The Forests Asia Summit, Jakarta, will see ministers from across Southeast Asia join CEOs, civil society leaders, development experts and the world’s top scientists to share knowledge on how the region can accelerate the shift toward a green economy by better managing its forests and landscapes.

Southeast Asia is one of the world’s most dynamic regions. Its economy is growing rapidly led by a rising middle class but it faces major policy challenges: inequality, uncertain land tenure, unsustainable land use, a loss of biodiversity, food insecurity and climate change. Against this backdrop, some Southeast Asian economies are adopting a green-growth approach, voluntarily establishing targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to sustainably manage their forests and landscapes. Similarly, leading businesses are committing themselves to sustainable land use and investment practices.

Still, more needs to be done. Agricultural expansion in Southeast Asia threatens the world’s third-largest tropical forest and the many ecosystem services they provide. And unsustainable land-use change has made the region one of the world’s largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

Informed by the latest research and best practices, the Forests Asia Summit will allow participants to share knowledge with policy makers and each other in the pursuit of new green-growth pathways for development.

The Summit – organized by the Center for International Forestry Research and co-hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry – will be the largest in Asia in recent years and is expected to attract more than 1,000 leading stakeholders from Southeast Asia and across the world. Tens of thousands more are expected to participate online or through nationwide broadcasts. There will be special learning events with leading global experts on the Green Economy, the Southeast Asian haze crisis, climate change negotiations and the Sustainable Development Goals.

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