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As stated by the entity, adaptive forest management promotes the resilience of forests to climatic eventualities. However, it also points out that the complexity and time frame of the available studies make it difficult to develop decision-making tools and management strategies. In addition to the natural heritage, they indicate that there is a broad socioeconomic fabric (forests, felling and logging, wild mushrooms, livestock grazing, etc.) that will be affected by the impacts of climate change. Therefore, the following are required reliable instruments or tools to make the right decisions with long-term consequences in forest management, the design of actions for reforestation of agricultural land, and the transfer of results to regional, national and European strategies and policies, including criteria and indicators for adaptation to climate change. Through this project, the Global Nature Foundation aims to contribute to the resilience of the forestry sector through adaptive management to face the impacts of climate change, such as fire risks, increased pests or prolonged drought episodes.

The main objective of the project has been to increase the resilience of southern European forests to climate change by including adaptive measures in public and private forest management plans.

The specific objectives are:

• Contribute to the development of European policies through rural development programs.
• Contribute to Spanish/regional climate change strategies.
• Improve knowledge and monitoring of adaptation measures, linking ecosystem management and adaptation strategies in forest management plans. Development and demonstration of innovative silvicultural practices that can be replicated.
• Develop and apply on a larger scale an extended methodology derived from LIFE AgriAdapt to assess the vulnerability of forest stands and support decision making (FSC and PEFC certification indicators).
• Contribute to the European Union’s Adaptation Strategy; action 4: close the knowledge gap; action 5: develop the LIFE Soria ForestAdapt climate project for adaptation information; action 6: facilitate CAP climate protection.
• Focus adaptation measures especially on soil conservation and carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation and air quality.
• Apply replicable adaptation measures to relict forest ecosystems threatened by climate change(Pinus uncinata, Juniperus thurifera, Taxus baccata, etc.).

• Development of adaptation measures for non-timber production and other ecosystem services.
• Support for strategies to adapt the forestry sector to climate change from the Corporate Social Responsibility policy of the Spanish business sector.
• Socioeconomic impact assessment indicators.
• Dissemination and communication of the project.

The Life Soria ForestAdapt project is working to increase the resilience or adaptive capacity of southern European forests to climate change by including adaptive measures . The project will be implemented in public and private forest management plans, and through the development of a technical reference for management and forestry that includes measures for adaptation to climate change, which will be taken as a basis for the gradual modification of forest management plans throughout the province of Soria.

In addition, within the framework of the actions, work is also being done on potential land for the implementation of afforestation programs, especially for the reforestation of agricultural land. It is hoped that this model will be transferred to the rest of the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León, and scalable to the rest of Spain and southern Europe.

In this way, the aim of the initiative has focused on the forests of Soria, natural shields against climate change, to become a benchmark in the fight against climate change through the implementation of measures to improve their management.

To achieve the objectives and facilitate the work of public and private managers, a pioneering tool is being developed to assess the adaptive capacity of forests that will provide data and recommendations for the adaptation of forest stands and improve their management. This tool will analyze and identify past climate impacts and forecast their possible future effects, including recommended adaptation proposals in each case. In addition, the results of the initiative are intended to contribute to the development of public policies.

The LIFE Soria ForestAdapt project aims to anticipate the risks that threaten forest stands and to protect them in order to safeguard all the benefits they provide.