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| Institute of Nature and Forest Research | |
|---|---|
| Name | Institute of Nature and Forest Research |
| Formation | 1980 |
| Type | Research institute |
| Leader title | Director |
Institute of Nature and Forest Research is an international research institute focusing on ecological, silvicultural, and conservation science. The institute engages with institutions such as United Nations Environment Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Food and Agriculture Organization and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to inform policy and practice. Its work intersects with organizations like Convention on Biological Diversity, Ramsar Convention, Global Environment Facility, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Founded in 1980 amid global initiatives following the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment and the World Conservation Strategy, the institute built on precedents set by Smithsonian Institution, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Forest Research Institute (India), Centre for Tropical Forest Science and Tropical Forestry Action Plan. Early collaborations involved International Council for Science, International Union of Forest Research Organizations, European Forest Institute, Canadian Forest Service and US Forest Service. The institute expanded through programs patterned after Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, Earth Summit (1992), Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) initiatives and Global Forest Resources Assessment. Notable historical projects were undertaken with World Bank, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, European Commission and Inter-American Development Bank.
The institute's mission aligns with targets from Sustainable Development Goals, Aichi Biodiversity Targets, Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, Paris Agreement and Montreal Protocol by promoting biodiversity conservation, sustainable forest management, ecosystem restoration, and climate adaptation. Objectives include producing policy-relevant science as advocated by Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, delivering assessments similar to Global Environmental Outlook, supporting instruments like Nagoya Protocol, advancing methods used in Convention on Biological Diversity COP processes, and contributing to reports of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Governance follows models used by Max Planck Society, Smithsonian Institution, National Academy of Sciences (United States), Royal Society, and Academia Sinica, with a board including representatives from European Commission, African Union, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Organization of American States, and Commonwealth Secretariat. Senior leadership interacts with bodies such as United Nations Development Programme, International Union for Conservation of Nature, World Bank Group, Food and Agriculture Organization and Convention on Biological Diversity to ensure alignment. Advisory panels include experts affiliated with Harvard University, University of Oxford, Stanford University, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education.
Research programs cover forest ecology and links to Bonn Challenge, Great Green Wall, REDD+, Land Degradation Neutrality and Nature-based Solutions. Programs encompass species-level studies referencing taxa conserved under CITES, landscape-level analyses akin to Global Forest Watch, carbon cycle research cited by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, restoration ecology reflecting Society for Ecological Restoration guidance, and socioecological work coordinated with International Institute for Environment and Development and World Resources Institute. Specialized initiatives align with projects by BirdLife International, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Society and Fauna & Flora International.
Facilities include laboratories comparable to Natural History Museum, London collections, herbarium resources similar to Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and genomic facilities like those at Wellcome Sanger Institute. Field stations operate in biomes studied by Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Center for International Forestry Research, Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, Andean Tropical Forest Research and Australian Tropical Herbarium. Long-term ecological research mirrors networks like Long Term Ecological Research Network, Global Biodiversity Information Facility, Forest Global Earth Observatory and International Long Term Ecological Research.
The institute partners with research and conservation organizations including World Wide Fund for Nature, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Society and BirdLife International, as well as academic partners such as University of Cambridge, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, ETH Zurich and University of Tokyo. It collaborates with multilateral entities like United Nations Environment Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization, Global Environment Facility, Green Climate Fund and World Bank on projects echoing efforts by Bonn Challenge and Landscape Restoration consortia.
Funding sources include multilateral donors such as Global Environment Facility, Green Climate Fund, European Investment Bank, World Bank Group and Asian Development Bank, philanthropic foundations like Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, MacArthur Foundation and Bloomberg Philanthropies, and national research councils including National Science Foundation (United States), Natural Environment Research Council, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, National Natural Science Foundation of China and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.
Outreach programs collaborate with entities such as United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Global Landscapes Forum, IUCN World Conservation Congress, World Parks Congress, and CITES COP, and provide training modeled on curricula from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Smithsonian Institution, Sierra Club, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and Conservation International. Educational partnerships include universities like University of Oxford, Yale University, Columbia University, University of British Columbia and Australian National University and non-governmental partners such as Fauna & Flora International, Wildlife Conservation Society and The Nature Conservancy.
Category:Research institutes