Forests provide numerous benefits to society, ranging from products such as timber to services, including landscape amenities and opportunities for recreation, biodiversity protection, clean water, and climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration. The significance of these goods and services keeps increasing, making the forest sector be considered a sector of the future that offers solutions to a range of challenges that society is facing today.

Through innovation, ideas are transformed into new or improved products, services, or processes. In the forest sector, innovation brings new products to the market, such as wood-based construction materials and textiles, and creates improved methods of production. These changes lead to improved economic revenue, employment, growth, sustainability, or social welfare. Global challenges such as the sustainability crisis, climate change, and growing global social and economic interdependencies call for innovations and new forms of governance in order to adapt technologies, economies, and societies. It is crucial to bring together economic actors, research and education institutions, and policymakers as they play a critical role in spearheading innovation. This webinar does exactly that; our goal is to raise awareness of forest sector innovation and the needed policies for promoting it in line with the theme of the International Day of Forests 2024.

About the International Day of Forests 2024

The International Day of Forests (IDF) (21st March) is a day set aside every year to celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests. The theme for each International Day of Forests is chosen by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF). In 2024, the theme will be 'Forests and innovation.' In line with the theme, FOREST EUROPE is planning to organize a webinar on 14 March 2024 to commemorate the day

The roots of innovation - sustainable growth in the forest sector