Forests cover approximately 30% of the Earth’s land area, host 80% of its biodiversity; support the livelihoods of around a quarter of the world’s population. At the EU level, forests cover approximately 42% of the land area. In addition to providing economic and job opportunities to local communities, forests are an irreplaceable biodiversity reservoirs and carbon sinks; they prevent soil erosion; they provide clean water through filtration; they clean the air; they play a central role in risk reduction measures vis-à-vis natural disasters, such as floods, droughts, heatwaves, erosion or landslides; and they support leisure and recreation, essential for human health. The world’s forests are in serious danger from deforestation and forest degradation, with a forest area of 1.3 million square kilometres lost between 1990 and 2016. Pressures on EU forest ecosystems due to climate change and unsustainable forest management are a reason for concern and are expected to increase in the future, due to increasing demand of timber coming from the bioenergy the bioeconomy sectors, in a context where illegal logging continues to be recorded in a number of Countries. Overall, protecting forests means protecting biodiversity and working for a climate neutral and climate resilient land. In this context, DG Environment organises an International Conference on Forest for Biodiversity and Climate on 4-5 February 2020 in Brussels. More information is available HERE.

Regional Council of Lapland in cooperation with European Commission, Digipolis Oy and City of Kemi, Finland is organising a conference dedicated to “Responsible Industry Leading the Sustainable Development on the example of Industry Clusters Connecting Circular Economy”. Around 130 representatives of local, regional, national and European public authorities together with industry and civil society stakeholders will share their experiences and provide insights into future cluster policies related to circular economy, with a focus on trends, interregional and cross-sectoral collaboration as well as funding opportunities. The first day will evolve around high-level discussions on cluster policy and Joint Cluster Initiatives in the context of circular economy. There will also be time for reflections by practitioners among the participants. The participants will also have a chance to experience the value chain of the mining industry (“from the mine to the harbour”) during study visits to the Arctic Industry Ecosystem on second day. Read more about the event HERE.