Summary
On Tuesday, Conference participants met in a plenary session to hear opening remarks and keynote presentations. Maria Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General, Climate and Natural Resources, FAO, highlighted the urgency of achieving the targets of SDG 15 (life on land) and the UN Strategic Plan for Forests for 2017-2030 (UNSPF). She noted that, according to FAO’s report on the State of the World’s Forests, over 25 countries managed to improve food security while maintaining, or even increasing, forest cover.
Via a video message, Marie Chatardová, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), stressed that the UNSPF provides a global framework and blueprint for action by all stakeholders at all levels to preserve forest functions and benefits. Manoel Sobral Filho, Director, Secretariat of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF), stressed that the UNSPF target of increasing forest area globally by 3% by 2030 can be achieved. Amédi Camara, President, Council of Ministers of the pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall, highlighted challenges to halt deforestation in Africa, and the Great Green Wall project, an African-led initiative to protect and reforest. He said the project will benefit people that are at the frontline of climate change impacts.
In a keynote address, Christiana Figueres, Convener, Mission 2020, highlighted that primary forests are irreplaceable and key to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 ºC stated in the Paris Agreement. To achieve the 2020 targets on forests, she suggested moving from threat-based to opportunity-oriented approaches. Tony Simons, Director General, World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), identified required actions, including policy review to advance agroforestry, improving land-use management and planning, leveraging social capital, engaging the private sector and consumers, and scaling-up research.
Eva Müller, Director, Forestry Policy and Resources Division, FAO, presented the Conference objectives, including to promote dialogue across sectors and stakeholder groups, and make recommendations to the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) through UNFF 13. She suggested focusing on best practices and solutions.
Participants then met in parallel sessions throughout the day to discuss: people-centred approaches to integrated landscape management; agroforestry and silvo-pastoral systems; forest management and landscape restoration; sustainable agricultural production approaches; achieving corporate commitments and zero deforestation initiatives for agricultural commodities; and forest products value chains in the bio-economy.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary report from the International Conference on “Working Across Sectors to Halt Deforestation and Increase Forest Area - From Aspiration to Action.” The summary report is now available in HTML and PDF.
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Opening Ceremony
From L-R: Amédi Camara, President of the Council of Ministers, PanAfrican Agency of the Great Green Wall; Ikram Yaakob, Chair of UNFF 13; Maria Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General, Climate and Natural Resources, FAO; Hiroto Mitsugi, Assistant Director-General, Forestry Department, FAO; and Manoel Sobral Filho, Director, UNFF
Maria Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General, Climate and Natural Resources, FAO
Amédi Camara, President of the Council of Ministers, PanAfrican Agency of the Great Green Wall
Manoel Sobral Filho, Director, UNFF
Marie Chatardová, President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Plenary Session
From L-R: Christiana Figueres, Convener Mission 2020 and former Executive Secretary, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); Co-Chair Hiroto Mitsugi, Assistant Director-General, Forestry Department, FAO; Co-Chair Ikram Yaakob, Chair of UNFF 13; Eva Müller, Director, Forestry Department, FAO; and Tony Simons, Director-General, World Agroforestry Centre
Christiana Figueres, Convener Mission 2020 and former Executive Secretary, UNFCCC
Tony Simons, Director-General, World Agroforestry Centre
Co-Chair Hiroto Mitsugi, Assistant Director-General, Forestry Department, FAO
Co-Chair Ikram Yaakob, Chair of UNFF 13
Eva Müller, Director, Forestry Department, FAO
Agroforestry and silvo-pastoral systems
From L-R: Sonya Dewi, World Agroforestry Centre; Milton Kanashiro, Researcher, Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA); Yasmin Cajas, Entrepreneur, Silvopastoral Systems, Colombia; Tony Simons, Director-General, World Agroforestry Centre; Maria Mosquera Losada, President, European Agroforestry Federation (EURAF); and Daniel Ofori, Director and Chief Research Scientist, Forestry Research Institute, Ghana
Milton Kanashiro, Researcher, EMBRAPA
Sonya Dewi, World Agroforestry Centre
Yasmin Cajas, Entrepreneur, Silvopastoral Systems, Colombia
People-centred approaches to integrated landscape management
Godlisten Matilya, Coordinator of Climate Change Project, Maasai Steppe Heartland
Cora Van Oosten, Project manager and Programme coordinator, Center for Development Innovation, Wageningen University
Augusta Mindry Anandi, Coordinator, Sustainable Land use planning, USAID Lestari Indonesia
Barron Orr, Lead Scientist, UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
Sustainable Forest Management and Landscape Restoration
From L-R: Carlos Alberto Mesquita, Former Director of Landscape Strategy, Conservation International, Brazil; Tangu Tumeo, FLR Focal Point, Department of Forest, Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining, Malwai; Tim Christophersen, Coordinator, Freshwater, Land and Climate Branch Ecosystems Division, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP); Gustavo Suárez de Freitas, National Program Coordinator, Earth Innovations Institute, Peru; and Rafael Barreiro Chaves, Director of Center for Ecological Restoration, Environmental Secretariat State of Sao Paulo, Brazil
Carlos Alberto Mesquita, Former Director of Landscape Strategy, Conservation International, Brazil
Tangu Tumeo, FLR Focal Point, Department of Forest, Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining, Malwai
Gustavo Suárez de Freitas, National Program Coordinator, Earth Innovations Institute, Peru
Sustainable agricultural production approaches
Clayton Campanhola, Strategic Programme Leader, FAO
Kwesi Atta-Krah, Director, Country Alignment and Systems Integration, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
Howard-Yana Shapiro, Chief Agricultural Officer, Mars, Incorporated
Aletia Melissa Pérez-Picon, Farm owner and manager
Donald Macintosh, Consultant Advisor, Asian Institute of Technology
Achieving corporate commitments and zero deforestation initiatives for agricultural commodities
Christopher Stewart, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, OLAM
Charles O'Malley, Senior Partnership Advisor, Green Commodities Program, UN Development Programme (UNDP)
Stephen Donofrio, Senior Advisor, Forest Trends
Roselyn Fosuah Adjei, Head, Climate Change Unit, National REDD+ Secretariat, Forestry Commission of Ghana
Toshimasa Masuyama, Deputy Director International Forestry Cooperation Office, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Japan
Forest products value chains in the bio-economy
Sheam Satkuru, Assistant Director of Operations, International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO)
Ulrich Grauert, Chief Executive Officer, INTERHOLCO
Andrea Stocchero, Researcher, Scion Research
Camille Rebelo, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer, EcoPlanet Bamboo
Between Sessions
Toshimasa Masuyama, Japan, with Matthias Schwoerer, Germany
Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, Conservation International, and Thomas Hammond, Senior Lands Officer, FAO
Salem Trigui, Tunisia, and Alexander Kastl, Germany
Andrew Miccolis, World Agroforestry Centre, with Howard-Yana Shapiro, Chief Agricultural Officer, Mars, Incorporated
Reception
