Authors
Elisabeth Pötzelsberger1 , Gert-Jan Nabuurs2, Iciar Alberdi3, Thomas Lundhede4, Marcel Hunziker5, Jürgen Bauhus6, Jo O’Hara1, Magda Bou Dagher1
1 European Forest Institute, Platz der Vereinten Nationen 7, 53133 Bonn, Germany
2 Wageningen University and Research, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, the Netherlands
3 Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria, Consejo Superior De Investigaciones Científicas, Ctra. A Coruña km 7.5. 28040 Madrid, Spain
4 University of Copenhagen, Department of Food and Resource Economics, Rolighedsvej 23, 1958 Frb. C, Copenhagen, Denmark
5 Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Research Unit Economics and Social Sciences, CH-8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland
6 Freiburg University, Faculty for Environment and Natural Resources, Institute of Forest Sciences, Tennenbacherstr. 4, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
T1.26 Prestoration – combining restoration and adaptation – of European forests for people and planet
Abstract
The "SUPERB - Systemic solutions for upscaling of urgent ecosystem restoration for forest related biodiversity and ecosystem services" project, funded by the European Commission from 2021 to 2025 as part of the Horizon 2020 Green Deal initiative, provides robust scientific evidence in support of the proposed Nature restoration law, thereby addressing the pressing need for substantiated data in forest restoration field.
The primary objective of the SUPERB project is to create favourable conditions for large-scale restoration of forests and forest landscapes throughout Europe. This is achieved through twelve extensive demonstrations conducted in collaboration with local stakeholders. Additionally, the project focuses on generating practical knowledge based on evidence, pertaining to the sustainable management, governance, and financing of restoration efforts, by learning from previous and ongoing projects in Europe and other regions. Another important goal is to enhance societal support for restoration and its associated benefits. To accomplish this, SUPERB establishes a strong network and movement involving multiple stakeholders, promoting the development, adoption, and expansion of transformative approaches and actions for forest restoration. During this session, SUPERB work packages leaders will share key findings and results, engaging in discussions with researchers in the field. The concept of prestoration combining restoration and adaptation will be discussed along with approaches and benefits for biodiversity, ecosystem services and carbon storage in a European context. We will also discuss the need and options to create an enabling environment for large-scale future-oriented forest restoration and transition to integrative forest management (integrating biodiversity conservation into sustainable forest management at different scales) that receives broad-scale acceptance and support by relevant stakeholders and society at large.