Nagy Tavak ás Vizes Élőhelyek Védelme

Forests in the EU - Seeing the forest behind the trees

The EU Forest Strategy for 2030 sets a vision and concrete actions to improve the quantity and quality of EU forests and strengthen their protection, restoration and resilience. There are a few key legislative tools which are key for improving the status of our forests, but require additional negotiations. This conference aims at providing scientifically sound arguments and civil society inputs into the negotiation process.

Helyszín: MTA humán tudományok kutatóháza
Budapest, 1097, Tóth Kálmán utca 4.

DATE: 3.-4. October, 2024.

Language of conference: ENGLISH without translation.

PROGRAM

Day1 - October 3.
Getting to know our forests,
VALUES - THREATS - TOOLS

8:30 Registration

9:00: Welcome by Zoltan Kun (obo the organisers of Civil EU Presidency) & Karl Wagner

9:10: Introduction to the policy scene:
EU policies impacting our forests - Marco Onida, European Commission DG Environment, head of forest unit (online)
9:30 Session 1: Old-Growth forests in Europe
Remote primary forest project - Martin Mikoláš, Czech University of Life Sciences
Old-growth forests in accession countries based on Wild-card project - Renzo Motta, University of Turin
Taking a joint strategy for wilderness protection and old-growth forest further in Europe - Zoltan Kun, Forest Defenders Alliance / Wild Europe Foundation
Q&A

10:40 Coffee break

11:00 Session 2 - Threats to our forests with focus on the renewable energy directive
The role of forest biomass in our energy mix- Gabriella Szajkó, Regional Energy Research Centre (REKK)
Can forest biomass burning be renewable? - the case of the Hungarian biomass power plants - Ádám Harmat, WWF Hungary
How to strengthen the Renewable Energy Directive - from ideas to implementation - Mary Booth, Partnership for Policy Integrity
Q&A

13:00 Lunch break

14:00 Session 3 - Forests as nature-based solution
Improving the state of forests as a response to the intertwined biodiversity and climate crisis - Stefan Kreft, Naturwald Akademie
Defining and valuing forest ecosystem services - Cecilia Fraccaroli, European Forest Institute
What role payments for ecosystem services can play to improve the state of our forests - Toby Aykroyd, Wild Europe Foundation

Q&A

15:30 Coffee break

16:30 What needs to change to improve our forests
Interactive podium talk moderated by Karl Wagner
17:30 Closing of Day 1
Networking opportunity on your own

Day2 - October 4:
Improving forest policies -
THE FUTURE OF EUROPE’S FOREST

9:00 Session 4: EU Forest Monitoring Law
Introducing the key forest monitoring recommendations of the Bottoms-up project - Dr. Péter Ódor, HUN-REN Ecological Research Centre
Forest monitoring case study from Sweden - Jon Anderson, Protect the Forest
The EU Forest Monitoring Law as a key policy instrument to improve our knowledge about forests- Augustyn Mikos, Pracownia
Q&A

10:30 Coffee break

11:00 Session 5 - Forest Degradation and NRL
Opportunities and challenges in monitoring forest degradation - Kenji Ose, EU Joint Research Centre (online)
Global Forest Watch and EU forest monitoring needs - Sarah Carter, World Resources Institute
The status of forest naturalness in Hungary - László Gálhidy, WWF Hungary

Q&A

12:30 lunch

13:30 Session 6 - The law as our tool to protect forests
Law enforcement for protecting forests - Estonian case study - Liina Steinberg, Save the Forest
EU legislative processes linked to forests in past 5 years and in the coming period - Michal Wiezik, Member of the European Parliament (Slovakia), Renew Europe
Forest management planning and citizens' rights - Marta Jagusztyn, Lasy i Obywatele

Q&A

15:00 Coffee break

15:30 Imagining the future of Europe’s forests
Interactive podium talk moderated by Karl Wagner
16:15 Closing the conference - concluding remarks