Climaforceelife Climate Smart Tender

Duration 01-SEP-2020 to 31-DEC -2027Total budget 5587063.00 EU contribution 2969208.00 Project descriptionBackgroundForests of Central and Eastern Europe represent an important natural resource. Their importance will likely increase in the near future. This is not just because of increasing demand for wood for energy production construction bioplastics etc. but also due to increasing societal awareness about the ecosystem services provided by forests. However ecosystem services are now threatened by climate change. Current forest management will need to be adapted to climate change to reduce its negative impacts such as drought increased water run-off causing flooding and soil erosion and also to increase the resilience of forests to climate change in the long term.ObjectivesThe overall goal of the CLIMAFORCEELIFE project is to improve management of forests in Central and Eastern Europe by fostering the transition to climate-smart forestry for the benefit of people and nature.Specific project objectives include Review proofing of selected forest management models currently used in Central and Eastern European from the viewpoint of climate change Demonstrate application of the climate-smart forestry measures in 3 countries in Central and Eastern Europe Slovakia Bulgaria and Hungary and test their economic feasibility and environmental impact comparing to the conventional forestry methods Foster inclusion of climate-smart forestry measures into relevant planning documents related to forest management andor nature conservation on local to national level such as forest management plans nature management plans as well as into programming documents for EU Regional Funds Increase awareness of climate-smart forestry methods among professional foresters and other relevant professional groups researchers conservationists in Central and Eastern Europe Transfer experience from project demonstration sites to and replicate climate-smart forestry methods in other areas in Central and Eastern Europe including neighbouring countries such as Ukraine and Gain public support for climate-smart forestry by increasing awareness about forests and climate change.The project is fully in line with the EU Strategy on adaptation to climate change and also national climate adaptation policies. It contributes to EU policy aiming to increase forest resilience to climate change as project measures may significantly decrease pest outbreaks fire risk and mitigate the effects of prolonged drought. In addition some sites are located in Natura 2000 network sites so project measures may benefit the conservation status of habitats and species protected under the Birds and Habitats directives.ResultsExpected results Project plans applied and demonstrated for climate-smart forestry measures in Slovakia and Bulgaria on 1 793 ha Small-scale shelter wood cutting and se