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Editorial: Silva Mediterranea 2009-2015, out of the shadow and into the light
by Christophe Besacier
 When I was offered the opportunity to join the FAO Forestry Department in November 2009, with the mandate to support the secretariat of Silva Mediterranea, one of the most common concerns of FAO’s partners in the region was the low visibility of Mediterranean forests in the international scene. The more optimistic colleagues told me, “Good luck!’’, while others were sceptical about the ability of the Committee to be reborn from the ashes.
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In-memoriam
 Börje Steenberg
by Magnus Grylle
Sadly, a living legend has left us. Börje Steenberg, the first Assistant Director-General of FAO’s Forestry Department, recently passed away in Stockholm at the magnificent age of 102.
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 Franz Schmithüsen
Professor Franz Schmithüsen was a loyal friend and supporter of FAO, a passionate advocate of sustainable forestry and an expert in forestry legislation. Following his sad passing away on 14 April 2015, his friends and current and former colleagues in FAO pay tribute to his work, achievements and friendship.
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FAO Forestry news
International Day of Forests 2015 celebrations, 21 March
The third celebration of the International Day of Forests (IDF) saw thousands of people take part in events to increase public appreciation and understanding of forests and trees and their benefits to humanity and the planet, particularly in climate change adaptation and mitigation. Supporters from all sectors of society engaged with FAO and its member countries and partners in tree-planting and forest visits, symposia and debates, gastronomic events, activities for children and students and spreading the word through social media.
Read more to learn about some of the main IDF 2015 celebratory events
- HRH Prince Laurent of Belgium, FAO Special Ambassador for Forests and the Environment, in Cabo Verde
- United Nations Forum on Forests, New York, USA and the IDF 2015 message of the UN Secretary-General
- Special Event, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy, opened by the FAO Director-General
- Roundup of country and local events from FAO staff in the regional decentralized offices in: Africa; Asia-Pacific; Europe; Near East; and Latin America.
Mountains: water towers facing climate change
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“Mountain areas need more attention in international negotiations and discussions”, was the view of His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco during an FAO side event at the 7th World Water Forum. Climate change is increasing the vulnerability of mountain communities and altering ecosystems, particularly the 60 to 80 percent of global freshwater resources mountains provide, but 2015 offers many arenas for action on policy, participants noted. |
Read more about the FAO-organized side event Mountains: water towers facing climate change held at the 7th World Water Forum in Daegu and Gyeongbuk, Republic of Korea in April and visit FAO’s Mountain and Watershed Management website.
Keeping sustainable forest management in the climate change-food security dialogue
Measures to mitigate climate change and increase food security and nutrition (FSN) must also include sustainable forest management, FAO Forestry said, to ensure that policy and technical frameworks are developed and implemented holistically. FAO cites the Republic of Korea and its decades-long approach of informing and reconciling competing sectoral interests as a key factor behind the country’s significant achievements in FSN and land restoration.
Read more on FAO Forestry’s contribution to the FAO-FSN online learning event and webinar Climate Change, Food Security and Nutrition. Also view the three main questions posed by the FAO-FSN Forum consultation as well as all contributions received.
Forests and soils: key messages from the FAO Forestry Department
2015 is the International Year of Soils, and FAO Forestry has produced a set of key messages to provide some facts about the links between the two natural resources. Forests are important for soils for many reasons: forests and forest soils are significant carbon stores, have a key role in sustainable soil management and provide numerous ecosystem benefits. Forests are also of importance in soil conservation in semi-arid and arid areas and in reducing the vulnerability of mountain soils to degradation.
Read the FAO Forestry key messages on soils
Speeding up access to satellite imagery to improve forest monitoring and reporting
Norway and FAO are partnering in a USD 4.5 million project to increase developing countries’ capacity in sustainable monitoring and reporting of their forest resources and forest-area changes. Countries will receive training in new, free and user-friendly FAO software operating on a “cloud-based” computing interface, which will greatly improve their access to satellite imagery and the speed of data processing.
Read more about the Norway-FAO forest monitoring partnership agreement, funded under Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative, which will be piloted in 13 UN-REDD implementing countries. Also learn about other FAO Open Foris software tools.
Local stakeholders and international partners agree on major second phase of Fouta Djallon development
Management of the largest series of watersheds in West Africa, the Fouta Djallon Highlands (FDH), is set to move into a substantial second phase, following agreement between national stakeholders and international partners on all aspects of a new six-year project. Supported by GEF funding and jointly implemented by UNEP and FAO with the IBC of the African Union, phase two will be formally launched in November 2015, leading to expected increases in the integrity of FDH ecosystems thereafter.
Read more in the summary of the three-day technical meeting between national focal points, River Basin Commissions and the African Union International Bureau of Coordination, UNEP and FAO, held in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2015, and visit the Fouta Djallon website.
