Forest science is alive and well: 10 points from IUFRO 2017
NOTE: This text is reblogged from Boris Rantaša’s blog post at https://rantasa.me/2017/09/26/forest-science-is-alive-and-well-10-points-from-iufro-2017/
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September 26, 2017 – BORIS
From 17. to 22. September 2017 I took part in the IUFRO 125th Anniversary Congress in Freiburg, Germany. IUFRO stands for International Union of Forest Research Organization and is the oldest scientific union in the world. The congress presented the state of the art in forest research, development and practice.
I have tried to sum up what I learned at the congress in the 10 points below: Read more…
Lives Saved by Forests
The interconnection of forests and people goes beyond forest management and forest products. This was dramatically illustrated during 2015 floods in Malawi when people climbed trees and were thereby saved from floods that killed over a hundred people in Traditional Authority Mlolo of the Nsanje District. Read more…
Forest communicators urged to use science-based facts to fight fake news
MEDIA RELEASE – PDF for download
Freiburg, Germany, 20 September 2017 – Facts are vital tools for communicators striving to help the public understand critical issues such as climate change and the forest sector, according to a session on communication during the 125th Anniversary Congress of the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO). Read more…
Taking a closer look at the efficacy of incentives
INTERVIEW with keynote speaker Dr. Arun Agrawal,
University of Michigan, USA
Keynote Plenary Session 2
Friday, 22 September, 10:30 – 12:00
Rolf Böhme Saal (Konzerthaus Freiburg)
“The perverse outcomes of incentives for forest conservation”
Hidden biodiversity key to healthy future forests
INTERVIEW with keynote speaker Dr. Hojka Kraigher,
Slovenian Forestry Institute, SLOVENIA
Keynote Plenary Session 2
Friday, 22 September, 10:30 – 12:00
Rolf Böhme Saal (Konzerthaus Freiburg)
“Hidden biodiversity and forest dynamics”
Read more…
Earth: a single, complex and rapidly changing system
INTERVIEW with keynote speaker Dr. Will Steffen,
The Australian National University and the Stockholm Resilience Centre, AUSTRALIA
Keynote Plenary Session 1
Thursday, 21 September, 10:30 – 12:00
Rolf Böhme Saal (Konzerthaus Freiburg)
The Earth System, the Anthropocene and the World’s Forests
IUFRO-SPDC training program on “Science-Society Interactions in Support of Forest Landscape Restoration Implementation
Photo: Promode Kant
A IUFRO-SPDC training program on “Science-Society Interactions in Support of Forest Landscape Restoration Implementation” was held at the University of Freiburg as a pre-Congress event from Sept 16 to 18, 2017. Global initiatives like the Bonn Challenge and the New York Declaration on Forests have set a huge target of 350 million hectare of forest and landscape restoration by 2030 before the global community and there has been some progress in the financing of this task, too. But still a lot of effort is needed to prepare the governments and societies at different levels across the world for them to be able to move towards the target efficiently with lower social and economic costs and with minimum distress to the poorer communities. This workshop discussed ways and means of transforming scientific knowledge into useful information for policy and management decisions on the ground. More specifically, the workshop aimed at the following specific objectives: Read more…
Communicating Forest Science – Pre-Congress workshop develops skills and fosters friendships across disciplines and geography
SPDC Communicating Forest Science participants gather during a short break between sessions.
When is the last time you saw a tweet about your research? How much time have you spent crafting key messages about your science?
Communicating takes time and effort and that is what eight delegates from seven countries just learned. They gathered to improve their ability to communicate forest science, representing fields ranging from forest products and entomology to climate change adaptation and local community forest management. The delegates worked hard over two days with one goal in mind: communicating their research with a purpose. Read more…
Forest restoration means more than planting trees
INTERVIEW with keynote speaker Dr. Robin Chazdon,
University of Connecticut, USA
Keynote Plenary Session 2
Friday, 22 September, 10:30 – 12:00
Rolf Böhme Saal (Konzerthaus Freiburg)
“Restoration Forestry: Challenges and Opportunities for Foresters, Forests, and Landscapes”
Using the forest sector to help mitigate climate change
INTERVIEW with keynote speaker Dr. Werner Kurz,
Canadian Forest Service (Natural Resources Canada), Canada
Keynote Plenary Session 1
Thursday, 21 September, 10:30 – 12:00,
Rolf Böhme Saal (Konzerthaus Freiburg)
“The potential contribution of the forest sector to climate change mitigation”