRO-SPDC since 2001 and Deputy Executive Director of IUFRO since 2010. He is a forestry graduate of the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna, Austria, from where he also obtained his doctoral degree and habilitation in Silviculture. During his career he has participated in natural forest research and management, and rural development through residential assignments in Austria, Pakistan and Malaysia. He also worked as free-lance forestry consultant for the German Development Agency GIZ, the FAO and the European Commission among others in Asia and Central America.
The Deputy Mayor of the Lilongwe City Council, Councilor Esther Sagawa, Launches the Forest Restoration of the Lingadzi Riverine in Lilongwe
Report by Harold Kangoli and Steve Makungwa
Deputy Mayor planting mbawa tree (Khaya anthotheca). Photo by Harold Kangoli
On 19 February 2022 the Deputy Mayor of the Lilongwe City Council, Councilor Esther Sagawa, launched the forest restoration of the Lingadzi Riverine. The project is an initiative of the Lilongwe City Council and it aims to plant and sustainably manage 7,300 native riverine tree species on a 24 hectare degraded riverine along the Lingadzi River in Lilongwe. The design, implementation and monitoring of the project is facilitated by the Lilongwe Chapter of the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF), an initiative of Malawi’s Centre for Applied Systems Analysis (CASA) in collaboration with the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO.
Interview with Dr. Pia Katila, Coordinator of IUFRO’s Special Project on World Forests, Society and Environment (IUFRO-WFSE)
Dr. Katila is an expert in international forest policy, governance, and sustainable development with a special focus on developing countries. She works at Luke, the Natural Resources Institute Finland, based in Helsinki, where the WFSE Project has always been hosted. Visit: https://www.iufro.org/science/wfse/
Throughout the Americas wildfires are changing. Forests are experiencing longer fire seasons, fires occurring outside of historic fire regions, fires burning more land on average each year, and more extreme fire behavior; some of which is attributed to a changing climate. Additionally, we are seeing an increased frequency of wildfires in populated area, impacting more homes and communities.
Water is fundamental to life on earth. What may not be quite so obvious is that forests are equally vital resources for life on the planet.
And the two – water and forests – are inseparable in the pursuit of a sustainable and sustainably developed world. Therefore, forests and water resources have been identified as essential elements in adaptation to climate change.
From tradition to innovation: Insights into trends in forest-related employment and tertiary education
Despite their differences in e.g. climate, culture, and culinary preferences, you might be curious to find out what Brazil, China, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, South Africa and United States of America have in common.
The seven countries represent 42.7% of the global forest cover; and six out of the seven countries were among the top producers of forest products globally in 2018. Thus, the forest sector contributes significantly to their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and creates a high number of full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs (FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment Report, 2015). But when we speak about jobs, do we know what changes are happening in forest-related employment in these countries? What are the major drivers of these changes? What is the state of forest-related green jobs there? How are the countries’ forest-related tertiary education programmes addressing these changes? And what is the future of forest-related employment and education in these countries?
IUFRO Headquarters is a family I will never forget. I still remember when I found out that I had been accepted as a trainee at IUFRO Headquarters in Vienna. I was working in my home office in a remote town in the middle of a country far south in Latin America, organizing the 50th anniversary of the International Forestry Students’ Symposium (IFSS), when I read that e-mail and realized my life was about to change. I started shouting and jumping for joy because finally this corona nightmare was over, and I was going to achieve my dream of working at an international organization in Europe. Austria was my destination and IUFRO my challenge.
My name is Mirjana Volarev, and I am from Serbia. I am an environmentalist and a forester with a passion for climate policy. I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Serbia at the Faculty of Forestry, University of Belgrade, and my Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences and Policy at the Central European University in Vienna, Austria.
10 Years of REDD+: Outcomes and Socio-Ecological Impacts
Report by Mirjana Volarev, IFSA Intern at IUFRO
On 28th and 29th September 2021 IUFRO organized the digital IUFRO World Day event. During this event, participants had the opportunity to travel virtually across the globe and discover a wide array of forest research topics in over 70 live sessions and a similar amount of static information items.
