HealthyForestRegions

Project overview

Healthy Forest Regions: Supporting Healthy Forest ecosystems for human well-being in forest Regions

Can there be healthy people without healthy forests? Without fresh air, clean water, climate regulation, biodiversity, and natural recreation places? The answer is “No”. What we need now is commitment. The HealthyForestRegions project aims at paving the way for regional inhabitants, actors and decision-makers to secure the remaining healthy forests and support the recovery of those jeopardized by human impact.

2,78m €

Project Budget

80%

of the Budget is funded by ERDF

Layer 1

6

Countries

8

Regions

9

Partners

7

Pilots

Duration

Start date

End date

Project progress

56%

About the project

The main goal of the HealthyForestRegions (HFR) Project is the preservation and encouragement of healthy forest ecosystems in Central Europe to secure human well-being - now and in the future.

The key actors to put that objective into practice are the policy- and decision-makers in certain forested regions. They are the people who have the opportunity and power to make a change and they are the once we aim to offer well-founded explanations and feasible solutions. Therefore, we brought to life a transnational project team with widely spread competences: 2 universities, 2 municipalities, 2 national forest services, 2 nature parks and 1 NGO. In close exchange and cooperation, the project partners work together on three different topics fields/work packages to achieve the project goal:

    The first work package mainly is about raising awareness, spreading knowledge and implementing pilot actions with regard to anchor the value of regional forests among educational institutions, recreation and tourist organizations and the local population.

In the second work package, a team of project partners deals with offering an alternative income generation for local and regional forest owners and managers instead of cutting and selling timber – a procedure that I often compromising forest health. In expert terms: Forest-based schemes of payments for ecosystem services (PES) are analyzed and developed.

The third work package strives for enabling regional policy- and decision-makers to assess the health of the regional forests and the impact the regional regulations and structures are having on it. Based on that, measurements to prevent and further expand forest health are compiled and evolved in a general strategy and a transferable HFR concept.

Project partnership

Project partners

Deutschland (DE)

Lead partner

Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development

Faculty of Forest and Environment, Centre for Econics and Ecosystem Management, Centre for Econics and Ecosystem Management
Address
Schicklerstrasse 5
16225 Eberswalde
Country
Germany (DE)
Web
www.hnee.de, www.centreforeconomics.org

Project partner

Address
Markt 35
8933 Sankt Gallen
Country
Austria (AT)
Web
www.eisenwurzen.com
Total partner budget
469,704 €
Address
T.G. Masaryka 22
960 01 Zvolen
Country
Slovakia (SK)
Web
https://web.nlcsk.org
Total partner budget
339,159 €
Address
Večna Pot 2
1000 Ljubljana
Country
Slovenia (SI)
Web
www.zgs.si
Total partner budget
538,711 €
Address
Rathaus - Markt 24
16278 Angermuende
Country
Germany (DE)
Web
www.angermuende.de
Total partner budget
191,018 €
Address
Děkanská 74
464 01 Frýdlant
Country
Czechia (CZ)
Web
https://www.masif.cz/
Total partner budget
169,560 €
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences (FFWS)
Address
Kamýcká 129
165 00 Praha
Country
Czechia (CZ)
Web
https://www.fld.czu.cz/en
Total partner budget
100,040 €
Address
Dr. F. Tuđmana 14a
23244 Starigrad-Paklenica
Country
Croatia (HR)
Web
www.np-paklenica.hr
Total partner budget
206,400 €
Address
Ljubljanska cesta 26
1330 Kočevje
Country
Slovenia (SI)
Web
https://www.kocevje.si/Home?lang=en
Total partner budget
168,120 €

Roadmap

1

What is the project about?

The HealthyForestRegions Project connects 9 Central European partner organizations in 6 different forested European regions to jointly work on the conservation and recovery of regional forests.

2

What are the problems the project addresses?

Human well-being is deeply connected to the health of regional forests, but their continued existence is jeopardized by intensive forest management practices and timber production, as well as by changing environmental conditions.

3

The key question...

In order to remain and become healthy, forests need socio-ecological and political conditions that allow them to develop their powers of self-regulation and self-preservation. Thus, the key question is: How can we ensure such conditions?

4

What is the solution we develop?

