Convinced that by restoring and conserving these ecosystems we can face climate and health crises such as those we are currently experiencing with better guarantees, we support, through our calls for grants, six projects linked to forests.

Today we celebrate the International Day of Forests, a date that the United Nations proclaimed in 2012 to remember the importance of these ecosystems in the fight against climate change, the survival of human beings and the future of the planet.

Forests provide us with important ecological, economic and social benefits, but deforestation is advancing at an unprecedented rate. An estimated 10 million hectares of forest are lost each year and there are more than 2 billion hectares of deforested and degraded land that could be restored. Revitalizing the health of our forests is in our own interest, as it helps to create jobs, mitigate climate change and safeguard biodiversity. For all these reasons, this year the motto of the celebration is:  ‘Forest restoration: a path to recovery and well-being‘.

In addition, this year marks the start of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which aims to prevent, halt and reverse ecosystem degradation worldwide. It is aligned with the EU Biodiversity Strategy’s 2030 target of planting 3 billion trees. In this way, the recovery of forests as a fundamental element of the landscape will be promoted, and the ecological resilience and development of the areas that host them will be increased. Well executed, restoring all types of forests is a key nature-based solution to building back better.

Convinced that by restoring and conserving these ecosystems we can face climate and health crises such as those we are currently experiencing with better guarantees, at the Biodiversity Foundation we support, through our calls for grants, six projects linked to forests. Historically we have supported more than 60 and allocated about 4 million euros.

Thus, Fundación Naturaleza y Hombre (FNYH), through the Farm Club, works to promote land stewardship and the protection of habitats linked to the pastureland, acting on priority habitats such as quercinea pastures, riparian forests and temporary ponds, and also monitoring wild species such as the black vulture and the black stork.

Another example is the project ‘Sustainable adaptation to climate change in forest sector management and transfer of results’, developed by the Global Nature Foundation, which aims to increase the resilience of forests in southern Europe to climate change, through adaptive forest management, which will make it possible to face impacts such as the risk of fires. increase in pests or droughts.

On the other hand, the Centre for Forest Science and Technology of Catalonia has launched a network for detecting, predicting and monitoring the effects of drought on the structure and biodiversity of Mediterranean shrub formations in the east of the peninsula, which are home to a high genetic and functional diversity, fulfilling key functions for ecosystems and society. Since the frequency and duration of extreme drought episodes constitute one of the causes of the accelerated loss of biodiversity and degradation of many ecosystems.

Finally, aware of the importance of knowledge of forests by the general public, to commemorate the International Day of Forests, the Foundation organizes on March 25, at 12:00 p.m., the #Biodirectos: Forest Restoration: A path to recovery and well-being. This virtual meeting, which will be inaugurated by Teresa Ribera, Vice-President and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, aims to highlight the fact that the restoration and sustainable management of forest ecosystems is key to recovery and well-being.

If you want to follow the event you can do so from our website or through our Youtube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram profiles.