FORESTS 101: The green infrastructure sustaining life on earth – “People can work together to sustainably and effectively shape natural resource use, as long as ground rules and parameters are clear, and those who work on the land are involved,” stated Robert Nasi, Director General, Center for International Forest Research
Note to Reader:
Robert Nasi is the Director General, Center for International Forest Research and is based in Indonesia. His particular research interests include the sustainable use of forest products and multiple-use management of tropical forests. His scientific work aims to integrate social and biological sciences for better management of tropical forests, more sustainable livelihoods and better designed forest policies. His main disciplines are ecology, botany, biometrics, tropical forest management, and silviculture. He has authored or co-authored more than 300 scientific publications.
The following post is extracted from an article published by Forest News, and is reproduced under a Creative Commons licence. The complete article is co-authored by Robert Nasi and Tony Simons.
Tony Simons (L) and Robert Nasi at the Global Landscapes Forum Bonn 2019 closing plenary in Bonn, Germany. GLF/Pilar Valbuena
Saving the world’s forests and restoring landscapes
When packaged together as the “land-use sector,” agroforestry systems provide more than 95 percent of all human food, generate employment for over half of all adults and account for 30 percent of all greenhouse-gas emissions.
And trees in forests or on farms are at the very heart of nature-based solutions for the climate emergency.
Research by CIFOR-ICRAF and others has shown that not only do trees in forests and fields sequester large amounts of carbon but they also provide food and material for farmers and foresters, renew the fertility of soils and their stability, protect watersheds for downstream consumers, and that they are the critical player in our planet’s water cycle.
Adapt to a Changing Climate
And now, as we confront a climate emergency, the global community urgently needs to make better efforts to reconnect human prosperity and ecosystem resilience to forests and agriculture.
There are five areas where investment can be made to rejuvenate the functions of degraded ecosystems. These will help protect, expand and value forests and their biodiversity, transform agriculture into perennial systems, and build sustainable value chains, with the combined support of governments and the private sector to make the transition to sustainable economies.
To Learn More:
To read the about the five areas of investment, download a copy of Five (or six) solutions for saving the world’s forests and restoring landscapes by Robert Nasi and Tony Simons.
Photo Credit: CIFOR