Let's Talk Trees

Conservationist Sheherazade, and host Anggi Cahyaningtyas discuss challenges and opportunities for women

Richard van der Hoff from Federal University of Minas Gerais revisits Brazil’s journey in financing forest conservation efforts.

Blaise-Pascal Ntirumenyerwa Mihigo, Professor of Law at the University of Kinshasha explores the progress on Congo’s forest protection and what it takes to unlock the $500 million funding signed at COP 26.

Director Innovation, Investment and Impact CIFOR-ICRAF, Ravi Prabhu explains the vital role of nature-based solutions in the fight against climate change while improving smallholders’ lives.

CIFOR-ICRAF Bioenergy Research Scientist Mary Njenga highlights the importance of implementing circular bioeconomy principal in bioenergy.

CIFOR-ICRAF Senior Scientist Kristell Hergoualc'h addresses the importance of incorporating peatland into national policy in the fight against climate change.

Team Leader of Climate Change, Energy and Low-carbon Development Pham Thu Thuy highlights the importance of sustainable financing for climate and how to improve it.

Bonn Hub Leader and Managing Director of CIFOR Germany, Christopher Martius, explores why the world should fight climate change from two sides: protecting carbon-rich ecosystems and growing biomass.

Director of  Indonesia Country Program at CIFOR-ICRAF Sonya Dewi explains the way to break the cycle of wildfire and climate change.

CIFOR-ICRAF Managing Director Robert Nasi emphasizes the critical issues that COP 26 Glasgow must address.

Huili Li and Asanka Bandara from CIFOR-ICRAF and the Kunming Institute of Botany explore the potential of mushrooms to fulfil dietary needs and provide livelihood options.

Communities living in Northern Ghana face a complex situation due to a lack of livelihood options in the semi-arid area. Listen to the latest episode of Let’s Talk Trees to find out more. Eric Bayala and Houria Djoudi explore the problem and possible solutions to this longstanding issue through the integrated landscape approach.

The ability of forests and trees to mitigate and adapt to climate change is affected by various policies, often under the authority of different institutions. Listen to an in-depth interview with Alexandre Meybeck from the CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA) and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization’s Julia Wolf on why it is important to include forests and agroforestry in national adaptation plans.

The life—and the collapse—of biodiversity will have a resounding impact on human lives far and wide, especially in countries that are already struggling with development issues. How can we be part of the solution?

Experts from Wageningen University and Research, CIFOR and FAO share how national forest monitoring capacity is increasing worldwide and how it will help climate change mitigation.

Rocio Diaz-Chavez and Sylvia Kuria share their views on the circular bioeconomy, sharing several examples of countries in the global south that are applying this multidisciplinary approach.

To celebrate women leaders and to pave the way to more empowered women and girls in the future, we turn to Iliana Monterroso and Sammy Carsan, CIFOR-ICRAF scientists who are building the bridges to a more gender-inclusive society.

This episode features three PhD students working with CIFOR’s COLANDS initiative. Through integrated landscapes approaches, they are trying to bridge differences between actors with various interests and goals in Zambia’s Kalomo district.

Lessons learned from Guyana’s forest monitoring system and the country’s experience as an early adopter of REDD+.

Guests: Hans Sukhdeo, a project officer at Guyana Forestry Commission and Martin Herold, senior associate at CIFOR-ICRAF and professor of geoinformation science and remote sensing at Wageningen University.

We live on it, we grow food in it, it is time stop taking soils for granted

Explore the hidden world underfoot with Leigh Ann Winowiecki, leader of soil and land health research and Rupesh Bhomia, wetland bio-geochemist at CIFOR-ICRAF.

Listen to ideas and analysis exchanged by policy experts, academia and private sector representatives at GLF Biodiversity Digital Conference: One World-One Health, toward improved, just and sustainable landscapes management.

Dietary change is occurring in urban and rural communities all over the world. Listen to CIFOR-ICRAF scientists Stepha McMullin and Mulia Nurhasan as they highlight the need to collaborate with local communities to shift to a healthier diet.

Indigenous communities: Respect for land steeped in traditions

Pace of environmental decline on Indigenous territories is slowerdespite mounting pressures

Through local knowledge and tradition, Indigenous communities around the world have played a vital role in protecting the Earth for millennia. Listen to Let’s Talk Trees to find out more.

This episode celebrates mangroves’ “protective power” against hurricanes and storm surges. They protect societies against extreme climate events and sea level rise, buffering storm surges and ocean waves that reach the coastline. But what are the limits of their resilience?

In light of World Refugee Day, this episode of Let’s Talk Trees addresses the environmental concerns in refugee areas. Mary Njenga, a bioenergy research scientist at World Agroforestry (ICRAF) and Ruth Mendum, associate director for gender initiatives and an assistant professor of research at Pennsylvania State University share their ongoing work to address energy and food security issues in refugee settings in Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed flaws in our global food system, demonstrating how vulnerable it is to unexpected shocks. While there is an emphasis on the production of food staples, including wheat, maize and rice, to meet basic food security needs, in many regions there is a lack of nutrient-rich foods, leading to malnutrition. Amy Ickowitz, team leader of the Sustainable Landscapes and Livelihood Program at the Center for International Forestry Research Amy Ickowitz and Anja Gassner, Senior Livelihoods Specialist andHead of Research Methods Group at World Agroforestry discuss the challenges surrounding our food system, the solutions offered by nature and the much needed support from researchers and policymakers in the development of a more sustainable food system that can feed billions of people around the globe.

Tune in for highlights from our previous webinar that addresses the current issues around wildmeat in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The discussion is led by CIFOR Director General, Robert Nasi, with CIFOR Associate Nathalie van Vliet, CIFOR Senior Associate John E. Fa and CIFOR Research Consultant Lauren Coad.

In this episode that coincides with the International Day of Forests, we go back to the basics and discuss forests’ invaluable role for the planet and for humanity. Our guest CIFOR Director General Robert Nasi shares his views on the most pressing challenges in forest conservation and management. And in the race against climate change, commitment and action are needed more than ever.

In our very first episode that coincides with International Women’s Day, we highlight the lives of the world’s invisible heroes: women farmers who feed the world. Our guests Houria Djoudi, CIFOR Senior Scientist, Sustainable Landscape and Livelihood team, and Ana Maria Paez-Valencia, ICRAF Scientist on Gender Unit, share their insights on the roles of women in forest communities and the inspiration for their research with women around the world.

When we hear the word ‘science,’ we often think about equations and a technical approach to problem solving. This podcast series brought to you by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) aims to go beyond the numbers. By looking at the science of forestry, agroforestry and landscapes through stories, real-life experiences and the lives of people communities around the world, we aim to make that knowledge and information more human, relevant and understandable. Because what’s the use of research if we don’t understand it?