On 21–22 January 2026, the WOOD4LIFE consortium gathered in Madrid for the annual Project Steering Committee (PSC) meeting, hosted by project partner CSIC – Institute of Forest Science (ICIFOR-INIA), with the support of Ricardo Ruiz-Peinado and his team. The meeting brought together all project partners for two intense days of technical updates, strategic alignment and collaborative work.
WOOD4LIFE – Carbon Sequestration in Harvested Wood Products, from Forests to Sustainable Wood Products – is a four-year project (2024–2028) funded by the LIFE Programme of the European Union. The project aims to strengthen the role of sustainably managed forests and harvested wood products in long-term carbon sequestration, supporting more resilient and climate-positive forest-based value chains.
The PSC agenda combined plenary sessions dedicated to reviewing progress across all Work Packages with facilitated activities designed to strengthen a shared project vision and ensure coherence between actions, timelines and expected impacts. Key moments included a comprehensive overview of the project status and upcoming milestones, discussions addressing the recommendations provided by CINEA monitors, and in-depth exchanges on core components of the project. These included forest management practices, the development of tools for valuing ecosystem services, and strategies to effectively engage forest owners, managers and value-chain actors.
A central role was played by the facilitated sessions led by project partner Etifor | Valuing Nature. These sessions supported partners in co-creating shared good practices and consolidating common principles that will feed into a consortium-wide vademecum, strengthening the long-term legacy, coherence and replicability of the project outcomes.
The PSC meeting in Madrid confirmed WOOD4LIFE as a strongly collaborative initiative, grounded in scientific expertise and practical implementation, and marked an important step forward in aligning partners around a common pathway towards more sustainable and resilient forest-based value chains.
WOOD4LIFE is coordinated by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla–La Mancha (JCCM) and implemented in partnership with GEACAM S.A., Dendron, Etifor | Valuing Nature, Parco Nazionale Appennino Tosco Emiliano (PNATE), Conlegno, CSIC – INIA, Lignum Tech (LT), Forest Stewardship Council – Spain (FSC SP), and Universidad de Castilla–La Mancha (UCLM).
The PSC meeting in Madrid confirmed WOOD4LIFE as a strongly collaborative initiative, grounded in scientific expertise and practical implementation, and marked an important step forward in aligning partners around a common path towards more sustainable and resilient forest-based value chains.
More information about the project is available at:
👉 https://wood4life.castillalamancha.es/en
