The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) (, , ) is a non-profit, non-governmental international network of forest scientists, headquartered in Austria. In 2019, IUFRO counted 630 Member Organizations worldwide.
Activities
Main activities comprise knowledge generation, knowledge sharing and capacity building.
Congresses and conferences
Every five years, IUFRO organizes a World Congress with about 2,000 participants. The most recent was in Curitiba, Brazil in 2019. Between World Congresses, there are some 70-80 smaller conferences, meetings and webinars organized each year by the individual IUFRO research units (i.e. Divisions, Research Groups and Working Parties, Task Forces, Special Programmes, Projects and Chapters) around the world.
Involvement in international processes
Many joint activities and partnership agreements occur with national governments, regional and global organizations and NGOs. For example, IUFRO is a Scientific Union Member of the International Council for Science (ICSU), a member of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), and an observer organization in the United Nations Forum on Forests, the Convention on Biological Diversity, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and other forest-related international processes and conventions. It has established memoranda of understanding with, for instance, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Conservation Union (IUCN), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), and International Forestry Students' Association (IFSA).
Communication and knowledge sharing
IUFRO shares scientific knowledge and information with its members and stakeholders via its website iufro.org, the expertise of its officeholders, publications such as IUFRO News, IUFRO Spotlight, calendar of events, webinars, information leaflets, annual reports, occasional papers, IUFRO World Series, IUFRO Research Series, and conference proceedings. In 2011, a Working Party on Communications and Public Relations was established as part of IUFRO Division 9 on Forest Policy and Economics.
Honors and awards
IUFRO honors through a variety of awards those who advance science and promote international cooperation in all fields of research related to forestry. Awards for scientific work include:
Scientific Achievement Award (SAA) Outstanding Doctoral Research Award (ODRA) IUFRO Student Award for Excellence in Forest Science (ISA) IUFRO World Congress Host Scientific Award Best Poster Award (BPA)
Organization
The Organs of the Union are: Congress; International Council; Board and Committees; Management Committee; President (Dr. John Parrotta) and Vice-Presidents; Executive Director. The structure of the Union comprises the following IUFRO Units: Divisions with Research Groups and Working Parties; Task Forces, Special Programmes, Projects, IUFRO-led Initiatives and (formerly) Chapters.
Divisions, task forces and programmes
At present there are nine permanent Divisions, sub-divided into Research Groups and Working Parties
Silviculture
Physiology and Genetics
Forest Operations Engineering and Management
Forest Assessment, Modeling and Management
Forest Products
Social Aspects of Forests and Forestry
Forest Health
Forest Environment
Forest Policy and Economics. IUFRO Task Forces are interdisciplinary and are established on a temporary basis. The following Task Forces were approved in 2019:
Forest Education
Monitoring Global Tree Mortality Patterns and Trends
Fire$: Economic Drivers of Global Wildland Fire Activity
Forests and Water Interactions in a Changing Environment
Gender Equality in Forestry
Resilient Planted Forests Serving Society & Bioeconomy
Strengthening Mediterranean Nursery Systems for Forest Reproductive Material Procurement to Adapt to the Effects of Climate Change Unlocking the Bioeconomy and Non-Timber Forest Products Transforming Forest Landscapes for Futures Climates and Human Well-Being