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Congress
Cooperation for ecological restoration of degraded forest areas in the borderlands (WFC)

Dr. Bernhard Seliger, Representative of HSF Korea, contributed to the side event by the Korea Forest Service (KFS), the Korea National Arboretum (KNA), and the Korea Forest Conservation Association (KFCA).

From May 2 to 6, the 15th World Forestry Congress was held in line with the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) and discussed the contribution that restoration in the borderlands makes to world peace. The borderland of the Korean Peninsula is being damaged by military and economic pressure caused by development which neglects ecological considerations. To raise awareness for these issues and to promote a strategy for cooperative perspectives to preserve the forest systems of the DMZ, the Korea Forest Service (KFS), the Korea National Arboretum (KNA), and the Korea Forest Conservation Association (KFCA) organized a side event.

 

Dr. Bernhard Seliger of HSF Korea introduced the Foundation’s experience of cooperating with North Korea and highlighted the significance of the DMZ as an International Conservation Area. The DMZ presents one of the most biodiverse habitats for wildlife such as a variety of bird species on the Korean peninsula. However, increasing tourism and new infrastructure projects in the area threaten these habitats. Despites many efforts by South Korea and the international community, the ongoing degradation of forests on the North Korean side of the border constitutes a major threat to the biodiversity in the region.

Dr. Kim Sang-Jun of the KNA provided insights on the implementation of the Korean Peninsula DMZ Wildflower belt, a project which aims to establish an ecological axis in the degraded areas near the border fence to link North and South Korea. Dr. Martin Kuba of the Green Belt Department of BUND, Germany’s largest nature protection association, introduced the German experience of “Grünes Band” (Green Belt) as a living memorial landscape. The Green Belt nature conservation initiative was the part of the motivation behind Hanns Seidel Foundation’s project on sustainable development in the inner-Korean border area. Lastly, Dr. Yeom Kyujin of the KFCA provided his analysis of the changes in forests degradation in the Northern part of the border area.