Mapping forestry and agroforestry innovations in Europe : evidence from EIP-AGRI operational groups

Giannetti, Francesca (author), Anzilotti, Solaria (author), Caron, Maria Mercedes (author), Ventura, Ana Maria (author), Kähkönen, Tanja (author), Gačo Jež, Amina (author), Triplat, Matevž (author), Raddi, Sabrina (author), Mosquera-Losada, M. R. (author), Böhling, Kathrin (author)

Operational Groups (OGs) under the European Innovation Partnership for Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-AGRI) are key policy instrument for fostering multi-actor innovation in the forestry and agroforestry sectors. However, limited evidence exists on the thematic structure, distribution, and coordination of forestry and agroforestry innovations across Europe. This study addresses this gap by analysing innovations developed by forestry and agroforestry OGs within the Horizon Europe project FOREST4EU. Drawing on interviews, document analysis, and expert consultation, the study examines 175 innovations developed by 86 OGs across ten European countries. Innovations were classified by type (technological, process, product, service, organisational, and social) and analysed within five Inter-regional Topic Hubs (ITHUBs): wood mobilisation, climate change adaptation, sustainable forest management and ecosystem services, non-wood forest products, and agroforestry systems. Descriptive statistics, semantic analysis, network analysis, and thematic clustering were applied. Results show a predominance of technological and process innovations, highlighting the importance of digital tools, adaptive management practices, and operational optimisation. Four main innovation domains emerged across the ITHUBs: (i) digital forestry and data-driven management; (ii) climate adaptation and forest resilience; (iii) sustainable forest management and operational efficiency; and (iv) bioeconomy-oriented value chains. While wood mobilisation, climate adaptation, and ecosystem services showed substantial thematic overlap, non-wood forest products and agroforestry followed more specialised innovation pathways. Geographic patterns revealed distinct national innovation profiles shaped by ecological, institutional, and land-use contexts. Overall, the findings highlight a diverse yet interconnected forestry and agroforestry innovation ecosystem across Europe and provide insights to support future knowledge exchange and innovation policies.

• Language: English
• Keywords: foresty, agroforestry, innovation, wood mobilization, ecosystem services, silviculture, non-wood forest products, climate change adaptation
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 1-16
• Numbering: Vol. 26, [article no.] ǂ101363
• UDC: 630*83
• ISSN on article: 2666-7193
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tfp.2026.101363
• COBISS.SI-ID: 283270915
• Publication date in RUL: 06.07.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Trees, forests and people
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 2666-7193
• COBISS.SI-ID: 56233987

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
• Description: A creative commons license that bans commercial use, but the users don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: gozdarstvo, kmetijsko gozdarstvo, inovacije, operativna skupina EIP-AGRI, mobilizacija lesa, ekosistemske storitve, gojenje gozdov, nelesni gozdni proizvodi, prilagajanje podnebnim spremembam

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Project number: 101086216
• Name: European innovation partnership network promoting operational groups dedicated to forestry and agroforestry
• Acronym: FOREST4EU

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Project number: 101086563
• Name: Agroforestry Business Model Innovation Network
• Acronym: AF4EU