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Description
Ahead of the UN Climate COP29, the TEAMING UP 4 FORESTS (TU4F) hosted a webinar that brought together over 100 participants to discuss the future of forest management in the face of climate change. Watch recording HERE! Find slides HERE!
Authors of the Europe's wood supply in disruptive times report, Florian Kraxner and Andrey Krasovskiy (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis – IIASA), and Manfred Lexer (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna – BOKU) presented the impacts of climate change on forests and strategies for adaptation. Industry perspectives were shared by Karoliina Niemi (Finnish Forest Industries Federation) and Jessica Nordin (Södra), focusing on sustainable forest management and adaptive approaches.
Welcoming the panel and more than 100 attendees, IUFRO Deputy Director, Michael Kleine, underscored the event's relevance. The event was moderated by Carola Egger with support from Maja Radosavljevic, Partnership Managers. Broadcasted via LinkedIn, the session draws public interest, due to the importance of climate-resilient forests and strategies to support a circular bioeconomy.
The urgency of the discussion was emphasized by the projection that global temperatures will rise above 1.5°C for the first time in 2024, breaching the upper limit set in the 2015 Paris Agreement. In parts of Europe, such as the Alpine region, this threshold has already been surpassed. While the effects of warming will vary across Europe's diverse forest regions, the likelihood of extreme events like droughts and storms is expected to increase across the continent, posing serious challenges to forest productivity and resilience.
To help forests adapt to these challenges, active forest management is essential. The scientists argued that if forests are left entirely unmanaged, they won't develop the climate resilience they need. For example, in unmanaged oak forests, beech trees often proliferate. However, beech is not as climate resilient as oak, meaning these forests may be more vulnerable to changing conditions.
Active management involves introducing tree species that are better suited to anticipated climate changes, a step that needs to go hand-in-hand with a strengthened circular bioeconomy. This approach not only supports forest resilience but also emphasizes efficient resource use, innovative forest products, and higher recycling rates. Achieving these goals requires close cooperation between scientists, forest owners, industry, policymakers, and other stakeholders. In addition, raising public awareness about the benefits of active forest management is critical for building support.