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Our new report, written by the Expert Group of Green Jobs by FOREST EUROPE, sheds light on the topic of Novel Green Forest Jobs. It summarizes the state of the art in literature reviews, the results from a survey sent to esteemed experts, and a workshop where participants discussed and exchanged knowledge. The take-home messages are tailored to policy makers, researchers, and academia/education, enabling you to get the most interesting information at a glance.

Enjoy reading and download it here!

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At the event, ministers and heads of observer organizations will discuss Sustainable Forest Management, resilience, and youth involvement. The focus is on sharing national experiences, addressing challenges, and shaping the future vision of FOREST EUROPE through key thematic sessions.

The event will conclude with the signing of the Bonn Ministerial Documents, reaffirming the commitment of FOREST EUROPE’s signatories and observers to promoting collective actions to “shape our future with resilient forests” through SFM policies and practices.

The post 9th FOREST EUROPE Ministerial Conference first appeared on FOREST EUROPE.

During the meeting, the focal points were the presentation of a report on Novel Green Forest Jobs and the formulation of policy recommendations to promote Green Forest Jobs to policymakers. Experts further discussed important topics like new and innovative roles of jobs in the forestry sector and attractive and engaging ways to communicate these stories to the world. They also talked about how to represent their work effectively at the upcoming IUFRO World Congress in Stockholm.

The second day of the meeting was all about finding better ways to measure the work and jobs in the forestry sector. Participants shared ideas and experiences to improve our understanding of employment in forestry. The meeting ended with a field trip to the nearby Arnsberg forest, where the experts learned about managing forests in the face of climate change and how to deal with forests that have been affected by disturbances like storms or fires.

Photo: Wald und Holz NRW

“We want to thank ‘Wald und Holz NRW’ for their warm welcome and excellent organization,” said Vera Steinberg, workstream leader of Green Jobs and Forest Education and policy advisor at FOREST EUROPE. “Their support made this meeting possible and helped us take important steps to attract the workforce of tomorrow, thus ensuring the sustainable management of our forests.”

The Expert Group Meeting on Green Forest Jobs shows what can be achieved when people work together. By sharing knowledge and ideas, we can build a future where forests thrive, providing benefits for both nature and people.

For further information, please contact:

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Several decades ago, FOREST EUROPE developed a set of Criteria and Indicators (C&I) for SFM, that was improved and revised over the years. Those are publicly available, and countries use it as a very important tool for national and European forest policy, and for the development of their National Forest Inventories. Based on the information obtained by these C&I, the State of Europe’s Forests report is regularly published every five years.  

The existing pan-European indicators (available here) need to be further developed to adequately address the new and complex demands on forests due to threats triggered by climate change, habitat change, and species loss (Prins et al., 2023). The FE indicators revision process aims to be in coherence with the main political goals and instruments such as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Aichi-Targets, Global Forest Goals, EU forest biodiversity-related strategies, etc. 

You can discover more reading:  

• the policy brief European Forest Biodiversity Indicators at a Glance also suggests a possible way forward.
• the full report Potential for revision of FOREST EUROPE indicators under criterion 4 to obtain a full picture, discussing each FE biodiversity indicator and recommendations for the future to optimize FE indicators.  

Reference  

 Prins, K.; Köhl, M.; Linser, S. (2023): Is the concept of sustainable forest management still fit for purpose? EnvSciPol, forthcoming 

The post Improving biodiversity monitoring in sustainable forest management first appeared on FOREST EUROPE.

The webinar started with the introduction of the Novel Green Forest Jobs topic, by Ilaria Doimo from ETIFOR. 

She presented a survey carried out by Forest Europe, which focused on identifying the opportunities and challenges in Green Forest Jobs through feedback from different organizations and understanding the future development of Novel Green Forest Jobs. One of the key messages was that the number of jobs in traditional forestry has been decreasing over the past decade while new forestry (novel) jobs are emerging. This trend could be attributed to the development of bioeconomy, mechanization, digitalization, consulting, education, and cultural changes. 

The survey highlighted interesting trends and will be further developed to provide accurate information on the Novel Green Forest Jobs. It will be published in the spring of 2024 by Forest Europe.

The next speaker was Ewa Hermanowicz, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Communications Manager for Europe.

With a background in languages and international relations, she developed her own career, starting at FAO and then working for Bioversity International, followed by making movies on gender equality in India and working with National Geographic to showcase the magnificence of  Icelandic forests. Currently, she is preparing a movie on the wood chain from Congo, describing the challenges of the increasing wood demand and the need to combat deforestation.

