Dear IUFRO List Holders: I am hoping you will be able to distribute this announcement to your IUFRO group on sessions at IUFRO 2019 linked to the International Society of Tropical Foresters. Thanks, Sheila Ward *&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&* *The **International Society of Tropical Foresters* is organizing or co-organizing seven sessions for th*e **XXV World Congress of the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO2019)** to be held 29 Sept – 5 Oct 2019 at Curitiba, Brazil. *Please consider submitting an oral or poster presentation for one of these sessions or another IUFRO2019 session (see below). *Abstracts for presentations can be submitted until 31 Dec 2018 at* http://iufro2019.com/* You* will need to be registered for IUFRO2019 to submit an abstract, but you do not need to pay until later. See https://iufro2019.com/abstracts-submission/ for details on abstract submission. Information on all IUFRO 2019 sessions can be found at http://iufro2019.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/sessions-english-portuguese… . IUFRO will have financial assistance available for certain participants (see https://iufro2019.com/scientist-assistance-program-sap/). *ISTF-linked technical sessions at IUFRO2019* *SESSION A2a: Sustaining iconic and high-value species in natural forests and plantations* ISTF CONTACT: Erich Schaitza, EMBRAPA, Brazil (erich.schaitza(a)embrapa.br ) SESSION SUMMARY: VERSION IN BOOK: Araucaria and Swietenia are threatened by habitat loss; overharvesting; insufficient regeneration and genetic variation, failings in forest policy, governance, or regulations; and devaluation of products. The session will cover possible solutions, including: harvest policies, regulations, and planning; regeneration and genetic variation; silvicultural practices; modelling to balance extraction, regeneration, and genetic diversity; and market demand to create value. *SESSION A4c: **Monitoring and Assessing Urban Forest Services and Values at the National to Local Scale* ISTF CONTACT: Vindhya P. Tewari, Himalayan Forest Research Institute, India (*vptewari(a)yahoo.com &lt;vptewari(a)yahoo.com&gt;*) SESSION SUMMARY: Trees and forests within urban areas provide numerous benefits to city residents, but relatively little is known about their structure, the services provided by these forests, and how these forests are changing. The purpose of this session is to discuss approaches to inventory urban forests, so that Nations can learn how to monitor these important forests that directly affect human health and well-being. *SESSION B5b: **Small-scale sustainable energy alternatives for developing countries* ISTF CONTACT: Lamfu Fabrice Yengong, University of Buea, Cameroon, ( lamfu2035yengong(a)gmail.com) SESSION SUMMARY: In developing countries, wood accounts for 50-90% of the fuel used, and increased efficiency or replacements for wood are needed. This session explores sustainable energy alternatives. Presentations might include: utilizing waste through “3R” (reduce, reuse, and recycle); more efficient technologies for cooking with wood fuel; social costs of increasing scarcity of fuel wood; characteristics related to fuel wood energy content; solar cooking as an alternative; potential for material and energy recovery from waste; appropriate technologies for developing countries; integrated renewable energy production and utilization from biomass combustion and waste gasification, among other topics. *SESSION C1b: Advances in management and science for the high-value Meliaceae* ISTF CONTACT: Liu Jun, Research Institute of subtropical forest, Chinese Academy of forestry, China, (ywliu2005(a)163.com) SESSION SUMMARY: Tropical timber species of the Meliaceae (including Cedrela, Entandrophragma, Khaya, Swietenia, and Toona) are among the world’s finest woods, and many species have other uses. Their sustainable management faces similar issues around the world. This session will share the latest in research and applications for a global perspective on these species. Topics could cover conservation of genetic resources, genetic improvement, advances in shoot borer control, natural forest management, and development and products useful for human health, among others. *SESSION C1c: **Improving high-value Meliaceae yields in plantations* ISTF CONTACT: Antonio Ferraz, Universidade Federal do Piauí, Brazil ( acferrazfilho(a)gmail.com) SESSION SUMMARY: This session will focus on better production of Meliaceae species grown in plantations. Many species (e.g. mahogany, African mahogany, Australian red cedar, Melia) have recently been grown as plantations around the world and research is needed over a wide range of topics. The main objectives are to share experiences and to find common research themes to build possible collaborations among researchers working with Meliaceae species in plantations around the world. *SESSION C9a: Discovery, curation, and uses of legacy tropical forest data sets* ISTF CONTACT: Sheila Ward, Mahogany for the Future, Inc., Puerto Rico ( tropfordata(a)gmail.com) SESSION SUMMARY: Legacy tropical forest datasets have been generated by various projects over time, and many are in danger of being lost. These datasets are valuable for understanding how tropical forests change through time, and many of the forests they characterize no longer exist. To safeguard these data, standardized metadata and electronic archiving schemes need to be developed. The purpose of the session is to share information on the potential uses of such datasets, their current status, and appropriate curation and metadata strategies. *SESSION F6b: Effective educational strategies for the next generation of forest professionals * ISTF CONTACT: Ruth Metzel, Azuero Earth Project, Panama, ( ruth(a)proecoazuero.org) SESSION SUMMARY: University-based programs on forest related fields are evolving and inherently need to change towards multidisciplinary programs. Some major drivers of these changes are globalization of the economy, climate change, and new technologies and informatics. In a similar vein, solutions for real life, resource management problems around forest key issues, like health, bioenergy, climate change are consistently calling for more holistic and cross-sectoral approaches. Universities curricula need to meet diverse higher demands, and new ways to approach these challenges involving various disciplines in a multicultural environment. This session will highlight findings on research aiming to understand those challenges and also research that addresses innovative strategies that allow forestry students and professors and providers of non-formal education to keep abreast with the time, such online classes, field practices, case studies among others. With its focus on being a communication network, ISTF can help you connect with others interested in tropical forests and forestry. To join, please visit this link please fill out the membership form at GoogleForms <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdy9FqCZ5Yj3TTA-mDJkgwm8n1jbCkEGlFrXMBRK2wNbLP6FA/viewform?c=0&w=1&fbclid=IwAR1A5Ze_kl9PpuSzZRTBZaNyTLLOTHam2fiiAlsU9q7mwdXefWWerHu1ogM> or send a message to tropicalforesters(a)gmail.com.