FORSAID’s first policy brief unveiled at the BioMonWeek2026 conference

Between 05 and 07 May, the French city of Montpellier hosted BioMonWeek2026, the first pan-European conference on biodiversity monitoring. The event came together as a result of the efforts by co-organisers Biodiversa+, Alliance for Nature, BioAgora, GBIF and MARCO-BOLO. The multi-day agenda featured numerous showcases, demonstrations and discussions highlighting the past, present and future of observing Europe’s biosphere. These proceedings benefited from the attendance of a great number of experts, stakeholders and policy-makers from across the Old Continent and beyond.

The BioAgora booth at the conference’s exhibition hall became a focal point for the collaboration between EU-funded projects in pursuit of improved monitoring standards. In that spirit, FORSAID was invited to contribute with a special output to the featured display of informational materials on site - its very first policy brief. Co-authored by project partners Christelle Robinet and Hervé Jactel of INRAE as well as Manuela Branco of the University of Lisbon’s Forest Research Centre, the publication draws on a research paper published in the Journal of Applied Ecology in June 2026. In doing so, it zeroes in on outbreaks of the pine wood nematode (PWN), a pathogen carrier whose threat to European forests is rising following its detection in Portugal, Spain and, most recently, France. Specifically, it compares the effectiveness of clear-cutting and selective tree cutting approaches in the containment of the species once its presence is confirmed. 

Moving beyond the original research analysis, the policy brief examines the scientific findings in the EU governance context as it pertains to the management of forest pests. In that sense, the suitability of existing methodologies for containment that are mandated by European legislation is assessed in light of new knowledge on the PWN and how to address its spread. The resulting conclusion that the output arrives at is - an urgent revision of the regulatory framework is in order, one that acknowledges the superior cost-effectiveness ratio of selective-tree cutting bolstered by AI-enhanced aerial surveillance.

The full policy brief is accessible here. Further details on the innovative management of forest pests that FORSAID is working towards may be found on this page.