The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) is a non-profit scientific research organization that conducts research on the use and management of forests with a focus on tropical forests in developing countries. CIFOR, which merged with World Agroforestry (known by the acronym ICRAF) on Jan. 1, 2019, is the forestry and agroforestry research center of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), a network of 15 research centers around the world that focus on agricultural research for sustainable development, working closely with governments and other partners to help develop evidence-based solutions to problems related to sustainable agriculture and natural resource management.
CIFOR-ICRAF research is intended to "deliver actionable evidence and solutions to transform how land is used and how food is produced: conserving and restoring ecosystems, responding to the global climate, malnutrition, biodiversity and desertification crises." It also contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, commitments under the Rio Convention, including the Paris agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Overview
CIFOR's research and expert analysis help policy makers and practitioners shape policy, improve the management of tropical forests and address the needs of people who depend on forests for their livelihoods. CIFOR's multidisciplinary approach considers the underlying drivers of deforestation and degradation, which often lie outside the forestry sector: forces such as agriculture, infrastructure development, trade and investment policies, and law enforcement.
CIFOR has its headquarters in Bogor, Indonesia. The current Director General is Robert Nasi. It has three regional offices: in Burkina Faso (West Africa), Cameroon (Central Africa) and Kenya (East and South Africa). It has project offices in Ethiopia and Zambia (Africa), Vietnam and Laos (Asia), and Brazil and Peru (Latin America). CIFOR is one of 15 centers within the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).
In implementing its research, CIFOR collaborates with other centers within the CGIAR — the World Agroforestry Centre, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and Bioversity International — to conduct the CGIAR Consortium Research Programme Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (also known as CRP6). CRP6 objective is to enhance the management and use of forests, agroforestry and tree genetic resources across the landscape, from forests to farms.
History
Although many link CIFOR’s creation to the 1992 Earth Summit because it came into existence the following year, the discussions that led to founding CIFOR predated the Earth Summit by several years. In 1991, the CGIAR appointed the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) as the implementing agency responsible for establishing CIFOR and setting up a board of trustees. CIFOR’s Establishment Agreement was signed by Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States; the Agreement was lodged with the United Nations and CIFOR's legal identity as an international organisation was consolidated with a Host Country Agreement between the new Board and the Government of Indonesia in May 1993.
Over time, CIFOR increased the focus of its research on forest policy rather than on technical forestry or tree breeding, in order to complement the efforts of national and private-sector institutes. Instead of having laboratories, CIFOR would be a ‘center without walls’, marshaling interdisciplinary research teams in collaboration with partners to tackle forest policy changes.
Partners
CIFOR works with government agencies and non-governmental organization in the countries where its scientists conduct research. Top partners include the CGIAR, European Union, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD), Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australian Aid), US Agency for International Development (USAID), BMZ/BMUB, Global Environment Facility (GEF), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Austrian Development Agency, British Department for International Development (DFID), French Global Environment Facility, and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Strategy
CIFOR’s first strategy, set out in 1996, provided the foundations and direction for research that affected the understanding and practice of forest management throughout the tropics. But the world’s forests and the way they are perceived have changed dramatically since CIFOR was established.