The role of forest recovery from biotic and abiotic threats for risk resilient management
Coordinator: Anja Rammig, Technical University of Munich (TUM), Germany
Anja.Rammig (at) tum.de
Other partners: SE, SI
Duration: 2022-2025 (to be confirmed)
Project objective: The aim of FORECO is to provide tools for identifying and operationalizing sustainable and multifunctional forest use and management strategies, which simultaneously consider ecological and economic risks arising from biotic and abiotic threats in the coming decades (i.e., drought, storm, bark beetles) and take into account forest recovery from disturbances. In close collaboration with local, national and EU-level stakeholders, the project will identify needs of forest practitioners, advisors and policy makers for evidence to inform adaptation strategies in face of increasing vulnerability of forests and uncertainty about the future.
Abstract:
FORECO developed knowledge, models and tools to support risk-resilient and sustainable forest management under increasing environmental pressures. The project examined how European forests respond to drought, storms and bark beetle outbreaks, focusing on vulnerability, recovery and the effects of different management strategies.
FORECO combined ecological, climate and economic modelling with stakeholder knowledge to assess future forest management options and trade-offs between ecosystem services, disturbance risks and economic outcomes. Key results include an enhanced LPJ-GUESS forest model for assessing vulnerability and resilience, as well as management scenario databases to support decision-making.
By integrating forest recovery into long-term management planning, FORECO contributes to more adaptive and resilient forest management across diverse European forest systems.
ForestValue fundamentally strengthened our research by providing not only essential funding, but also a collaborative European platform that connected science with real-world forest management challenges. Through this support, we were able to integrate interdisciplinary perspectives and ensure that our work contributes directly to more adaptive and risk-aware forest management strategies. ForestValue turned our research from a purely academic exercise into an applied, impact-driven contribution to the future of sustainable forestry.