Sharing her inspiring career, she highlighted that any kind of talent one has can be used in forestry; one only needs to know what they like, pursue it, and it will work out great!

The next panelist, Silvia Melegari, developed her career path in another branch of the forestry sector, specifically in the wood industry.

Having a background in law, she “accidentally” found herself in the wood industry. One of the decisive factors was her relocation to Brussels, where the main policy negotiations were happening. During her career, she worked with a Wood-based Panel Foundation, and now she is working with the EU organization of Sawmill and Wood Processing Industry and CEI-Bois. The main goal is to advocate for the family business in the EU parliament, work with other lobbying organizations, evaluate the changes that new legislation will bring to the industry, and advise their members accordingly. This is quite a challenging but exciting job, as the parliament is frequently changing, and they have to make sure that new politicians have the importance of the forest industry in mind.

Silvia provided a great example that forest jobs also require an understanding of human relations, and they support businesses in the wood industry.

The next speaker was Lioba Rath, who holds the position at State Forest Enterprise in Switzerland. She shared her experience of working in that part of the forestry sector, which is often called the “most conservative” one, and showed that even there, you can find innovative jobs as the sector is transforming. Same as the previous speakers, she ended up in the forestry sector accidentally, but this time in the digital support for the Enterprise. This includes her in all stages of work, starting from small tasks such as training on how to use measurement tools to high-level strategies such as planning the transportation of wood. 

She has been working just for one year but finds a lot of joy in the work she does. Lioba concluded her presentation with the call that there is a place for everyone, and the field needs it!

The last speaker was the current IFSA President – Isabelle Claire. She shared her path of education and development as a successful story of how the IFSA experience contributes well to the formal education received at the university. A striking example is her recently received position in CIFOR, where her forestry background and soft skills developed in IFSA are extremely useful. 

In addition to this, Isabelle used the opportunity to share youth perspectives on the current state of the forestry sector. It is visible that the sector is aging, and youth are less involved because of the low profitability and lack of training; thus, capacity building is needed. Some of the IFSA’s major projects in that area include the “TreE-Learning” platform and “Gender Open Letter.” 

Isabelle ended her presentation by pointing out that we need to invest in youth and women for the stability of forests and society!

For those who missed the webinar, you can watch the recording on the FOREST EUROPE YouTube channel here.

If you are interested in learning more about the forestry sector, Forest Europe is organizing another webinar on the 14th of March on the topic: “The roots of innovation – setting the course for innovation and sustainable growth in the forest sector.” For more information and registration please follow the link here.

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On November 9, government representatives and practitioners from all over Europe came together in Berlin for the second FOREST EUROPE High-Level Talks to address one question: How can sustainable forest management help make Europe’s forests more resilient to the consequences of climate change?

For those who don’t know, FOREST EUROPE is a pan-European forest policy process at the ministerial level in which guidelines, criteria, and indicators of sustainable forest management are developed. And we had the opportunity to be the youth representatives.

What have we seen? What are the bullet points we, the Youth, take from this day full of panel discussions? This is our perspective on the topic of „growing healthier forests“ and the efforts the government representatives make in their countries.

The high-level meeting focused on the consequences of the climate crisis in European forests. In his welcoming speech, the Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture, Cem Özdemir, called for knowledge and forces to be pooled in Europe in order to make greater use of them for our forests, which are severely affected by the climate crisis:

“Our forests are important comrades-in-arms in the fight against the climate crisis and its consequences. Our forests do not end at national borders. Protecting our forests and adapting them to the climate crisis is, therefore, a pan-European challenge. We can only overcome it together.”

As we should know, it is not easy to develop a Europe-wide forest policy. Forests in Europe are very diverse in terms of their tree species composition, climatic conditions and the extent of changes caused by climate change, and social relationships to forests are also very diverse.

Accordingly, Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) does not necessarily equal resilient forest management everywhere, as stated by the professor of ecosystem dynamics and forest management at the Technical University of Munich, Rupert Seidl. It needs deliberate considerations and time frames to enhance a process of resilience. The director of the Icelandic Forest Service, Þröstur Eysteinsson, hits the nail on the head: “there is no „one fits all“-solution.”

So why is it still important to talk to each other? In times of fast-changing environmental and climatic conditions, nobody knows how to act for the best. The rule „local is best“ loses its validity, and we need forest experts to be more open-minded to interlinked knowledge from everywhere in the world.

