The European Tropical Forest Research Network (ETFRN) is a network on forests and development, which aims to ensure that European research contributes to conservation and sustainable use of forest and tree resources in tropical and subtropical countries.
ETFRN was established in 1991 in response to the growing concernes on the rapid deforestation occurring particularly in the tropics, and the European Commission's desire to mobilise European research to address this challenge.
Objectives: The goal of ETFRN is to ensure that European research contributes to conservation and sustainable management of forests and tree resources in tropics, subtropics & Mediterranean. ETFRN aims to achieve its goal by:
promoting forest research partnerships and collaboration between the South and Europe
developing and promoting dialogue between researchers, policy makers, and forest managers and others influencing the forest environment
promoting increased coherence and co-ordination of European research capability in tropical forest research
Tropenbos International is ETFRN's coordinating member and national focal point in the Netherlands.
ETFRN provides a range of services, including ETFRN News, which comprises theme-based issues on current research relevant to the international development agenda, such as Financing Sustainable Forest Management; Non-Timber Forest Products; Forests, Water and Livelihoods; Forests and the MDGs, and; Forests and Conflicts.
Members:
Resources
Displaying 11 - 12 of 12Dryland restoration successes in the Sahel and Greater Horn of Africa show how to increase scale and impact. Restoring African Drylands
Drylands occupy more than 40% of the world’s land area and are home to some two billion people. This includes a disproportionate number of the world’s poorest people, who live in degraded and severely degraded landscapes. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification states on its website that 12 million hectares are lost annually to desertification and drought, and that more than 1.5 billion people are directly dependent on land that is being degraded, leading to US$42 billion in lost earnings each year.
Zero deforestation: A commitment to change
Widespread palm oil production causes much controversy due to its negative impacts in the tropics. But whatever is said about it, it is big business and getting bigger by the day due to increasing global demands. Alongside this, the size and depth of the social and environmental debates surrounding palm oil production are also growing. As a major globally-consumed commodity, its production in the humid and sub-humid tropics raises concerns due to its impacts on the environment, biodiversity, local communities, smallholder livelihoods, land rights and climate change.