The Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management and Rehabilitation (APFNet) is a non-profit international organization dedicated to advancing sustainable forest management and rehabilitation in the Asia-Pacific region. In this capacity, APFNet has been instrumental in supporting projects in Asia, Oceania, and North America aimed at mitigating forest loss. The organization is comprised of 31 members across the Asia-Pacific region, including 26 economies, and 5 international organizations.
The forests in North and South America are great in extent and varied in forest types and drivers of forest loss. Economies in North America maintain some of the greatest extent of temperate forest area. However forest area in the region contends with conversion to agriculture, expansion of the oil and gas industry, and hydro-electric project development. South America boasts some of the world’s greatest amount of biodiversity, a large proportion of global carbon stock, and many protected areas. Over the last few decades, deforestation has been, and continues to be, a major challenge for governments in the region.
While there are different challenges faced by the various areas in both regions, important lessons can be gained by sharing expertise and supporting research and project development.
APFNet, in collaboration with the University of British Columbia (UBC), hopes to support local efforts to aid in sustainable forest management and rehabilitation in the Americas. In order to achieve this, the APFNet-UBC Americas Office seeks to encourage regional level cooperation.