The Supply of Forest Products and Services from Small-Scale Forests, Agroforestry, Farms, and Community Lands
The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) Small-scale Forestry and the Forest History and Traditional Knowledge Conference will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, July 21–23, 2026, followed by an optional three-day post-conference tour.
The objective of this conference is to exchange knowledge among researchers and other professionals on family and community forest ownership and management, historical facts and narratives of forests, traditional ways of knowing about forests, and related fields.
Conference website: https://www.kefri.org/components/IUFRO_smallscale/smallscale.html
About the Conference
The conference will bring together researchers, managers, policymakers, and community representatives from across the world in one of the globe's longest-inhabited landscapes. It provides a unique focus on understanding how traditional approaches to managing small areas of forests and trees — whether owned individually, by family, or collectively — can be supported and enhanced to ensure sustainable provision of a wide range of products and services.
While most human societies have developed ways of sustainably managing and using small areas of forests and trees, the social, environmental, and institutional characteristics that enable this are highly variable. It is important to know how traditional and small-scale forest management can be supported and enhanced to ensure sustainable provision of products and services, especially under pressures of climate change, poverty, and industrialisation. Recognising that much of the world's forest research is oriented to large-scale management by governments and industry, this conference highlights the essential role of small-scale landowners and local people and their forests and trees in addressing global challenges.
Topics
In addition to topics related to the theme, all papers that address one or more of the following topics related to Small-scale Forestry or Forest History and Traditional Knowledge will be considered:
- Strengths and challenges of small-scale forestry
- Understanding long-term changes in people and landscapes
- Sustainable supply of timber and non-timber products
- Social benefits and impacts for owners, communities, and stakeholders
- Enhancing returns from marketing, forest co-operatives, growers' organizations, and other arrangements
- Innovations in modeling landowner behavior and decision support systems
- Adapting traditional forest management to address new problems
- Traditional knowledge (re)shaping the values and practices of forests
- Forest histories as a frame for informing present and future forest management
- Forest tenure and governance systems
- The role and effectiveness of government policies, programs, and subsidies
- Research, education, and extension for small-scale and community forest owners and managers
- Developing and adapting management techniques and technologies specific to the needs of small-scale and community forest owners and managers
Submission Process and Decision Criteria
All abstracts will be reviewed by at least two members of the conference scientific committee and assessed based on relevance to the conference, scientific contribution, novelty and innovativeness, adequacy of research and study methods, and the organization and writing quality of the abstract. Acceptance decisions and any reviewer comments will be returned to the lead author.
Submissions must include a presentation title, an abstract (maximum of 1,500 characters), a list of authors and affiliations, and desired presentation type (full oral presentation or speed talk). Speed talks are in place of poster presentations.
Key Dates
- First call for papers announced: February 16, 2026
- First call for papers deadline: March 16, 2026
- Decisions announced: April 6, 2026
Contact
For additional information, contact smallscaleiufro2026@kefri.org.