International Union Of Forest Research Organizations

The former "Global Forest Expert Panels" Initiative (GFEP) has been integrated into an expanded Science-Policy Programme (Sci-Pol) providing objective and independent scientific assessments and synthesis products of key issues in order to support more informed decision-making at national, regional and the global levels. The assessments and synthesis projects are carried out by thematic expert groups of the IUFRO network from around the world. In 2024, SciPol finished its global study on International Forest Governance, which was published in May during a side event at the 19th session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF19) in New York, USA. In addition, a new workstream was launched within SciPol named Science-Policy Information Networks (SPIN). SPIN brings together regional researchers and policymakers to foster collaboration, raise visibility, support science-based policies and facilitate bi-directional communication between science and policy making.

The WOOD for GLOBE initiative aims at creating a global wood policy platform to support the use of sustainable wood for a carbon-neutral bioeconomy worldwide. To this end it is necessary to shape wood policies in a more structured way through dialogues by exchanging knowledge and good practices and mobilizing scientific evidence to support policy decision making. In 2024 a total of three events were organised within the framework of forest and wood-related conferences including Sustainable Wood for a Sustainable World policy dialogue "Advancing Sustainable Wood Policy and Science for Carbon-neutral and Resilient Economies" (25 March 2024), the high-level dialogue "WOOD for GLOBE: Leading Pathways to Carbon Neutrality and Resilience" (19 July 2024) hosted on the sidelines of the 27th session of the Committee on Forestry (COFO) , and a side-event on "Fast-Growing Trees to Advance Wood in the Bioeconomy in Africa" (24 October 2024).

Other program services: WFSE, ISR, TU4F/Mondi, WoodPop & various other projects (short term). WFSE: The comprehensive publication "Restoring forests for sustainable development - Policies, practices, impacts and ways forward" was completed and published as open access by Oxford University Press. ISR: This project implements the redesign of IUFRO's Knowledge and Information Systems. The aim is to restructure IUFRO's website to support dynamic data structures. TU4F/IUFRO-Mondi Partnership Project: The partnership, TEAMING UP 4 FORESTS is a science-business platform addressing key challenges for the sustainable provision of wood-based products to meet societal demands and thereby supporting the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The European Wood Policy Platform (WoodPoP) was launched in 2022 by Austria and Finland to foster collaboration among public administration, industry, and research. It aims to strengthen the role of wood as a renewable resource and help shape enabling conditions for sustainable wood-based value chains across Europe. Following a successful call for proposals under the Austrian Forest Fund, the Secretariat of WoodPoP has been hosted by the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) since December 2023, leveraging IUFRO's global scientific network. In 2024, the platform endorsed the policy paper "A Wood-Based Circular Bioeconomy for a Sustainable Europe: Green Construction and Innovative Wood Solutions" during its Third High-Level Meeting held in Brussels in November. The paper was developed through a collaborative process, including a dedicated Policy Lab drafting session in July.In addition, the platform co-organized an expert conference on the role of wood in the built environment in November, and hosted a workshop on education and vocational training in December, further advancing dialogue and capacity-building in the wood-based sector.