Last year, the world’s biggest forest landscape restoration (FLR) initiative reached the massive achievement of 210 million hectares of degraded and deforested landscapes pledged to restoration through the Bonn Challenge (read all about it here). The success of the Bonn Challenge is feeding into an extraordinary global movement to restore degraded ecosystems under the auspices of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (see what IUCN is doing here). It’s no coincidence that both the Bonn Challenge and the UN Decade target 2030 for global restoration goals. Along with a drastic reduction in deforestation and destructive land use, restoration targets set for 2030 will help the world achieve the aspirations of the Paris Climate Agreement, the Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework, and the SDGs through the land sector. 

Underpinning the Bonn Challenge is the forest landscape restoration (FLR) approach, which is the first purpose-built Nature-based Solution developed by IUCN and implemented globally. FLR is more than just planting trees, it involves a mix of interventions ranging from natural regeneration, agroforestry, silviculture and planned planting. It’s a process that seeks to regain, improve and maintain a degraded or deforested landscape’s vital ecological and social functions in the long-term, and build its resilience to environmental and societal changes (learn more on FLR here). 

So take a few moments on this International Day of Forests to join us in celebrating some of the successes and aspirations of the people behind the restoration of the world’s forest landscapes through the Bonn Challenge.

Spotlight on Rohingya Restoration

Spotlight on Brazil

Spotlight on Malawi

All Bonn Challenge spotlight videos and other resources are available at: https://www.bonnchallenge.org/resources

Ever wonder how we track restoration progress?
https://www.infoflr.org/bonn-challenge-barometer