CIFOR-ICRAF promotes social cohesion, collective action, and the participation of youth organizations by linking European decision makers – who influence land-use change in the Global South through public donors and the private sector – with the knowledge and expertise accumulated by CIFOR-ICRAF project portfolios and partnerships in Asia, Latin America and Africa.
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Top 2023 highlights
As European agriculture, trade and energy policies greatly impact the Global South, CIFOR-ICRAF is well-placed to play a critical bridging role, given our broad experience with farming and forest communities on the ground, as well as our long history of policy support to governments.
In 2023, we launched a Europe Directorate in Bonn, Germany, as the hub for our Europe-based researchers. This directorate leverages our global partners and knowledge to help solve problems in Europe – promoting knowledge exchange, sharing expertise, and acting in an advisory capacity. The Directorate is also home to the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) – the world’s largest knowledge-led platform on sustainable and inclusive landscapes. (See the GLF section of this report for 2023 GLF highlights).
CIFOR-ICRAF’s activities explicitly consider the different political entities in the region: the national governments of the 27 EU Member States and EU-associated countries, as well as the European Commission with its different departments. Through our international office in Bonn, we work through three main thematic areas to solve European problems:
- Policies and programmes – We work with commodity-producing countries and people to mitigate negative effects emerging from European policies, development programmes designed in Europe and the business practices and operational setups of European companies. We also help build understanding and maximization of the positive effects of current European policies on Global South countries. Further, we support private sector entities to develop approaches that help them respond to European ESG standards, specifically regarding transitions towards deforestation-free value chains and regenerative agriculture.
- Direct technical intervention – CIFOR-ICRAF adds value through our unique perspective and our experience with bridging farmer-researcher divides, supported by our deep expertise and experience in developing agroforestry technologies and mechanisms. Technically, this includes using our Option by Context approach, recognizing diversity, and choosing components (e.g. tree species) to meet specific conditions. Process-wise, it involves researchers, farmers, and activists working closely together; supporting farmers to learn; and embedding research in an action framework.
- Knowledge management – We focus specifically on youth as agents of change, strengthening our proximity to and existing partnerships with universities in Europe to establish applied research networks and programmes. GLF offers a powerful platform with 33 charter members, which is already well recognized and utilized by the governments of Luxembourg and Germany to support their ambitions. Users can connect with the GLF Youth in Landscapes initiative’s more than 60,000 young people, as well as GLF’s Landscapes Academy to access and develop learning programmes and courses.
