Main objectives of ForestValue2

Identify common research and innovation priorities agreed between participating national and regional research and innovation programmes in the field of forest bioeconomy, taking into account international developments where relevant;
Implement a joint call, resulting in funding for transnational collaborative research and innovation projects.
Implement joint activities to support the market, regulatory or societal outcomes of forest science;

The specific objectives

To organize joint activities, such as summer schools, breakfast clubs for early stage researchers and industry, as support for young forest scientists, in order to:

• training and improving their knowledge;
• creating the opportunity to connect the young forest scientific community;
• building research collaboration and strengthening the forestry research network by allowing early-stage researchers and professionals to gain experience working with other organizations.

To identify networks and promote exchanges through existing and new collaborations with the EU13 and Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova
To organise workshops/webinars/ “scientific aperitifs” and to reach out externally through mechanisms such as addressing the general public, promoting and communicating the sector and, more specifically, academic and industrial debates and discussions within the research priorities set out in WP2 in order to create and develop close cooperation with both research institutions and universities, as well as with beneficiaries of research results and civil society.

Breakfast club “Forests capacity to provide ecosystem services”

Place and date: Bucharest, October 4, 2023 (Hybrid format: online and physical presence)

Common Event: Forest Science for people and societal challenges – The 90th „Marin Drăcea” INCDS Anniversary

Event description: On the occasion of the associated international conference, a Breakfast Club session was organized, moderated by Dr. Alessandro Paletto (CREA, Italy) and Dr. Ecaterina Apostol (INCDS “Marin Drăcea”, Romania). The main objective of the event was to stimulate the emergence of new research and development directions through academic debates focused on current and future challenges in the forestry and environmental sectors. As an invited expert, Dr. Ovidiu Badea gave a presentation on the correspondence between the ecosystem functions and services provided by forests and the Romanian System of Functional Forest Zoning.

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Ioana Plesca, Ionut Silviu Pascu, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Andrei Popa, Magdalena Popa, Eliza-Maria Cosma, Hapa Mihai

External links and useful documents:

• https://forestvalue.org/conference-forest-science-for-people-and-societal-challenges-the-90th-marin-dracea-incds-anniversary/

Webinar „Policy, science and practice together in the field of forest state monitoring on pan-European scale”

Place and date: Bucharest, October 4, 2023 (Hybrid format: online and physical presence)

Common Event: Forest Science for people and societal challenges – The 90th „Marin Drăcea” INCDS Anniversary

Event description: Organized on the second day of the conference, this webinar was an important Milestone within the WP6 work package. The session was chaired by Dr. Mika Kalio and Dr. Nikolaus Kleinschmit Von Lengefeld, with the main aim of disseminating the most relevant practices to the European and international scientific community. The debates were supported by three prestigious international experts: Dr. Marco Ferretti (ICP Forests model for pan-European forest monitoring), Dr. Päivi Merilä (Using monitoring data for sustainable forest management and climate impact assessment in Finland) and Prof. Dr. Tudor Stăncioiu (Challenges of biodiversity conservation in natural ecosystems).

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Ioana Plesca, Ionut Silviu Pascu, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Andrei Popa, Magdalena Popa, Eliza-Maria Cosma, Hapa Mihai

External links and useful documents:

• https://forestvalue.org/conference-forest-science-for-people-and-societal-challenges-the-90th-marin-dracea-incds-anniversary/

Scientific Café “Forests and forestry – solutions for climate change and climate risk adaptation and mitigation”

Place and date: Bucharest (Practical application in Bucegi Natural Park), October 5, 2023

Common Event: Forest Science for people and societal challenges – The 90th „Marin Drăcea” INCDS Anniversary

Event description: As part of the field application of the conference, the Scientific Café event was organized. It had the role of facilitating the involvement of stakeholders in scientific discussions in an informal setting, benefiting from the institutional support of the Bucegi Natural Park Administration. The debates focused on two major thematic directions: ecosystem services provided by forests (invited expert: Prof. Dr. Bogdan Popa; experts and rapporteurs: Dr. Diana Pitar, Dr. Ecaterina Apostol, Dr. Alexandru Claudiu Dobre) and biodiversity and wildlife conservation (invited expert: Prof. Dr. Tudor Stăncioiu; experts and rapporteurs: Dr. Ancuța Fedorca, Dr. Ecaterina Apostol, Eng. Mihai Hapa). Dr. Ovidiu Badea served as the session facilitator.