Global news
2015 Collaborative Partnership on Forests Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award: nominations open until Friday, 29 May 2015
The Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award recognizes extraordinary efforts by an individual to improve and sustain forests and the people who depend on them. The award, established by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), honours the memory of Kenyan environmentalist Wangari Maathai, a champion of forest issues worldwide and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.The award ceremony will take place at the XIV World Forestry Congress in Durban, South Africa.
Read more about the 2015 Wangari Maathai Award at the CPF website in English, French and Spanish.
IV MFW: Mediterranean region forest development is a priority, donors and partners confirm
Mediterranean Forest Week photo contest entrant: Reforestation, Lebanon © FCNMedNE Maya Nehme
More than 400 participants and stakeholders met in Barcelona to take part in dialogues on “Improving livelihoods: the role of Mediterranean forest value chains in a green economy”, the theme of IV MFW. Donors and partners confirmed that development of the Mediterranean region is a priority, while FAO’s Eduardo Rojas called for adequate funding of forest restoration and climate change adaptation measures.
Read more in the full summary and main outcomes of the IV Mediterranean Forest Week (MFW) held in Barcelona, Spain, from 17–20 March 2015, and also visit the Silva Mediterranea website. Also read Unasylva 242, A new dynamic for Mediterranean forests.
FAO signs up to new ten-year plan to reduce landslide disaster risk
With the signing at the Sendai Disaster Risk Reduction Conference of a ten-year partnership agreement, the ISDR-ICL have committed to a new set of goals and targets post-2015 to help increase understanding and reduce the risk of landslide disasters. FAO is a signatory to the agreement and landslide specialists in FAO Forestry’s Watershed Management team will be providing key inputs to planned action.
Read more about the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR)-International Consortium on Landslides (ICL) Partnerships 2015–2025 for Global Promotion of Understanding and Reducing Landslide Disaster Risk agreement, signed at the 3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, held in Sendai, Japan, from 14–18 March 2015.
EU FLEGT Week: stakeholders discuss progress and look to the future
FAO joined some 300 stakeholders at last month’s annual EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Week in Brussels to reflect on 12 years of FLEGT activities. Participants agreed on several priorities, including greater private sector engagement in legal and sustainable timber trade, forest conversion, integrating domestic markets and harnessing of FLEGT synergies.
Read more about EU FLEGT Week and visit the FAO EU FLEGT website.
Making Guatemalan forestry more productive and sustainable
At a side event during the 151st FAO Council, the manager of Guatemala’s National Forest Service described how FAO technical assistance was helping local forest and farm producers and government entities to increase their capacity in legal and advocacy matters as well as the impact of forestry incentives, particularly under the forthcoming “Probosque” programme. FAO’s support is being provided within the second of its five Strategic Objectives.
Read more about FAO’s major areas of work in global agricultural development, as defined in its five Strategic Objectives, and view the Forest and Farm Facility (Guatemala) progress report 2014.
XIV World Forestry Congress, Durban, South Africa
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7-11 September 2015: registration open
Registration for the Congress is open, with special rates for "early-bird" registration. Visit the Congress registration webpages in English, French or Spanish for full details on rates and how to register. For all other information, visit the XIV World Forestry Congress website in English, French and Spanish.
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Meetings and events
Meetings
- 3rd World Teak Conference 2015 – Strengthening Global Teak Resources and Markets for Sustainable Development Asociación Ecuatoriana de Productores de Teca y Maderas Tropicales, FAO, International Teak Information Network, IUFRO – Guayaquil, Eduador, 11–15 May 2015
Collaborative Partnership on Forests events calendar, including:
United Nations events 2015
Partner and country events:
Expo 2015: Feeding the planet - energy for life Milan, Italy, 1 May to 31 October 2015.
Urban architecture goes green
FAO and Austria teamed up to celebrate Earth Day on 22 April, with a preview of the Austria Pavilion at Expo 2015. The "Breathe" Pavilion contains a living forest and was designed to show visitors how, in line with the Expo 2015 theme, forests provide clean air and nutritious, organic food.
View the FAO-produced video to see how and why an Austrian forest was recreated in Milan.
International Days - March to August 2015
Publications and videos
Publications
- To help raise awareness of the release of the Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) on 8 September at the XIV World Forestry Congress in Durban, South Africa, the FRA team has produced a series of four mysterious posters ...
- A new FAO publication, FAO Forestry Paper No. 174: Towards effective national forest funds, will be launched on 6 May at an FAO-organized side event at the 11th United Nations Forum on Forests. An accompanying policy brief, Making national forest funds more effective, will also be launched at the side event. The Paper and policy brief will be available for downloading from the FAO Document Repository from this date.
Videos
Biodiversity conservation in the Delaikoro Mountain ecosystem, Fiji
Fiji is a haven of unique flora and fauna. This video documents the expedition to Vanua Levu, Fiji, undertaken by the government, non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders to conduct a biological rapid assessment of the proposed Delaikoro protected area. The Global Environment Facility-funded project is supported by FAO, the University of the South Pacific and the Fijian Ministry of Fisheries and Forestry. View the video here.
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http://forestry.fao.msgfocus.com/u/1hxHwkX1YC