To ensure conditions that help forests to self-regulate and regenerate, the HFR Project addresses and supports the people who are in power of influencing those conditions: the regional policy- and decision makers.

5

What are important steps to reach our objective?

UNDERSTANDING what healthy forests are and what conditions are needed to support them

ADDRESSING the local people and children with diverse forest education and experience offers

DEVELOPING strategies and action plans to become a region with healthy forests that support the well-being of people working, living, and spending their time there

OFFERING alternatives for people who economically depend on timber production

CREATING commitment among regional political and decision-makers to secure the continued existence and recovery of healthy forests.

6

What impact have we already had?

So far, we already see the first fruits of our work: a program for kindergarten children has been implemented, human benefits created by forest ecosystems have been widely analyzed and prioritized, and a web-based tool to determine the health of certain forested regions has been developed. Stay tuned what happens next!

7

What you can do

Subscribe to our Facebook and LinkedIn pages to keep track of the steps and challenges we face in realizing our vision of a network of long-term healthy forest regions within Central Europe!

…And the next time you go into the woods, try to use all your senses to see, feel, smell, taste, and hear the differences between wild and “clean,” old and young, pine and beech forests…

Events

Pilot actions

Outputs

Integrating Forest Ecosystem Knowledge into Education for Health and Well-being

We develop and implement solutions to integrate knowledge about the vital role of healthy forest ecosystems into local and regional education. These solutions, based on collaborative pilot actions, focus on creating educational materials, learning spaces, and awareness programs. Through joint evaluation, we produce best-practice guidelines and concepts that can be transferred to other regions, ensuring that the value of forests for human health and well-being is effectively communicated and understood.
Type of output: Solutions
In development

Creating regional Benefits for local Stakeholders

We offer innovative solutions to generate forest ecosystem-based benefits for local and regional stakeholders. By developing best-practice guidelines and concepts, we aim to strengthen sustainable regional development through products, services, and offers in tourism, nature therapy, and recreation. These solutions are the result of collaborative efforts and are designed to support long-term regional growth and resilience.
Type of output: Solutions
In development

Marketing Forest Ecosystem Services for regional Development

Building on the success of pilot PES (Payment for Ecosystem Services) schemes, we develop concepts and tools for marketing forest ecosystem services as drivers of regional development. These collaboratively created PES products are designed to be implemented and scaled in regions beyond the initial program area, offering sustainable solutions for economic growth and environmental stewardship.
Type of output: Solutions
In development

Interpretation plan for Healthy Forest Regions

The interpretation plan for HFRs can be described as a general strategic approach for communicating the value of healthy, functional forests and their ES contributing to human health and well-being. It is jointly developed and will be the base for further education offers
Type of output: Strategies and action plans
In development

Regional Strategies and Action Plans for prioritizing Ecosystem Services

We develop three regional governance strategies for public authorities at various levels (community, district, and federal) to prioritize ecosystem services that can create regional value. These strategies include actionable plans for forest management, aimed at safeguarding and enhancing the functionality of forests in providing ecosystem services. These strategies and action plans are collaboratively drafted and developed by all involved partners.
Type of output: Strategies and action plans
In development

Comprehensive Strategy to safeguard Forest Ecosystem Functionality for human Well-being

This output presents a comprehensive governance strategy, collaboratively developed to protect forest ecosystem functionality, essential for human health and well-being. Based on extensive research and pilot actions, this strategy provides guidance for public authorities at all levels (community, district, and federal) and other stakeholders across all target areas. It aims to establish institutional commitment to integrate these protective measures into regional planning and administration.
Type of output: Strategies and action plans
In development

Regional Strategies and Action Plans for safeguarding Forest Ecosystem Functionality

We elaborate a set of binding regional strategies and action plans designed to protect forest ecosystem functionality for human health and well-being. Developed in collaboration with regional stakeholders, these plans translate strategic approaches into actionable measures for two lead target regions (DE, SI). This output provides concrete steps for implementing these strategies effectively in selected Healthy Forest Regions.
Type of output: Strategies and action plans
In development

Project videos

HealthyForestRegions

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Project Contacts

Project Manager

Jennifer Gruß
Phone: (+49) 3334 / 657534

Finance Manager

Jennifer Gruß
Phone: (+49) 3334 / 657534

Communication Manager

Louisa Janitschke