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Ioana Plesca, Ionut Silviu Pascu, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Andrei Popa, Magdalena Popa, Eliza-Maria Cosma, Hapa Mihai

External links and useful documents:

• https://forestvalue.org/conference-forest-science-for-people-and-societal-challenges-the-90th-marin-dracea-incds-anniversary/

Webinar „Monitoring of forests in the age of remote sensing and modelling”

Place and date: Brașov (Rectorate of Transylvania University, Research Hub), October 24, 2024 (Hybrid format)

Event description: As a partner of the ForestValue2 project and coordinating institution of the WP6 work package, INCDS “Marin Drăcea” organized this webinar at the international level. The primary objective of the meeting was to provide a common platform for policy makers, research environment and practitioners in the field of forest monitoring at national and international level. Through this event, efficient communication and exchange of expertise on the successes, opportunities and challenges specific to this field were facilitated, contributing to strengthening the collaboration between the scientific community and the targeted interest groups.

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Ioana Plesca, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Lavinia Ifrim, Ștefan Leca, Bogdan Apostol

External links and useful documents:

https://forestvalue.org/monitoring-of-forests-in-the-age-of-remote-sensing-and-modelling/

ForestValue2 International Summer School on Forest Health and Remote Sensing

Place and date of implementation: Brașov (practical applications in Zărnești and Săcele), May 11 – 18, 2025

Event description: Under the general theme “Forest Health and Monitoring in the Age of Remote Sensing”, this international summer school brought together 20 early career researchers from EU13 Member States, as well as Finland, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. The educational program started with fundamental theoretical sessions focused on advanced technologies for monitoring and assessing climate risks. A major highlight was the intensive training in the use of remote sensing tools: Earth observation data, terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and airborne laser scanning (ALS), synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and the use of drones (UAV). This knowledge was substantiated by field visits for measurements in the ICP Forests and LTER networks. On this occasion, an important cross-border cooperation agreement was also signed between the INCDS “Marin Drăcea” and the Ukrainian Research Institute for Forestry and Forest Reclamation (URIFFM).

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Bogdan Apostol, Ionut Silviu Pascu, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Șerban Tibor, Radu Nan, Alexandru Cucu

External links and useful documents:

https://forestvalue.org/forestvalue2-international-summer-school-on-forest-health-and-remote-sensing-wraps-up-successfully-in-brasov-romania/

The distribution of participants’ preferences for the parallel sessions was as follows:

• TLS/ALS (Scanare Laser Terestră/Aeriană): 7 participants

• RADAR: 6 participants

• LIDAR: 7 participants

Gender distribution: 55% men, 45% women

INCDS provided the entire infrastructure necessary for the course, and the workstations (PCs) were made available with the support of Transilvania University of Brașov. Participants had access to specialized software for remote sensing data analysis, as well as all the necessary training materials.

All candidates were informed via email about the status of their application and available travel options. Selected participants received additional information regarding:

• Accommodation details

• Travel arrangements, including transfers from Otopeni Airport to Brașov and return

• Final course program

The selected participants were welcomed to Brașov to benefit from this valuable training opportunity in the field of forest monitoring technologies.

Diplomas of excellence and training certificates were awarded during the summer course.

About the project : https://forestvalue.org/about-foresvalue/

Breakfast Club – “Potential challenges on stimulating and facilitating communications among researchers and practitioners for a coherent forest management policy according to forest regulations and environmental legislation”

Place and date: Brașov, October 9, 2025 (Hybrid format: online and physical presence)

Common event: 20th International Symposium on Legal aspects of European Forest Sustainable Development (IUFRO)

Event description: The scientific meeting is organized in accordance with the activities of the WP6 package within the ForestValue2 project, in full synergy with the aforementioned international symposium. The debates focus mainly on the competitiveness of the main actors in the forestry sector, in the context of the rigors of the future environmental regulations adopted at the level of the European Union. The primary objective is to connect the visions between the political sector, the research environment and forestry practice, in order to promote cross-sectoral collaboration, disseminate knowledge and formulate coherent and applicable forest management strategies, compatible with the norms of environmental legislation.

Organizing Committee: Ecaterina Apostol, Ovidiu Badea, Ioana Plesca, Ionut Silviu Pascu, Alexandru-Claudiu Dobre, Mihai Hapa, Alin Mihalache, Șerban Tibor

External links and useful documents:

https://forestvalue.org/breakfast-club-communication-challenges-in-aligning-forest-management-with-legislation/

Breakfast Club Flyer (PDF): https://forestvalue.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Breakfast-club_INCDS_BRASOV.pdf

IUFRO Program (PDF): https://forestvalue.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/IUFRO_Program.pdf