Learning from each other – Living Lab exchange in Catalonia
As part of the TRANSFORMIT project’s commitment to fostering collaboration and mutual learning between scientists, practitioners, and forest owners, our Spanish Living Lab partners recently organized an excursion to the Moianès region—just 45 minutes from Barcelona. The trip provided participants with valuable first-hand insights into diverse forest management strategies and their ecological and practical implications.
The first stop focused on post-disturbance management, addressing key challenges such as drought recovery, deadwood management, and species substitution. In their discussions, project partners and Living Lab representatives highlighted the role of mixed stands in either fostering ecosystem resilience or intensifying competition.
At the second site, the participants explored integrative forest management in young Scots pine forests, emphasizing the application of the Potential Biodiversity Index (PBI). This stop showcased biodiversity conservation measures and sustainable silvicultural approaches designed to balance ecological and economic objectives.
The final stop offered a striking perspective on a landscape affected by the 2003 wildfire, sparking discussions on fire as both a major threat and a potential driver of ecological regeneration in Mediterranean forest ecosystems.
This excursion exemplifies TRANSFORMIT’s mission to bridge research and practice, ensuring that forest management strategies are informed by science while remaining practical and adaptive to real-world challenges. Our next Living Lab exchange will take place on 1-3 April 2025 in our Living Lab in Zagreb, where we will discuss stakeholder engagement in the Living Labs, how Living Labs can better exchange knowledge and learn from each other, and how we can define indicators for Integrative Forest Management for better decision-making. Of course, the workshop will also involve an excursion to the city forest in Zagreb, where we will explore how biodiversity conservation is integrated into urban forest management, and how the city forest is being restored after a windstorm.
Image from the forest: Katharina Freund, EFI
Featured image: Rahel Könen, EFI