Korea Forest Service launched the Forest Ecosystem Restoration Initiative (FERI)

The Korea Forest Service (KFS) launched the Forest Ecosystem Restoration Initiative on 14 October 2014 during the twelfth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The Initiative was later welcomed by the Parties and reflected to the COP decision.

The FERI aims to assist the Parties in achieving the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, specifically 5, 14, and 15 by maximizing restoration efforts through knowledge-sharing and implementation and technical support. It would be a mechanism for assisting Parties to: Assess the potential costs and benefits of restoration; identify and assess areas with ecosystem and forest degradation; identify areas with high potential for forest and ecosystem restoration; implement appropriate restoration activities; and, manage the complex dynamics inherent in forest and ecosystem restoration.

The launch, co-hosted by the CBD Secretariat and moderated by the former Minister of the Environment and Energy of Costa Rica, Carlos Manuel Rodriguez (currently with Conservation International), received wide-spread support from countries across the globe, including high-level representatives from Uganda, Zambia, Indonesia, Dominican Republic, Bhutan, Guatemala and Germany, as well as representatives from agencies, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which indicated their interest to pair with the KFS in implementing the FERI, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Ramsar Convention, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the United Nations Environment Programme's World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), Bioversity International, and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF). The video coverage of the launch is available on the CBD Secretariat’s website. (link:http://www.liveto.com/Cop12/vod_2/vod/14_SE_pm_e_4.html)

Source: International Cooperation Division, Korea Forest Service

For further information, contact : +82-42-481-8891 (sip1011@forest.go.kr)