Fem4Forest - Conclusions from the second project period

30-06-2021

The Fem4Forest partnership is coming to the end of the second project period! 

In the previous six months, the Fem4Forest partnership was productive and produced the following outputs:  ⤵️

  •  Report on current situation and position of women in forestry in Danube Region
  • Transnational Gender Reflected Guidelines
  • Draft of the "Transnational awareness-raising campaign model"
  • Draft of the Report: “Collected needs of women and wider gender perspectives in forestry sector”.

To produce these outputs, the team conducted desk analysis, different kinds of surveys and interviews, and round tables. After 880 questionnaires, 150 interviwes and 10 round tables conducted, here are some conclusions:

  • Forest ownership is a family tradition.
  • Main purposesare timber harvesting for own use and sale, followed by nature conservation purposes and recreation.
  • Closeness to nature and achieving resilient forests are majormotivations inforest management.
  • Women are aware of the many things that need to be done to actively manage forests and feel comfortable doing so, but face physical limitations.
  • They need supportive environmentsto assumeresponsibility and implement decisions.
  • Female forest professionals are intrinsically motivated to work in the forestry sector -but not because it offers attractive careers with extensive benefits packages.
  • They often bring diverse and interconnected perspectives -but face significant barriers in the male-dominated culture when it comes to having their voices heard and their expertise valued.
  • Gender equality is not satisfactory but is seen as important in the sector.
  • Female professionals are highly engaged, well educated, committed, organized and meticulous when working in and for forests/forestry.
  • Female professionals need a strong network and better recognition of work-life commitments to take on leadership roles.

The following project period brings even more interesting outputs and activities. Stay tuned! 

Programme co-funded by European Union funds (ERDF, IPA, ENI)