Forest Sector Representatives Discuss Innovation and Sustainability at transForm OUT EVENT

Yesterday, the Convento de São Francisco, in Coimbra, hosted the transForm OUT EVENT, a moment of sharing and discussion about the Forest Mobilizing Agenda, funded by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR).

Led by Altri Florestal and with the technical-scientific coordination of CoLAB ForestWISE, the transForm Agenda is the largest forestry consortium ever created in Portugal, and the event accompanied this magnitude.

The Church Hall of the Convento de São Francisco, one of the region’s most emblematic spaces, welcomed around 200 guests, including the Secretary of State for the Economy, João Rui Ferreira, and the Secretary of State for Forests, Rui Ladeira.

The opening session was marked by welcoming words from the Mayor of Coimbra, José Manuel Silva, followed by a speech from the Secretary of State for the Economy, João Rui Ferreira, who highlighted the importance of the transForm Agenda for the national economy: “In Portugal, the forestry sectors are of great importance because they act at various angles of the national territory and are a major factor in social cohesion. In this sense, the transForm Agenda gives great peace of mind to the entire forestry sector and transmits good practices to other Mobilizing Agendas”

Miguel Silveira, Executive Director of Altri Florestal, and Carlos Fonseca, Chief Technology Officer of CoLAB ForestWISE, presented the mission and objectives of the transForm Agenda, where the words “innovation” and “future” marked the moment.

“This is the largest forest consortium ever created in Portugal, involving 56 partners in 30 collaborative projects, with an investment of 130 million euros by 2025. Our goal is not only to transform the forest value chain, but also to create a lasting impact on the economy and the environment,” said Miguel Silveira.

Carlos Fonseca added: “We are at a crucial turning point for forest management in Portugal. The transForm Agenda not only represents a significant technological advance, but also a collective commitment to the sustainability and resilience of our forests. CoLAB ForestWISE is the aggregator of all these strategic partners that make up the Agenda, in the common mission of transforming and enhancing the forest.”

The event also included transForm talks, where various members of the consortium shared their experiences and the results of their projects.

After a look at the Agenda from the inside, the second part of the transForm OUT EVENT was dedicated to perspectives from the outside. To this end, the stage of the Old Church Hall hosted the round table entitled “Paths to transForm(ation): the forest in the age of digitalization for a resilient and sustainable economy”.

In the closing session, the Secretary of State for Forests, Rui Ladeira, emphasized the importance of the transForm Agenda for the sustainability and resilience of the forestry sector: “The transForm Agenda has given the national forestry sector the opportunity to mobilize for a transformation agenda and the results presented show that one of the main objectives for the green agendas has been met. transForm is a project, but it is also action, the action we need for the country and to create better living conditions for the Portuguese.”

In the end, the transForm OUT EVENT proved to be a fundamental event, reinforcing the spirit of collaboration and change among the main players in the national forestry sector, ranging from representatives of public and private entities to associations of great importance to the sector.