About Us
Founded in 1998, we aims to facilitate and coordinate exchanges between stakeholders in research education and the forestry sector.
Twenty years ago, a joint initiative between USSE, CRPF and INRA led to the creation and launch of Institut Européen des Forêts Cultivées (IEFC), thanks to the support of the European members of the EUROSILVASUR project.
The idea for this network originated back in 1987 when the pioneering spirit of foresters from Aquitaine, Galicia and the Spanish Basque Country led them to explore the forests of their neighbouring countries, while building friendships along the way; thus sowing the seed for two fruitful decades of collaboration and networking.
Our Mission
Our mission is to use a bottom up approach through collaboration driven by planted forest owners and practitioners and linking researchers and educators to Promote, Facilitate, Improve, Coordinate and Disseminate solutions to aid forest owners and practitioners to manage and ensure Sustainable Management of Planted Forests in Europe.
Our purpose
Experts, scientific studies and papers, policies and strategies keep stressing the huge potential and benefits of planted forests. As more and more planted forests are privately owned, forest owner and managers have to be taken into account. Indeed, private forest owners and managers as well as their forests and woodlands, are progressively coming under pressure from more stringent EU regulations, sustainable forest management rules, societal demands, coupled with the problems brought about by climate change such as increased threats from wind, fire, pests, and disease.
Our objectives
IEFC aims to promote, facilitate and improve the future resilience and sustainability of planted forests in Europe in the context of global change.
The IEFC focus areas are in line with many of the important challenges and strategies outlined in the European Forest Strategy. These focus areas addresses the development of sustainable planted forests adapted to meeting the demands in a growing bioeconomy, as well as maintaining and increasing the value of ecosystem services.