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When I started my term as IUFRO President at the closing of our 25th IUFRO World Congress in Curitiba, Brazil just over eight months ago, I had no idea of the challenges that lay ahead for us all as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The immediate impacts on our daily lives and the work of our organizations have been dramatic, challenging many of our assumptions and requiring resilience and creativity in dealing with new realities.
Keeping in touch during these past months with so many members of our global forest science community has been truly inspiring. I have been deeply impressed by the phenomenal commitment, solidarity, energy and enthusiasm
for important work that members of our IUFRO "family" have maintained despite the tremendous obstacles that this global health crisis has presented.
This current crisis has been a powerful reminder of the importance of sound scientific knowledge and international scientific collaboration for solving global challenges. This is as true for the many forest-related issues we are all working to find solutions for as it is for pandemics.
The research and educational work that each of you do is vitally important. The knowledge and skills that you foster contribute directly to the conservation and sustainable use of forest resources and landscapes, and the wellbeing of people.
IUFRO continues to offer a unique platform for us to share our scientific knowledge and experience so that all of us – wherever we live and work – can more quickly adapt and apply the best available scientific knowledge to the forest-related challenges we face.