The General Assembly was opened by welcoming words of CEPF’s President, Mr. Sven-Erik Hammar.
In his opening speech, the President emphasized the importance of achieving the Carbon-neutral Europe by 2050, while also highlighting that the next step should be attaining a carbon-free Europe. He underlined the significant role of well-managed forests in removing carbon from the atmosphere. The President thanked the CEPF Team and the Board for their work during the past year which has been challenging both politically and in other terms.
On behalf of the host, the President of the MTK, Mr. Juha Marttila warmly welcomed the participants to Finland. He emphasized that all actions taken in the forests today will have a long-lasting impact and go on to future generations. He expressed the hope that forest-related policies will provide opportunities for creating a more sustainable society. He also highlighted the importance of CEPF team and their hard work in following these policies, expressing sincere appreciation for their efforts.
During the General Assembly meeting, five CEPF Board members were unanimously re-elected for 2-year mandate period (2023-2025): Luc Bouvarel (Vice-President; France), Juha Marttila (Finland), Felix Montecuccoli (Austria), Michael Podstatzky-Lichtenstein (Czech Republic) and Arnis Muižnieks (Latvia).
The General Assembly unanimously elected two new members of the Board: Ms. Heidi Hemstad (Norway) and Mr. Rok Sedminek (Slovenia) who briefly introduced themselves and expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to be elected. The full list of CEPF Board members can be found here.
Finally, the General Assembly also approved the application of new members. The members warmly welcomed Irish Forest Owners, UNIA regional associations of non-state forest owners of Slovakia and Familienbetriebe Land und Forst Bayern to their forest family at CEPF. The representatives of newly joined members presented their organizations and the forests in their countries, conveying their enthusiasm for being a part of CEPF. The full list of CEPF members can be found here.
The dinner that followed the meeting was a great opportunity for lively conversations, networking opportunities and strengthening the bonds within the forestry community. On the last day of the General Assembly participants had the opportunity to visit the Finnish forest and see different thinning and planting sites in the Kanta-Häme area.
CEPF would like to thank all members, participants, speakers, and particularly the organizer of this year's General Assembly, MTK – Central Union of Agricultural Producers, who made dedicated efforts to make this event a success.
More photos from the General Assembly 2023
