EUSTAFOR Participates in ForestPaths Policy Lab 3 in Berlin

EUSTAFOR, represented by Senior Policy Advisor Amila Meskin, attended the third ForestPaths Policy Lab, held in Berlin from 19-20 November . The event brought together stakeholders, policymakers, and project modellers for three days of in-depth discussions on the long-term futures of Europe’s forests. The Lab aimed to link the forest visions developed in previous sessions with exploratory socio-economic scenarios (SSP1 and SSP3), supporting the design of credible policy pathways resilient under different potential futures.

During the first day, stakeholders revisited the three overarching forest visions — “Better Forests for All”, “Resilient Forests for People and Planet”, and “Diversity ALDO”. Participants presented their vision diagrams, explored how these visions could be aligned within the context of the two exploratory scenarios, and began developing the measures needed to achieve them. Project partner Dr. Anna Repo (Natural Resources Institute Finland / LUKE) introduced the scenarios and showcased CANOPY, an interactive tool for visualising model results, which guided the identification of potential actions and pathways.

The second day brought a deeper integration of modelling insights. Project partners presented a series of posters on environmental, societal, and climate impacts of forest policies using models such as IMAGE, PLUM, CRAFTY, GLOBIO, EFI-GTM, aiphoria, bw_timex, EFISCEN-SPACE, and LPJ-GUESS. Stakeholders provided feedback on these models and discussed the trade-offs associated with each vision under the different scenarios. A study tour at the Eichwerder Moorwiesen Nature Reserve offered participants first-hand insight into ecosystem management and conservation practices, reinforcing the connection between policy decisions and real-world forest outcomes.

On the final day, stakeholders received feedback from modellers and refined the proposed policy pathways. The Lab concluded with reflections on the outcomes, discussions on the next steps, and guidance for the final Policy Lab in 2026, led by project partners Marc Gramberger (Prospex Institute vzw) and coordinator Hans Verkerk (European Forest Institute).

EUSTAFOR’s participation provided valuable policy insights and contributed to shaping pathways that balance ecological, social, and economic considerations for Europe’s forests. The discussions highlighted the importance of planning beyond 2050 toward 2100, ensuring that Europe’s forest policies remain resilient under different global futures.

More information on ForestPaths is available at forestpaths.eu.

Gallery