Elisabeth Köstinger
Federal Minister for Sustainability and Tourism of Austria

“Multifunctional boreal forests and mountain forests are among the ecosystems most affected by climate change. They play a key role in tackling climate change and achieving the Paris climate goals. I am therefore supporting the IBFRA18 Cool Forests Conference and I am delighted to be an Ambassador for Cool Forests.“

Tashi Wangchuk
Senior Forestry Officer in Social Forestry and Extension Division, Department of Forests and Park Services, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Royal Government of Bhutan

"Forests are home to people and animals. Forests are exploited due to our greed and need. Greed and needs of the people are increasing and pressure on forests and natural resources are increasing. This phenomenon is inevitable.

To manage and protect our forests, we have to firstly manage the people. We have to inculcate the sense of ownership of the forests to people."

Gerald Schweighofer
CEO, Holzindustrie Schweighofer

"As a traditional family-owned company that has been active in the timber industry for more than 400 years, we are committed to sustainable forestry. We rely on the ecosystem services that forests deliver and on sustainably managed forests. For this reason we also see the challenges climate change poses on forests and therefore actively support research and scientific discourse in this important field."

Prof. Dr. Bhaskar Vira
Professor of Political Economy, University of Cambridge & Director, University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute

"This is an important initiative, focused on some of the most fragile and vulnerable ecosystems in the world, which are vital to the future of people and the planet."

Peter Mayer
Managing Director, Austrian Research Centre for Forests, BFW

"Measures to combat climate change and to implement the sustainable development goals are in many ways related to forest ecosystems. When taking a close look at global forest ecosystems it is evident that boreal and mountain forests play an important, yet not adequately considered, role. Therefore, the conference "Cool forests at risk?" is convened at the right time to increase the recognition of these crucial ecosystems. Moreover, the Conference provides the opportunity to discuss the role of cool forests regarding the concepts of bioeconomy and circular economy for the benefit of our societies."

Maria Palenova
Head of Depart. All-Russian Research Institute for Silviculture and Mechanization of Forestry

"Boreal forests are given much less attention at the international level than tropical forests. We need to promot the widespread acceptance by the society of the significant contribution of boreal forests in achieving sustainable development including economic development, social development and environmental protection."

Prof. Dr. Pavel Kabat
IIASA Director General and CEO

"We are delighted to be holding the IBFRA18 conference here at IIASA in Austria. IIASA is ideally placed to bring together multidisciplinary teams from a global network to address the challenge of managing and protecting ‘cool forests’ and the resources and benefits they provide.This unique event will draw attention to the challenges the forests are facing and inform strategies and policies on how to tackle them. I am proud to sign off as a Cool Forest Ambassador. Please join me. I look forward to welcoming you to Laxenburg."

Lina Dabbagh
Head of Policy Advocacy, Climate Action Network International

“In the struggle to limit global warming to 1.5o C, as enshrined in the Paris Agreement, carbon sequestration in natural ecosystems play an outstanding role. It is vital to protect primary forests, halt deforestation and peatland degradation, and restore lost and degraded forests in a sustainable and participatory manner, while strengthening the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities”.

Yoshihiro Nagata
Doctoral Student, Nagoya University

"Protecting boreal forests from risk is very important issue in Arctic regions and this planet. Furthermore, I think that protection of boreal forests from risk is involved closely with politics, public administration and political issues. My family once lived in Vienna, and I like the WienerWald (Vienner Woods). My family lives in Kyoto now, and Kyoto is also the city surrounded by forests and mountains, for example Mount Hiei. One of the most important conventions for forests is UNFCC (The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), and Kyoto Protocol is the Convention related to UNFCC. IPF (the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests), IFF (the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests) and UNFF (The United Nations Forum on Forests) have been very important for the protection of boreal forests."

Diana Santacruz
Carbon Sequestrarion & Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation

"Because boreal forest is the second largest biome in the world making up nearly 30 percent of the planet's forested area (of which approximately 25 percent is natural), and stores about 20 percent of the earth's carbon (FAO, 2015). Along with the tropics, the boreal forest is both a major depository and at times a major source of carbon."