On 12 December 2025, with the support of the UACommunities platform, a round table entitled“Forests within Communities: International Experience and Ukrainian Perspectives on Forest Area Management” was held.
The event brought together representatives of state authorities, local self-government bodies, as well as invited international experts.
The objectives of the round table were:
- to discuss opportunities for effective forest management within territorial communities;
- to present international experience in engaging communities in forest resource management;
- to develop recommendations for improving national forest policy at the local level.
The main tasks of the round table included:
- Analysing the current state of forest management within territorial communities in Ukraine.
- Familiarising participants with decentralised forest management practices in European Union countries.
- Reviewing successful cases of transferring forests to state ownership or under the management of territorial communities.
- Discussing legal, economic and environmental aspects of community involvement in decision-making processes in the forest sector.
- Formulating joint proposals for the further development of sustainable forest management policies at the local level.
Speakers at the round table included:
Ihor Leonidovych Budzinskyi, representative of the State Agency of Forest Resources of Ukraine, informed participants about the overall state of forest resource management in Ukraine, with particular attention to naturally afforested land plots, as well as the processes of transferring such lands to the State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine” or establishing municipal forestry enterprises.
Oleksandr Ivanovych Shust, representative of the State Enterprise “Forests of Ukraine”, confirmed the enterprise’s readiness to accept the relevant land plots and emphasised the importance of cooperation with local self-government bodies to achieve more effective forest management outcomes.
Yevhenii Valeriiovych Medvedovskyi, Head of the State Environmental Inspectorate of the Polissia District, provided information on detected cases of illegal logging identified during inspections, state supervision activities and in response to citizens’ complaints. He also presented examples of court practice related to holding offenders legally accountable.
Petro Tiestov, representative of the non-governmental organisation “Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group”, delivered a presentation on mechanisms for public participation, community influence on forest management practices, and transparency and accountability tools in the forest sector.
International experience in local-level forest management, models of municipal forest management in EU countries, and the role of communities in ensuring sustainable forest use were presented by international experts:
- Prof. Dr. Justus Eberl — Head of the Department of Forest Policy and Environmental Law, Erfurt University of Applied Sciences;
- Jeremy Wall — Independent Specialist on forest-based and related sectors; Member of the UNECE Team of Specialists on Urban Forestry (former Team Leader for Forest-based Industries at the European Commission);
- Daniel Griswold — Economic Affairs Officer, UNECE, Forest and Bioeconomy Section;
- Leonid Ivanovych Kopii — Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, Professor, Head of the Department of Ecology, who presented specific features of economic activities in municipal forests based on European experience.
As a result of the round table,
the participants agreed to continue cooperation and to prepare joint proposals and initiatives aimed at establishing sustainable and systematic collaboration between state authorities, local self-government bodies and the expert community on issues related to effective management of forest areas within territorial communities and cities. Ihor Kramarenko, Founder of the UACommunities platform, will prepare relevant proposals to support and further develop future cooperation.
