Concept Note

30^th Annual Yale ISTF Conference

Integrating Climate Change and Biodiversity for Resilient Tropical Forests: A Holistic Approach

Tropical forests are renowned for their exceptional capacity to sequester carbon, holding between 25 and 40 percent of all terrestrial carbon^[1]. The biodiverse community of trees and plant species store substantial amounts of carbon in both living biomass and soil. Interest in the role of tropical forests in mitigating climate change is growing rapidly as carbon dioxide removal and sequestration become increasingly important to achieve international climate change goals.

However, carbon storage is far from the only benefit tropical forests provide. Tropical forests are incredibly biodiverse, providing habitats for more than fifty percent of all species of vertebrates^[2]. Biodiversity is critical for maintaining the many ecosystem services that tropical forests provide to people. The global community is introducing innovative mechanisms, such as biodiversity offsets, to better account for the benefits and importance of biodiversity and threats to the integrity of the biosphere.

Elevated temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and other impacts of climate change directly endanger biodiversity and the carbon sequestration abilities of tropical forests. As highly interconnected challenges, addressing both crises separately would result in inadequate solutions for either. While the entire globe benefits from tropical forests, the communities most affected include local and Indigenous peoples reliant upon subsistence agriculture, as well as farmers producing food intended to nourish others across the globe.

The International Society of Forestry (ISTF) 2024 Conference is a unique forum that unites academics, practitioners, policymakers, community leaders, artists, journalists, and activists from across the globe. Our shared purpose is to explore the intricate relationship between biodiversity and climate in tropical forests. We will delve into the manifold of ways in which biodiversity interacts with and contributes to human communities, transcending the conventional carbon-centric climate discourse. Our commitment is not just to highlight the importance of biodiversity but to envision actionable steps for the future.

At ISTF 2024, we will weave together diverse perspectives from the realms of ecology, society, and economics. This interdisciplinary approach seeks to enrich our current understanding of how we can integrate biodiversity into climate discussions and conservation strategies within tropical forest landscapes. By fostering dialogues among experts and enthusiasts, we aim to chart a path forward that acknowledges the profound interdependence between the health of these ecosystems and the well-being of human societies.