In a September opinion piece in the New York Times, a Yale scientist argued that the way to save the planet was to not plant trees. The swift, strong response from forests and climate expert Lou Verchot was the year’s most widely read article on Forests News.

Also among the most read stories of the year:

• EBOLA AND BUSHMEAT: Amid punditry and panic over the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, CIFOR’s experts sorted fact from fiction: see the video interview and collection of stories here.
• PALMS OF CONTROVERSIES: Economic miracle or environmental disaster? A book published by CIFOR in 2014 brought some balance to the palm oil debate. Download the book here, read the book review and infographic or watch an interview with one of the authors.

CIFOR’s analyses of REDD+ practice culminated in a casebook of 23 subnational initiatives across the globe – looking in vivid detail at what works, what doesn’t and why. Read the book here, or visit our feature page for the main findings and stories from Indonesia, Tanzania and Brazil.

Other research series released in 2014:

• MYTH BUSTERS: A raft of global studies tore down long-standing assumptions about how rural people use tropical forests for their livelihoods. Learn about the study and its surprising findings here.
• SECRETS OF THE FOREST: A series of stories from the Peruvian Amazon delved into ongoing research on bolaina timber, a valuable – and illegal – source of cash for smallholders. Read more here – along with a documentary commissioned by Peru’s Ministry of Environment.

From satellites to safeguards to politics to cowherds, the scope of topics explored at the 2014 Global Landscapes Forum – organized by CIFOR in partnership with UNEP and FAO – demonstrated the complexity of climate and sustainability challenges, and the critical role of land use in overcoming them. See all CIFOR’s coverage of the two-day event here, including blogs on:

• How technology can help decision makers deal with climate change
• The importance of land rights for forest people’s food security
• Why gender inequality merits greater attention in climate decisions
• Why landscape approaches are in the field but not in the literature

CIFOR’s Director General Peter Holmgren challenged participants at the 2014 Global Landscapes Forum, to “think big”, because, he said, “it is the planet, it is all the landscapes”. The DG's keynote address built on themes he explored in his blog throughout 2014, including articles on:

• The urgent scientific challenge posed by the Ebola outbreak
• The need to mainstream greenhouse gas emission reductions across the landscape
• How the landscape approach is beneficial for forests

It is a complex business understanding which actors control what parts of the landscape. Through CIFOR’s interactive infographic, released in 2014, you can explore the complexity of the roles of government agencies in regulating oil palm, timber, mining, and other land uses in a region in Peru. Try it here.

• LANDSCAPE GAME: Play to see how you would act in the landscape, in the online game where greed is good – but green is better.

Indonesia is home to millions of hectares of mangrove forest. They store huge amounts of carbon and help protect coastlines – but as sea levels rise, how quickly can the mangroves adapt? A group of scientists, armed with a GoPro and a sense of humor, went to Papua to find out. Join them here.
 
Some other video highlights from 2014, now on CIFOR TV:

• THIS IS CIFOR: A look at how CIFOR is redefining forestry research for sustainable development.
• NY DECLARATION ON FORESTS: Five top forestry experts respond to the pledge to halt the loss of the world’s natural forests by 2030.
• FORESTS ASIA SUMMIT 2014: Highlights from one of the region’s biggest forestry events in decades, held by CIFOR in May 2014.