Our solutions: Restoration

Five Years of Implementing Forest Landscape Restoration – Lessons to Date

This publication compiles the experiences and key lessons learnt of a group of WWF forest specialists involved in implementing forest landscape restoration projects in their countries. The group met for a study tour of Spain and Portugal in June 2006, and participants came from a wide range of countries: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Indonesia, Kenya, Tanzania, Vietnam, Madagascar, Morocco, Portugal, New Caledonia, China, and Scotland. » Read more

Much more than just planting trees

Nearly half the world’s original forests have been lost, and many are still being damaged, degraded or destroyed. This means the loss of habitat for plants and animals as well as vital resources for nearby communities.

WWF believes that there is a vital need to reverse the loss and degradation of forests by restoring forests and their ecological role and function.

Forest Landscape Restoration
WWF is working to return degraded forests to a more authentic state. Restoring forests, however, involves much more than planting new trees. It is also about restoring the goods and services that forests provide.

Why restore?
Together with IUCN and other partners, WWF has therefore developed an approach - Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) - which aims to reverse the losses and restore forests to a more authentic state. As well, restoring forests across a landscape can bring benefits such as improved water quality, soil stabilization, improved access to food, medicines and raw materials, and stable sources of income for local people.

Forest restoration on the ground
WWF is developing Forest Landscape Restoration programmes in regions as diverse as East Africa (Kenya, Madagascar and Tanzania), Asia (China, India, and Vietnam), Europe (Morocco and Portugal), Latin America (Argentina, Brazil and Peru) and the South Pacific island of New Caledonia.

Broadening the agenda
At the policy level, WWF is also working to put forest restoration that combines human well-being and biodiversity conservation more squarely on the agenda of governments, the forest industry and local communities. Research is also vital to enable WWF to make recommendations on issues such as how government money is invested in tree planting and forest restoration.

As well, building a knowledge base on forest restoration is important to promote lessons learnt, from practical experience, and helping to develop long-term national, regional and international strategies for socially and ecologically sound forest restoration. The long term aim is to ensure that public and private financial investments in the restoration of forests are directed towards positive outcomes for both people and wildlife.