20th Session of the UNFF

Forests cover 31% of the world’s land surface, and are crucial for planetary well-being.  They help mitigate climate change by storing carbon, and are home to most of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity. They improve soil, air, and water quality; services we are at risk of losing due to deforestation, forest degradation and other threats. Around 1.6 billion people worldwide depend directly on forests for food, shelter, energy, medicines and income.

The United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) was established in 2000 by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) with the main objective to promote the management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests and to strengthen long-term political commitment to this end. Its principal functions include facilitating the implementation of forest-related agreements, providing continued policy development and dialogue among governments and other actors, enhancing policy and programme coordination on forest-related issues, and foster international cooperation to monitor, assess and report on progress to these ends. 

At its twentieth meeting, UNFF will discuss the implementation of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests 2017–2030 (UNSPF), with topics including enhanced cooperation with partners, interlinkages with other international agreements, communication and outreach strategies, means of implementation, and monitoring, assessment and reporting. Discussions will have a technical focus centered on three thematic priorities:

• Reversing the loss of forest cover worldwide through sustainable forest management;
• Increasing significantly the area of protected forests worldwide and other areas of sustainably managed forests, as well as the proportiation of forest products from sustainably managed forests; and
• Promoting governance frameworks to implement sustainable forest management, including through the UN Forest Instrument, and enhance the contribution of forests to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

UNFF20 will also conduct a progress review of the implementation of the International Arrangement on Forests (IAF) midterm review, adopted at its nineteenth meeting. 

The IAF has five main components: the UNFF and its Secretariat, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (an interagency body), the UNFF Global Forest Financing Facilitation Network, and the UNFF Trust Fund. The IAF’s objectives center around implementation of sustainable forest management, in particular the implementation of the UN Forest Instrument, and enhancing the contribution of forests to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, among others.

UNFF20 will convene at UN Headquarters in New York from 5-9 May 2025.

The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) writers for this meeting are Mika Schröder, Ph.D.; Kate Harris; and Keith Ripley. The Digital Editor is Ángeles Estrada. The Editor is Pam Chasek, Ph.D.