FSC welcomes Romania
Twenty years after FSC certification of the first forest management unit in Romania, the country now has national representation by FSC International. To celebrate this, all interested parties met on 31 October 2023 near Brasov, in the central part of the country and close to nature – a reminder that forests and their values is what brings us all together. Romania is well known for its extensive forest cover and well-connected forest landscapes, where no patch is more than 1 km from an adjacent forest (Stancioiu et al., 2018). The Carpathian mountains in Romania still harbour large tracts of pristine and biodiverse forests, which boast thriving populations of wildlife in healthy ecosystems. In addition, large local communities have lived in these forests for centuries. Local people consider the forests part of their cultural identity, and their life is closely linked to locally-grown wood – from timber for their houses to raw materials for daily life to the use of large amounts of firewood.