Korea Forest Service and UNEP Hold Webinar on Monitoring Forest Restoration under the SAFE Initiative.


The Korea Forest Service, led by Minister KIM In-ho, announced on 22 January that the Minister highlighted the importance of international cooperation to enhance forest biodiversity in his opening remarks at an online webinar on forest restoration monitoring under the Sustaining an Abundance of Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) Initiative, which was held on 21 January. The webinar was co-hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme and the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

The SAFE Initiative was launched in 2022 as a collaborative project between the Korea Forest Service and the United Nations Environment Programme. It aims to restore and conserve key ecosystems that are rich in biodiversity but face the risk of degradation or loss. To this end, the Initiative focuses on the direct restoration and monitoring of degraded and vulnerable forest ecosystems, while also promoting community engagement in conservation efforts and supporting the capacity building of foresters.

In his opening remarks, Minister KIM In-ho highlighted that the success of the SAFE Initiative requires active cooperation among the Korea Forest Service, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the international community. He further stated that the Korea Forest Service would continue its efforts to ensure that Korea’s forest policy, guided by the vision of “Forests for People, People for Forests,”supports international efforts on forest restoration and biodiversity conservation.

During the webinar, participants discussed ways to further develop and strengthen the positive impacts of forest ecosystem restoration projects on local communities under the theme of monitoring forest restoration impact.
The webinar brought together approximately 80 participants, including government officials, representatives of civil society organizations, and experts in forest restoration from Bhutan, Lao PDR, Vietnam, and Cambodia, the project’s target countries.

KIM In-ho, Minister of the Korea Forest Service, stated that through ecosystem restoration projects implemented by KFS in cooperation with the UNEP, the Service aims to go beyond simply supporting forest restoration in developing countries. He added that by enabling local communities to independently monitor the impacts of restoration projects, these efforts will contribute to community-based ecosystem restoration and enhanced biodiversity, while further strengthening Korea’s national standing.