II Mediterranean Forest Week / International year of forests / Webcast
AVIGNON, France, March 15, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ — In the frame of 2011, International year of forests, the Second Mediterranean Forest Week will be organized in Avignon (France) 5th-8th April 2011. This is the second edition of an event that was initiated in Antalya (Turkey) in 2010, where policy makers, scientists, forest managers and civil society from the whole Mediterranean Region can meet.
You are kindly invited to the press conference that will be held on Wednesday 6th April 2011 in “Palais des Papes”, Cellier Benoît XII from 18:00 to 19:00 in the presence of : Mr Eduardo Rojas-Briales (Assistant Director General of FAO in charge of Forests), Mr Yves Birot (EFIMED), Mr Eric Allain (Min. of Agriculture, France), Mr Spas Todorov (President of Silva Mediterranea Committee), Mr Abderrahim Houmy (Haut Commissariat aux Eaux et Forêts et à la Lutte contre la Désertification, Morocco), Mr Ismail Belen (Min. of Environment, Turkey), Mr Michel Vauzelle or his representative (President of PACA Region), Mr Mohamed Larbi Chakroun (President of AIFM) and representatives of Mediterranean Forest Owners and of the French Agency for Development (AFD). Mr Yves Birot, Mr Eric Allain and Mr Eduardo Rojas-Briales will briefly introduce the press conference.
The journalists accredited by the African Press Organization can participate and ask their questions by the webcast after filling the form at the following address: http://www.apo-opa.org/en/application?vc=AVIGNON. Technical contact: sec.sg@apo-opa.org.
During this II Mediterranean Forest Week (II MFW), key Mediterranean forest stakeholders will address policy-relevant questions regarding the role of forests for the Sustainable Development of Mediterranean territories and the impact of Climate change on forest fire prevention strategies and key resources like Water.
Responding to a strong demand for sharing experiences, sessions on “Forests, Societies and Territories” will promote cross-sectorial and territorial approach for forest management. Extensive discussions will be open to the diverse forest stakeholders: what good planning practices and forest governance retain? How to replicate them in other Mediterranean territories in the climate change context?
A scientific seminar « Biodiversity of mediterranean Forest Ecosystems:changing the paradigm of conservation » will present a synthesis of the most recent results around 3 questions: what is the functional impact of biodiversity at the scale of the ecosystems? How do plant communities move? Valuing and financing biodiversity in forest ecosystems?
The whole programme is available at: http://www.efimed.efi.int/portal/events/mfw2011
During the Press Conference new organizations will sign the « Collaborative Partnership on Mediterranean Forests ». The members of this Collaborative Partnership wish to jointly strengthen the capacities of member countries of Silva Mediterranea to accelerate the implementation of Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) and to ensure sustainable production of goods and services provided by these ecosystems under current conditions of climate change. It focuses on the forested countries of the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey.
Co-organisers and financial partners : EFIMED, FAO, MAAPRAT, Inra, Association de sylviculteurs de l’arc méditerranéen (ARCMED), Centre Tecnologic Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), Mediterranean Model Forest Network (MMFN), Association des communes forestières COFOR International, International Association for Mediterranean Forests (AIFM), Union de sylviculteurs du Sud de l’Europe (USSE), PACA Region, Conseil Général de Vaucluse, DRAF PACA, GIZ, Ministerio de Ciencia y Innovacion (MICINN)
Contacts:
European Forest Institute Mediterranean Regional Office (EFIMED)
Marc Palahi (EFIMED)
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Christophe Besacier (FAO)
Ministère de l’Agriculture, de l’Alimentation, de la Pêche, de la Ruralité et de l’Aménagement du Territoire (MAAPRAT)
Alain Chaudron (MAAPRAT)
alain.chaudron@agriculture.gouv.fr
National Institute for Agricultural Research (Inra)
François Lefèvre (Inra)
francois.lefevre@avignon.inra.fr
SOURCE
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
