Organization of the International Scientific Conference “Forests and the Post-2012 Regime” France

Context of the service

From July to December 2008, the France held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union and, in this capacity, coordinated European positions on the climate negotiations. During this Presidency, the Ministry of Agriculture led the European negotiations on the consideration of forest carbon sinks in developed countries (LULUCF) and the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions related to deforestation in developing countries (REDD+).
Organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, in collaboration with GIP Ecofor and the National School of Rural Engineering, Water and Forests (AgroParisTech-ENGREF), this international scientific conference aimed to question the role that the European forest-wood sector can play in mitigating the climate and energy crises, in the context of the preparation of GHG reduction commitments for the post-2012 (post-Kyoto) period.
In particular, this conference aimed to present as many objective elements as possible to clarify the role played by the forest-wood sector in the physical processes of the carbon cycle, as well as the competition between wood and other materials on the energy market. Indeed, in 2008, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol mainly promoted the role of forests as carbon sinks. On the other hand, carbon storage in forest products and the substitution of wood for other materials or energy sources were poorly valued.

Services provided

Many plenary sessions and parallel sessions were therefore organized around three main themes: 1/ Forests: carbon sinks, 2/ Wood products: energy storage and saving, 3/ The forest-wood sector: renewable energy source. The conference was held in Nancy (France) from 6 to 8 November 2008. It brought together nearly 260 representatives of the European forest-wood sector, the Member States of the European Union, NGOs and universities and gave rise to various scientific and technical communications.
The experts coordinated the organization of the conference, both on the scientific aspects (calls for scientific contributions, reading and selection of papers and posters, animation of the scientific steering committee) and logistics (management of invitations and accreditations, reservation of the conference room, accommodation, organization of international transport, organization of three field trips around Nancy, oversight of media coverage).

Summary of the service

Organization of the international scientific conference "Forests and the post-2012 regime", in Nancy (France) from 6 to 8 November 2008: Scientific organization (calls for scientific contributions, reading and selection of papers and posters, animation of the scientific steering committee); Logistical organization (management of invitations and accreditations, reservation of the conference room, accommodation, organization of international transport, organization of three field trips around Nancy, supervision of media coverage); Welcoming 260 representatives of the European forest-wood sector, European Union Member States, NGOs and universities.