The Center for International Forestry Research is a nonprofit, global organisation dedicated to advancing human wellbeing, environmental conservation and equity.
We conduct research that enables informed decision making about the use and management of forests in less- developed countries.
We help policy makers and practitioners shape effective policy, improve the management of tropical forests and address the needs and aspirations of people who depend on forests for their livelihoods.
Our work responds to a call for an urgent, strong and sustained effort focused on forest management and governance, recognizing the crucial role of forests in confronting some of the most important challenges of our time: climate change, poverty, and food security.
The Center for International Forestry Research is a nonprofit, global organisation dedicated to advancing human wellbeing, environmental conservation and equity.
We conduct research that enables informed decision making about the use and managem...
By its sixth year, Forest Day had become one of the most influential global events on forests. It acted as a platform for anyone interested in forests and climate change to gather to ensure that forests were high on the agenda of global and national climate strategies, and that those strategies were informed by the most up-to-date knowledge and experience.
Under the banner of "Living Landscapes", which referred to the interconnections between forests and agriculture and their impacts on people and society, Forest Day 6 kicked off the first of two popular conferences on the sidelines of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's (UNFCCC) annual Conference of the Parties in 2012. Forest Day 6 was followed by Agriculture, Landscapes and Livelihoods Day 5 on December 3 at the same venue.
Forest Day 6 sought to inform UNFCCC's global agenda and forest stakeholders on ways to move forward with REDD+ agreements reached at COP17 in Durban, to produce social and environmental benefits, good governance, long-term financing and the integration of forests into adaptation strategies on the ground. REDD+ stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, as well as the conservation and sustainable management of forests, and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks.
Forests are responsible for around 20 percent of green house gas emissions globally, yet quantifying the amount of carbon stored in forests and the amount released into the atmosphere is one of the greatest challenges facing scientists hoping to curb the impacts of climate change. This video shows how CIFOR scientists are conducting extensive research to ensure that emission reduction interventions, such as REDD+, have a real chance of success.
Enhancing the role of forests in mitigating climate change
Changing land use due to deforestation is a significant source of carbon emissions and a contributor to global warming. Deforestation releases more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than the world's fuel-hungry transport sector. Emissions from deforestation in Brazil and Indonesia alone equal the combined carbon-reduction commitments of all Annex 1 countries during the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. Finding ways to maintain terrestrial carbon pools and reduce carbon emissions from land use changes will be a key element of future negotiations within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
We need to ensure that schemes for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) are central to any future climate regime. At the same time, we need to reinforce measures aimed at expanding forest carbon pools through the sustainable management of forests and peatlands.
Our goal is to ensure that the international post-2012 climate regime and national-level REDD schemes are efficient, equitable and provide benefits to affected communities in developing countries. Within four years, CIFOR's research will have informed negotiations towards a global REDD regime and influenced national-level REDD policies and strategies in at least five countries.
Improving livelihoods through smallholder and community forestry
Forest-based activities provide around 30 million informal jobs in developing countries, as well as 13 to 35 percent of all rural nonfarm employment. Yet many of the 240 million or more people who live in forested areas live in poverty. There is surprisingly little empirical knowledge to answer basic yet highly relevant questions about the forestry--poverty nexus.
At least one-quarter of the forested land in developing countries is under some form of community control, and that proportion is likely to increase. Domestic markets for forest products are also expanding, and should create new economic opportunities for low-income households. We need better information about policies and practices that could help smallholder and community forestry enterprises flourish.
Our goal is to improve understanding of the links between forests and human wellbeing. Within five years, CIFOR will have influenced the way smallholder and community forestry concerns are incorporated into poverty alleviation strategies in at least five countries.
Managing trade-offs between conservation and development at the landscape scale
Conservation efforts mainly concentrate on optimising the management of protected areas, yet most of the world's biodiversity inhabits fragmented landscape mosaics outside protected areas. These landscapes are often subject to a range of land uses. To integrate sustainable use and conservation in tropical landscapes we must recognise the inherent trade-offs between the two.
Interest is increasing in a mechanism that directly addresses the delivery of forest services called 'payments for environmental services' (PES). Through PES, compensation is used as a tool to reconcile difficult trade-offs between the interests of landowners and service users. The potential that PES schemes offer is clear when we compare their success with that of alternative conservation approaches. Sound science is urgently needed to identify even better ways of managing the trade-offs between conservation and development.
Our goal is to shift policy and practice towards conservation and development approaches that are more effective, efficient and equitable. Within seven years, CIFOR's research will influence the policies and practices of at least two significant international conservation organisations and donor agencies, and at least five national governments.
Managing impacts of globalised trade and investment on forests and forest communities
Increased trade in forest products and investment in forest-based industries can stimulate economic growth. Developing countries export yearly wood products worth more than US $23 billion, yet in many places just a small fraction of the profits benefit small-scale producers and forest dwellers. Unfair trade practices, distorted markets, corruption and weak governance all undermine the contribution forests could make to improving local livelihoods.
During the coming years, a number of global trends will have a significant effect on forests and the people who depend on them. These include China's demand for wood products, the geographic shift in industrial timber production away from Asia, greater investment in industrial tree planting and the increasing demand for biofuels. To better manage the impact of globalised trade and investment on forests, governments and other stakeholders need research to construct scenarios that illuminate the implications of current and projected trends for forests and forest-based livelihoods.
Our goal is to catalyse significant shifts in global investment standards in areas including risk assessment, monitoring and information disclosure. Within five years, CIFOR research will influence decision-making of at least three countries on how they can more effectively manage the impact of trade and investment on forests and forest-dependent communities.
Because production forests will constitute up to 80 percent of the permanent forest estate in many tropical regions, the many people who live in or near them are likely to be affected by the way they are managed. Over the past two decades, forest managers and researchers have been searching for long-term approaches to promote sustainable forest management. These efforts have resulted in more natural forest being designated suitable for timber production under sustainable management. However, sustainability remains an elusive goal in many countries where the basic tenets of forest management have not changed.
Most existing models for sustainable forest management are viable only for large concessions. They are designed for big companies exploiting unlogged primary forest, not for medium- or small-scale enterprises working in secondary or logged-over forest. Research is needed to review existing management paradigms for tropical production forests and facilitate the design of new, equitable and more environmentally friendly management policies.
Our goal is to precipitate a paradigm shift in how production forests are managed, and by whom. Within 10 years, CIFOR research will have contributed to a significant increase in the area of production forests managed for goods and services beyond timber in at least five countries. At a global level, the investment decisions, standards and guidelines of key donor and forestry agencies will increasingly reflect this paradigm shift.
To ensure that forests are kept high on the global agenda on sustainable development, CIFOR coordinated one of the most important conferences on forests alongside the Rio+20 summit. Forests: The 8th Roundtable at Rio+20 discussed new research findings -- and remaining knowledge gaps -- and their policy implications for integrating forests into the solutions to a number of key challenges to progress toward a green economy: Energy, Food and Jobs, Water, and Climate.
On 27 September 2011, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), in association with leading business groups, NGOs, development agencies, and government ministries, convened a one-day conference titled "Forests Indonesia: Alternative futures to meet demands for food, fibre, fuel and REDD+". The event provided a platform for more than 800 leaders from all sectors to discuss the challenges and opportunities faced by Indonesia in the sustainable use of its forests.
Forest Day is convened by the CIFOR on behalf of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests. The year's event was hosted jointly with the Government of South Africa, through the Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries.
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