Women have always been part of forestry—as custodians of traditional knowledge, as gatherers and users of diverse forest products, increasingly as forestry professionals, and more. But rarely have they been on equal footing with men. This edition of the TFU features some of the ways in which women are contributing to sustainable forest management and leading the way to a more egalitarian future.

The report of the First Expert Meeting on Forest Landscape Restoration in the Tropics, which took place in Bangkok, Thailand, last November, is now available. The meeting charted the way forward for the development of a comprehensive set of guidelines for scaling up forest and landscape restoration in the tropics, taking into account principles that were globally agreed in 2018.

Understanding forests and keeping them healthy is crucial for our future. It’s so important, in fact, that “Forests and Education” is the theme of this year’s International Day of Forests on 21 March. ITTO is marking the day by showing how diverse forest stakeholders are learning about forests and their roles in meeting human needs and the Sustainable Development Goals.

A new video shows the timber traceability system recently put in place in Darien, Panama, thanks to a project financed by ITTO and executed by WWF-Panama in collaboration with the Panama Ministry of Environment. The system, which tracks timber from the forest to the consumer, has already reduced forest illegality, with benefits for forests, managers, companies and the Ministry.

Private-sector procurement policies are prominent in the global North and among companies with global reach. A new special study by the Independent Market Monitor (IMM) identifies more than 100 organizations, tools, initiatives, templates and sets of guidance that could influence company timber procurement policies in the European Union (EU).

A new video shows images of beautiful Betung Kerihun National Park on the border between Indonesia and Malaysia on Borneo. The park, which is part of a transboundary conservation area, is home to at least 48 mammal species, including orangutan, 1200 plants and 112 fish species. ITTO projects in the area have helped uplift local livelihoods and improve biodiversity conservation outcomes.