DIABOLO European workshop: Sharing Experiences and Ideas for Added-Value of Forest Information
Diabolo Workshop in Vienna
The DIABOLO European Workshop on “Policy needs for and provision of forest information for policy making and practice in Europe” was hosted at the Austrian Research Centre for Forests (BFW), Vienna, from 19-20 September 2016. The workshop brought together policy makers, forest managers, data providers and key stakeholders from different levels and policy sectors to identify options for bridging “gaps” between forest information (data) demand and supply, and to suggest strategies on how to improve the knowledge communication and information exchange for bioeconomy outlooks.
Key note speakers opened the event highlighting the perspectives of policy makers as information users and the perspectives of forest data providers. The opening was followed by working group sessions on the needs for forest information for evidence based policy making on sustainable forestry and forest-relevant policy fields as biodiversity, climate and energy.
Two main challenges were detected during the two-day workshop. First, the diversity and often oppugnancy of strategies and regulations relating to forestry on a European scale and hence diverse policy makers’ needs for information is a challenge for data providers, especially in the light of decreasing funding. Secondly, the diversity and comparability of data over time and between the different European regions is a challenge for policy processes.
To overcome these challenges, the workshop outcomes offer three solutions:
- A closer cooperation between European Union member states and the European Commission for interpretation of national data, in accordance with the EU Forest Strategy;
- An optimisation of National Forest Inventories value-chains and value-networks for various end-user needs at sub-national, national and international level to solve decreasing funding and
- Knowledge sharing and developing joint efforts among data providers, in particular among the National Forest Inventories. Well-established collaboration as the European National Forest inventory Network (ENFIN) will facilitate the success of the effort.
The DIABOLO project coordinator, Professor Tuula Packalen of Luke, emphasized the potential of DIABOLO in bringing added value to bioeconomy data by developing and sharing new methodology between 25 European National Forest Inventory systems, “The importance of bringing together policy makers, researchers and practitioners to listen to each other’s needs and develop joint strategies was the objective and success of the workshop and will definitely motive us in our challenging work.”
Presentations available to download:
Overview of the H2020 project, DIABOLO Prof. Dr. Tuula Packalen DIABOLO Project Coordinator (LUKE)
Project background and the Bioeconomy needs of forest data, Dr. Doru-Leonard Irimie
DG Research & Innovation, EU Commission
Introduction to DIABOLO project WP 1 on policy analysis of demands for and provision of forest data and Workshop objectives and agenda, Prof. Dr. Daniela Kleinschmit, DIABOLO WP1 Leader (ALU-FR)
National experience and an European perspective from Austria, Mr. Gerhard Mannsberger, Forest Director General, Austrian Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management
Forest information needs to meet the objectives of the EU Forest Strategy from Dr. Peter Löffler, Policy Officer – Forest Protection, DG Environment, EU Commission
Forest information needs to meet the objectives of the EU Climate policy perspective, Dr. Peter Wehrheim, Head of Unit Land Use and Finance for Innovation, DG Clima, EU Commission
Forest information for forest-relevant policy objectives – FOREST EUROPE perspective Dr. Rastislav Raši, Policy Advisor, FOREST EUROPE LUB
Data provision through a Forest Information System for Europe (FISE), Dr. Jesus San-Miguel-Ayanz, JRC, EU Commission
Data provision through national forest inventories, Dr. Klemens Schadauer BFW, ENFIN chair
Forest information demand and supply in Europe: a policy science perspective from DIABOLO results, Dr. Sara Holmgren (SLU) & Dr. Metodi Sotirov (ALU-FR)
Contacts for more information –
Project coordinator: Prof. Tuula Packalen, Luke, tuula.packalen@luke.fi.
Project Manager: Markus Lier, Luke, markus.lier@luke.fi.
WP Leaders:
WP1 Policy analysis – Prof. Daniela Kleinschmit, ALUFR, daniela.kleinschmit@ifp.uni-freiburg.de;
WP2 Harmonisation – Dr Laurent Saint-André, CIRAD, standre@cirad.fr, Dr Jean-Christophe Herve, IGN, Jean Christophe.Herve@ign.fr;
WP3 Improving data collection and analyses – Dr Iciar Alberdi, INIA, alberdi.iciar@inia.es;
WP4 Monitoring disturbances -Dr Matthias Dees, ALU-FR matthias.dees@felis.uni-freiburg.de;
WP5 Model-based biomass supply -Prof Tuula Packalen, Luke, tuula.packalen@luke.fi;
WP6 Dissemination – Charles Harper, UCD, charles.harper@ucd.ie