Foresters Call for Action: Future Land Management Needs Better Integration of Sectors

The XIV World Forestry Congress (WFC) delivers a strong message: global challenges require increased efforts to better manage land by integrating forests and other land uses. Why is better integration of forests and other land uses essential? What barriers on the ground must be overcome to simultaneously increase agricultural output and boost the productive and protective functions of forests? How can policymakers, the private sector, stakeholders and researchers contribute to a more integrated and sustainable approach to land use? This brief explains how these questions were addressed at the World Forestry Congress in South Africa in 2015. It aims to stimulate discussion as well as collaborative and crosssectoral planning and action at the landscape scale.