Deadline: 23-Sep-25
The European Commission is seeking applications for its projects on Legislative and Policy Priorities in the fields of Nature and Biodiversity and Circular Economy and Quality of Life.
Objectives
- The main objective of this project is to strengthen foresters’ skills and expertise in biodiversity friendly forest management practices in line with the EU Forest Strategy for 2030.
- The Forest Strategy for 2030 includes a dedicated work strand on developing skills and empowering people for a sustainable forest-based bioeconomy. This includes also the Commission’s commitment to “build a toolkit to help Member States to establish life-long programs and advice to foresters and adapt education and training to the challenges and needs of today’s forest needs and realities”. The Commission has launched a study which will underpin the development of this toolkit with an EU wide gap analysis and recommendations for education and training curricula. Together with the study, it is expected that the proposed project will feed the preparation of the toolkit.
- Furthermore, the project shall promote the uptake of the Commission guidelines on biodiversity friendly forest management practices that published in 2023 and support the application of biodiversity friendly forest management practices to enhance forest biodiversity in line with the Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR).
- Restoring and conserving forest biodiversity inter alia through the promotion of biodiversity friendly forest management is a cornerstone of the EU Forest Strategy for 2030 to ensure resilient forests for the benefit of the environment, society and economy.
- At present, experience and expertise in such practices varies among and within the EU Member States, ranging from common practice since decades to being rather unknown and untested. This is echoed also by the varying degree of thematic inclusion in existing academic and vocational training programmes for foresters in the EU Member States.
- Beyond contributing to the delivery of the Commission’s commitment to forestry training and skills under the EU Forest Strategy, it is expected that the proposed project will contribute to the successful implementation of several other work strands in relation to the EU Biodiversity and Forest Strategies for 2030.
- First, it shall promote the uptake of the Commission guidelines on biodiversity friendly forest management practices that DG ENV published in 2023 (i.e. on closer to nature forest management, biodiversity friendly afforestation and reforestation and on monitoring, mapping and protection old-growth and primary forests). The guidelines have been received with great interest in some EU MS and parts of the forester community as demonstrated by the numerous invitations to present the guidelines in various events including training sessions for practitioners and the inclusion or reference to the guidelines in forest planning, stakeholder websites and articles in dedicated journals. At the same time, the need for bringing them into local contexts, for example through dedicated practical trainings or practical guidance has been raised repeatedly together with the growing recognition in theory and practice that promoting forest biodiversity will be key for ensuring forest resilience.
- Second, it shall contribute to the implementation of the Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR). The NRR obliges Member States to enhance forest biodiversity and identifies a series of biodiversity friendly forest management practices for inclusion in the National restoration plans that Member States are to establish.
- Third, it shall aim to empower forest owners and managers to benefit from nature credits or carbon farming credits in forests and therefore strengthen the development of respective markets. Both, the draft forest methodology under the CRCF regulation and the forest certification pilot for nature credits in preparation refer to the implementation of biodiversity friendly forest management practices in line with the respective Commission guidelines.
Scope
- The activities that can be funded are the following:
- A preliminary identification of training needs among relevant actors on biodiversity friendly forest management, at national or regional scale, in line with the EU’s forest biodiversity ambitions;
- Based on the identification of training needs:
- The organisation and execution of trainings including through field trips and courses (online or in-person);
- The preparation and distribution of training manuals in English, French, and German.
Funding Information
- Maximum funding rate: 90%
- Maximum EU contribution: EUR 1.0 million
- Expected project duration: 36 months.
Expected Impacts
- It is expected that the specific project awarded in the framework of this call will have a substantial support to policy and legislative implementation in particular in terms of:
- Promoting the recognition and awareness of biodiversity friendly forest management;
- Increasing foresters’ capacity to translate the EU’s forest biodiversity ambition into practice on the ground;
- Strengthening support for EU biodiversity policy by key actors and stakeholders;
- Supporting the further development of relevant academic and vocational education opportunities;
- Exchanging and developing best practices in forest education and training between relevant actors.
- Minimum expected results are:
- A report on training needs, challenges and opportunities for biodiversity friendly forest management;
- Training manuals for biodiversity friendly forest management in English, French, and German;
- Guidelines on organising and implementing field trips and courses for biodiversity friendly forest management.
Eligibility Criteria
- In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
- be legal entities (public or private bodies)
- be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
- EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories (OCTs))
- non-EU countries:
- listed EEA countries and countries associated to the LIFE Programme
- the coordinator must be established in an eligible country
For more information, visit EC.