Participation of Professor Alexis Achim at the 2026 Annual Conference of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI)!
Professor Alexis Achim at the heart of climate-smart forestry discussions at the 2026 SFI Congress!
On May 7, 2026, Professor Alexis Achim, a leading forestry scientist and holder of the Canada Research Chair in Climate-Adapted Silviculture at Université Laval, participated in the 2026 annual conference of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), held from May 5 to 7 in Montréal.
As part of this international event dedicated to sustainable forestry and climate change adaptation, Professor Achim served as a panelist in the session titled « From Research to Results: Scaling SFI Climate-Smart Forestry Across Certified Land ». He joined distinguished experts including Andi Colnes (New England Forestry Foundation), Alemu Gonsamo (McMaster University), and Chris Woodall (CTrees), with Greg Cooper (Sustainable Forestry Initiative) moderating the session.
Embedded within the SFI Climate-Smart Forestry Initiative, this session highlighted key levers for translating scientific advances into practical solutions for the forest sector. Grounded in an interdisciplinary approach, the initiative integrates ecosystem vulnerability assessment, decision-support tools, and on-the-ground interventions aimed at strengthening the resilience of certified forests. Discussions focused in particular on accelerating the transfer of knowledge into practice, notably through the adoption of climate-adapted silvicultural strategies and the deployment of approaches that support informed decision-making in the face of evolving climate realities.
Professor Achim’s research focuses on integrating climate change into forest ecosystem management, particularly by developing adaptive silviculture strategies and implementing research projects such as SILVA 21. His expertise actively contributes to the evolution of forestry practices toward more resilient models that are better suited to future conditions.
In parallel with his participation in the congress, Professor Achim serves on the Canadian advisory committee of the SFI Climate Smart Forestry Initiative, established in December 2025. This committee plays a strategic role in guiding climate-smart forestry practices and standards at the national level.
This involvement reflects Professor Achim’s ongoing commitment, as well as that of his research partners, to translating scientific knowledge into concrete solutions in support of sustainable and resilient forestry.
For more information on the 2026 SFI Annual Conference: https://forests.org/fr/programme-de-conferences/
In addition, in June 2025, Professor Achim delivered a presentation entitled “SFI Climate Smart Forestry Initiative Canada: Adaptive Silviculture,” in which he provided an overview of the SILVA 21 program. This inter-institutional and cross-sectoral research initiative aims to enhance the resilience of Canadian forests to various stresses and disturbances. Co-led by Professor Nicholas Coops of the University of British Columbia, SILVA 21 brings together several SFI-certified organizations and is based on a management framework structured around the principles of « adapt, anticipate, and observe. » This initiative is supported by Environment and Climate Change Canada.
The presentation can be replayed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZfkEO2dO_0&t=60s