Since the climatic conditions are changing faster than ever, different problems occur, but in many cases other nations have faced these problems already. With collaboration and constructive scientific dialogue, we can profit from problems other nations have faced and work together. One good core concern is, therefore, to build and establish a European platform to pool expertise and research findings on protecting forests from the climate crisis. The planned “Forest Risk Facility” (FoRISK Facility) is intended to be a permanent facility for partners and initiatives to receive assistance for preventing risks, coping with risks, and adapting forests. Shared knowledge is the best knowledge.

The HLPD was very professionally organized. As the youth representatives, we did not have much delegation experience beforehand, so it was a pleasure to get the opportunity here. The Moderator, Jo O’Hara, did a fantastic job and led in an emotional and empathic way through the day.  The content of the panelists was substantial and eloquent, which is important for the broader FOREST EUROPE process.

On the second day, we did an excursion in the Grunewald, which was beautiful in the autumn-shaped colorful forest around Berlin. It was also a great opportunity to get to know each other better and to dive deeper into certain topics in smaller groups.

What we missed a bit during the conversations is a bigger emphasis on how important it is to gather ideas for increasing the acceptance of SFM by society. Social acceptance and participatory processes in forestry activities are the root of every forest strategy that is overseen most of the time. In recent times, when many forests look devastated, it is more important to legitimize the expertise of foresters and to make it visible to everyone that foresters act scientifically and to the best of their knowledge and belief.

A lot of this issue relies on our own acts: Foresters need to be more open-minded to other interest groups and sectors in society. Regarding international collaboration, we need to set the same prerequisites for all signatory states and implement an effective and fruitful exchange. Then, we can set a good example of an efficient and action-oriented policy that gets adapted within the FOREST EUROPE process.

Check here the interviews with the Secretary General of the Confederation of European Forest Owners (CEPF), Fanny-Pomme Langue, and the Communications Manager of the International Union of Forest-Research Organizations (IUFRO), José Bolaños.

The post IFSA reports on the High-Level Policy Dialogue: Forests do not end at national borders – how can united knowledge help Europe’s forests? first appeared on FOREST EUROPE.

(Download this document here.)

We are living in times of drastic changes challenging forests all over Europe.

Our forests are facing disturbances that are increasing in severity, scale, and frequency due to climate change, thus leading to rapidly advancing tree mortality and canopy loss in Europe. Moreover, disturbance events are becoming increasingly complex as different and sometimes emerging disturbances are linked, occur simultaneously, or reinforce each other, exacerbating the current challenges at the national and regional levels. The unprecedented forest damages all over Europe require rethinking and constant analysis of adaptation strategies and approaches to enhance the resilience of forests, landscapes, and society.

So, what do we mean by resilience? Resilience indicates the ability of a system to absorb or withstand changes and disturbance while also maintaining important ecosystem processes and functions. Since 2018, an increase in the disturbance frequency has been observed, and it is likely that forests in Europe may no longer be able to recover from or absorb the damage. The impact on society and the loss of essential ecosystem services and functions that forests provide (e.g., carbon sequestration, healthy soil, drinking water, and wood products) could be irreversible. Therefore, when dealing with resilience in forests and landscapes, we need a holistic approach that considers societal needs, the entire value chain of the forest process, and ecosystem integrity and conservation.

Increasing resilience through SFM practices could provide a way out of the combined climate and biodiversity crisis our forests face.

We may not be able to prevent the disturbances, but every crisis is also an opportunity to transform forests into more resilient ecosystems with enhanced biodiversity. SFM and the integration of nature conservation in active forest management practices have proven successful all over Europe. SFM is a dynamic concept, able to be adapted to changes, and remains the conceptual backbone for the future of European forests. Increasing forest resilience through SFM practices will be instrumental in reinforcing and maintaining the adaptive capacity of forest landscapes and their ability to cope with the tremendous speed and pressure that climate change effects exert on them.

Enhancing forest resilience in Sustainable Forest Management practices includes:

