Forestry experts at the IUFRO World Congress in Stockholm

From 23 to 29 June 2024, forestry experts met in Stockholm for the World Congress of the International Union of Forest Research Organisations (IUFRO), which takes place every five years. 4,200 participants from 103 countries came together to discuss the current state of research and expand networks. The IUFRO presidency changes at the end of the conference. In Stockholm, Daniela Kleinschmit, Professor of Forest and Environmental Policy at the University of Freiburg, has taken over the office for the next five years for the first time in its 125-year history, marking a significant change in the organisation, which brings together more than 15,000 forest scientists worldwide. During her term of office, Daniela Kleinschmit intends to further develop IUFRO in order to facilitate evidence-based and regionally adapted policy decisions for forests and woodlands, to make the organisation more diverse and to promote young scientists more strongly. She is supporting the Eva Mayr-Stihl Foundation with a grant and is continuing the cooperation with the renowned scientist at an international level.

The promotion of young scientists was also an important topic at the World Congress in Stockholm. For the first time, a mentoring programme was launched together with the International Forestry Students' Association (IFSA), in which 200 young and experienced scientists entered into an exchange with each other as mentees and mentors. Two competitions were also held in this context, on the one hand to establish an individual partnership across the congress and on the other to gain important impetus for the continuation of the programme. A total of five young scientists were awarded prizes for their concepts - each with 2,000 euros, also funded by the Eva Mayr-Stihl Foundation.