The SocialForest project consortium held a dissemination event this Wednesday, 11 March, in Bordeaux (France), where the progress of this transnational initiative focused on sustainable forest management and the adaptation of European forests to climate change was presented. The meeting, organised as part of the fourth in-person partners’ meeting, brought together institutional representatives, researchers and project partners in an event where key aspects of the work carried out within the SocialForest project were discussed. The project is funded by the European Union through the Interreg Sudoe programme.
The event, organised by the partners Xylofutur and INRAE, took place at the INRAE Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine Bordeaux and included the participation of representatives from public administrations and research centres linked to natural environment management. Among them were María Cruz Ferreira Costa, Regional Secretary for Energy, Sustainability and Climate Action of the Region of Murcia and Director-General for Natural Heritage and Climate Action of the Regional Ministry for Environment, Universities, Research and the Mar Menor of the Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia (project coordinating partner); Olivier Lavialle, Director of the INRAE Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine Bordeaux; and Charlotte Perrier, Director of Xylofutur.
During their speeches, both Ferreira Costa and Perrier highlighted the importance of sharing the knowledge developed within SocialForest, noting that “the diversity of territories is essential” in order to “combine experiences”. They also encouraged participants to continue the collaboration beyond the project’s duration, describing it as a “remarkable initiative” where “opportunities are discussed” in a broad sense thanks to the innovation of the actions undertaken and the research carried out.
Objectives and results
This open event made it possible to present the main objectives and results achieved so far through SocialForest. To provide an overall overview of the project and the work carried out by the consortium, Ana María Atienza Pérez, management officer at the Directorate-General for Natural Heritage and Climate Action of the Region of Murcia, delivered a presentation.
Among the topics addressed was the presentation of remote sensing studies on forest stands carried out by the Université de Toulouse and INRAE, presented by Frédéric Frappart, Research Director at INRAE.
The development of a Transnational Forest Strategy was also presented. This strategy aims to translate national forest strategies into adaptive management models through participatory processes in different types of European forests. The initiative was presented by Laura Arnal Roig, researcher at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV).
The event concluded with a presentation on the implementation of the pilot actions currently being carried out in Nouvelle-Aquitaine as part of the project. This session was delivered by Abdelwahab Bessaad, Tree and Forest Project Manager at Xylofutur.
The meeting will continue with a field visit this Thursday in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, with the aim of learning first-hand about several innovative initiatives in forest management and climate change adaptation.
SocialForest
SocialForest is a European cooperation initiative that brings together public administrations, research centres and forestry organisations with the aim of promoting innovative forest management models that integrate environmental sustainability, climate resilience and social participation.
It brings together nine partners from Spain, Portugal and France: the Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia (Regional Ministry for Environment, Universities, Research and the Mar Menor – Directorate-General for Natural Heritage and Climate Action); the Associação para o Estudo e Defesa do Património Natural e Cultural do Concelho de Mértola; the Universitat Politècnica de València (Department of Hydraulic Engineering and Environment); INRAE Centre Nouvelle-Aquitaine-Bordeaux (UMR 1391 ISPA); the Asociación Forestal de Soria (ASFOSO); Université Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier (Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, Geosciences Environment Toulouse laboratory, UMR 5563); the Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha (Regional Ministry for Sustainable Development, Directorate-General for Natural Environment and Biodiversity); EDIA – Empresa de Desenvolvimento e Infra-estruturas do Alqueva; and Xylofutur.
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