• Pro-active management to prevent and prepare for forest disturbances and mitigate future impacts, for example, by increasing the diversity of tree species, structures, and management methods to create more diverse forests and landscapes to face an uncertain future. Considering most climate-adapted provenances and tree species can be taken up as an option. From the perspective of genetic sciences, it’s important to note that these may not necessarily be native species. Therefore, in shaping future species mixes to enhance resilience against potential disturbances, it’s essential also to consider tested non-native species.
• Comprehensive recovery approaches need to combine forest restoration and climate change adaptation at the same time. In addition, we need to consider different dimensions from the smaller to the larger scale; forests need to be managed as part of the landscape and become an integrative part of landscape restoration concepts.
• Not only do forests and forest management need to become resilient, but also forest value chains and society. With increasing and competitive demands for forest products and services, we must ensure that forest resources and services are put to the best possible use and strike the right balance. This requires developing new technologies and products, well-trained, informed, and receptive personnel as well as efficient communication strategies.
• We need more science to inform decision-makers and practitioners and implement more effectively. There is an increasing need for monitoring disturbances and early warning systems to improve our understanding of forest risks. More research on unmanaged areas should be conducted to comprehend natural adaptation processes better.
• Private forest owners often face new and seemingly insurmountable challenges that may force them to abandon their land. Providing assistance and training to landowners needs to go beyond subsidies and regulatory frameworks; it is necessary to understand their values and objectives while developing policies and increasing awareness.

The need to act on the climate and biodiversity crisis together is growing, requiring international and coordinated actions.

Countries face different challenges at different times, and priorities regarding risk management differ. Climate change and biodiversity loss do not respect borders, and urgency is an issue; solutions must be developed by joining forces, always keeping the country’s differences in mind. As there is “no one-size-fits-all,” locally adapted solutions need to be elaborated, with the transparent involvement of different interest groups.

Several participants highlighted the urgency of strengthening cross-border collaboration and transparent dialogues through a FOREST EUROPE Forest Risk Facility (FoRISK). Such pan-European cooperation platform on risk prevention and management is currently being examined by the FOREST EUROPE’s signatories and envisaged to be adopted at the 9th Ministerial Conference on 1-2 October 2024 (further information on the Ministerial decision under preparation can be obtained from the Liaison Unit Bonn upon request).

This discussion prepared the ground for further investigation of the relationship and potential synergies between the two concepts of SFM and resilience building.

The post Take-home messages from the High-Level Talks 2023 first appeared on FOREST EUROPE.

The forest sector is known to have a very low representation of females employed (below 20 %). This gender gap is also seen in the traditional forest sector workforce. Coupled with the challenge of an aging workforce, the forest sector urgently needs to find ways of attracting more people, including women, to engage in forest-related activities. Innovative forest-based Green Jobs are a way of alleviating potential labor shortages. Providing a more gender-balanced workplace, improving occupational health and safety at work, making working time more flexible, and offering fair wages will immensely contribute to improving the image of the forest sector and attract women and youth.

Through this webinar, we would like to highlight the Novel Green Forest Jobs based on the findings of the activities of FOREST EUROPE’s Workstream on Green Jobs and Forest Education and, while doing so, also showcase the transition from the traditional forestry profession to the novel green forest jobs-women perspective and the gaps in the curricular.

Objectives of the webinar

• Build up on the previous webinar on “How the heck did I end up here?” from the FOREST EUROPE series “From the Roots to the Canopy”. (More information: www.foresteurope.org)
• Present the results from the survey on Novel Green Forest Jobs and the workshop on Novel Green Forest Jobs to be held at the WS3 Expert Group Meeting (EGM) in October 2023.
• Highlight the transition and the potential of Green Forest Jobs by showcasing success stories of female professionals who pursued the traditional forestry programmes but transitioned to different fields of Green Forest jobs, the reasons behind that, and the challenges and opportunities that are there for women.
• Highlight opportunities and gaps regarding Novel Green Forest Jobs in the forest-related curriculum.

[1] Green Forest jobs, as defined by FOREST EUROPE, refer to “Jobs that provide forest-related goods and services while meeting the requirements of sustainable forest management and decent work.

Find here the Webinar programme, and speaker bios.

Date: 12^th December 2023, 2:00 PM CET

Time: 90 minutes

Target group: Students from a forest-related programmes, universities, Expert Group “Green Jobs,” industry, interested public, FE interested observer organisations.

Moderator: Vera Steinberg (FOREST EUROPE)

The post Shaping tomorrow’s workforce: Novel Green Forest Jobs (NGFJ) and the transition from tradition first appeared on FOREST EUROPE.

Join us for conversations with forestry experts from different pan-European regions as we explore the challenges, solutions, and the way forward to preserve our forests for generations to come. Our speakers will address key issues, including the important role of FOREST EUROPE, how Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) can ensure the multi-functions of our forests, strategies to protect our forests from pests, and the critical role of biodiversity when it comes to managing our forests. Hear their voices, share their passion, and be inspired by their stories.

Discover the benefits of impactful forest policymaking and sustainable practices from different countries in the pan-European region. Listen to our four episodes here!

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