International Model Forest Network

The International Model Forest Network (IMFN) is a voluntary association of partners from around the world working toward the common goal of sustainable management of forest landscapes and natural resources. The IMFN is based on an innovative approach that combines the social, cultural and economic needs of local communities with the long-term sustainability of forest landscapes. The more than 40 model forests operating around the world make up the international network.



Model forests are primarily about people, the communities they live in and the sustainable management of the landscapes and resources they rely on. They provide the geographic foundation upon which people of differing values can meet, build a partnership and define what sustainability means in their particular context. The partnership plans its own program of activities and sets its own sustainability goals, and then works together to achieve those goals.



The International Model Forest Network Secretariat (IMFNS, the Secretariat) was established in 1995 in Ottawa, Canada, to support the development of a global network of model forests that would:



-Foster an international exchange of ideas on the concept of sustainable forest management (SFM)

-Facilitate international cooperation in the application of SFM at the field level

-Use these concepts and applications to support ongoing international discussions on the principles, criteria, and policies related to SFM