A path to resilient European forests

Advancing the link between healthy forest ecosystems and resilient forest economies

Co-hosted by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) Danuše Nerudová (EPP), Marina Kaljurand (S&D), Michal Wiezik (Renew), Tomas Waitz (Greens) and Fern, this conference brought together policymakers, civil society, foresters, scientists and businesses to discuss the future of European forests and how to increase their economic and environmental resilience. 

Opening the conference, MEP Marina Kaljurand (S&D) noted the importance of resilience and the multifaceted benefits of forests - economic, social, cultural, and environmental.  

We have different forests, but we share common challenges.

Acknowledging that significant progress on climate, forestry, and European Green Deal policies in the new parliamentary term will be challenging, Kaljurand stressed the importance of maintaining current achievements, urging her pro-European and pro-nature colleagues to cooperate. 

The keynote speech, delivered by Ion Codescu, Head of Unit - Land Use and Management at the Directorate-General for the Environment, emphasised the importance of collaboration to ensure that European forests thrive.  

Forests are our common, natural heritage. And they are indispensable for our future.

Codescu highlighted the risks to forest owners and rural livelihoods, and the need for a sustainable forest bioeconomy. Codescu stressed that good policy requires good data, which is currently lacking, and called for a strengthening of forest management and ecosystem service schemes, as well as innovative financing, to address the biomass gap and balance carbon demand with ecosystem health. He concluded by noting that resilient forests require both a change in mindset and the involvement of experts from various fields. 

Panel 1: Forest Resilience for Socio-Economic Resilience 

MEP Thomas Waitz (Greens/EFA), an organic farmer and forester by trade, introduced the discussion on socio-economic resilience by noting that clearcutting has historically been driven by economics. He explained that in current times this is faulty logic in current times, as new economic arguments to change forestry have emerged.  

Alternative forestry models are economically viable because they are resilient.

Waitz emphasised the need for mechanisms to support diverse wood varieties and reward sustainable practices through financial incentives for climate and environmentally friendly forestry.  

Marcus Lindner, Head of the Resilience Program at the European Forest Institute, outlined the concept of forest resilience, explaining that it extends beyond simply recovering from disturbances and involves diversifying forests, which poses challenges for supply chains that prefer fewer species. Lindner stressed the need to address this mismatch and adapt both ecological and social systems to deal with the climate crisis.  

Diversification is a key approach to enhance resilience in forest management.

Lindner noted that diversification requires careful management and silvicultural practices and concluded that forest value chains have still not developed to be resilient, and more attention should be directed to climate change adaptation outside of the forest. 

David García Castillo, Purchasing and Wood Supply Manager at Gámiz Group, discussed the economic resilience of businesses linked to the long-term use of wood, particularly broad-leaf species. He described various EU LIFE projects they were engaged in, including one aiming to shift from coppice to tall forests to source more local hardwood. He also spoke about the role of the sawmill industry in this transition. García highlighted the importance of high-quality, long-lasting wood in architecture and the need for local forest owners to adopt sustainable practices, such as using oak and beech for construction, to encourage a resilient European forest economy. 

Tomáš Vrška, President of Pro Silva Europe, discussed forest yield and biodiversity support, in the context of climate change. Specifically, he focused on the “dot makers”, or continuous cover forestry (CCF) trained foresters who could bring needed changes to the forest. He stressed the need for long-term, stable employment for qualified forest workers, which currently is lacking, and the benefits of collaboration with local communities and increased expertise in forestry, which is essential to implement close-to-nature silviculture. In this regard, Vrška emphasized the need for political and financial support for CCF practitioners.  

The first panel ended with one clear message: CCF, surrounded by supportive industries, is a triple win for the economy, for biodiversity and for people. 

Panel 2: How Do We Increase Forest Resilience? 

MEP Michal Wiezik (Renew) described the natural resilience of forests.  

Forests naturally are resilient, reaching their highest possible resilience in their natural state – complex, species rich...

Wiezik stressed the impact of land use change on forests, pointing to the fact that human intervention has generally decreased, and not increased, forest resilience. Wiezik emphasised the difference between heavily managed areas which can improve through management and highly biodiverse forests which should remain without human intervention.  

The intervention by Daniel Oberhauser, Policy Advisor at the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUV), focused on how to design subsidies to support forest owners to increase their forests' resilience. He brought attention to the need for scalable funding programmes at both the EU and national levels, and highlighted challenges in matching public with private funding.  

Stientje van Veldhoven, Vice President of the World Resources Institute, pointed to the importance of high-quality data for forest monitoring and planning. She advocated for using multiple data sources, including near-real-time satellite data and on-the-ground information, to make better forest management decisions. Noting the decline in European forest health and the continent’s over-reliance on bioenergy, Van Veldhoven called for improved forest management, within a new more efficient land use strategy to reduce land demand and better support nature and climate goals. 

Highlighting the negative impact of intensive industrial models on both European forest resilience and employment in the sector, Kelsey Perlman, EU Forest Campaigner at Fern, stressed the need for EU policies to encourage alternative practices. 

Forestry is not underfunded; the wrong practices are overfunded.

Perlman argued that subsidies can be improved to support the transition towards alternative practices. Specifically, the Forest Monitoring Law and the Nature Restoration Law, if properly implemented, could build a broader perspective of integrated forest management to include more consistent monitoring, CCF, the protection of old growth forests, and restoration.  

The second panel concluded with recognition that there was still progress to be made on increasing the resilience of European forests. 

MEP Danuše Nerudová (EPP) concluded the conference by expressing her deep personal connection to forests and placing emphasis on the links between the economic, social, and ecological resilience of European forests.  

The degradation of European forests is not desirable for anyone concerned.

Nerudová noted that dialogue between civil society, the private sector, and governments is essential if we are to envision a sustainable future for European forests. She called for foresters to get improved access to knowledge, as well as increased public awareness of forestry policies, including the impact of decisions made at the EU level.

All presentations are available here.