Call for Speakers!

Increase your visibility throughout the IFBC international community by becoming an event Speaker!

We seek experienced thought leaders and industry professionals to share their knowledge and expertise as we explore new forest business frontiers, promulgate leading practices, and advocate for the forest sector as a natural climate solution. Next to global recognition for your work, IFBC Speakers receive a 10% registration discount. 

To participate as a speaker in the IFBC2026, please send us the presentation title proposal to rafal@forest-analytics.com 

All accepted abstracts by the IFBC organizing committee will be published at no cost in the Book of Abstracts in the JFBR.. All abstracts will receive a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), making them citable and easily discoverable on the internet (e.g., Google Scholar, ORCID, Crossref).

IFBC key theme: NEW FOREST BUSINESS FRONTIERS

Eight thematic sessions of interests for the International Forest Business Conference program:

  1. Global Trends in Forest Investments & Wood Industry
  • Institutional investments in forestry
  • Private equity and TIMOs in global timberland markets
  • Demand-supply dynamics in wood products markets
  • Opportunities and risks in emerging markets
  1. The Business of Carbon & Biodiversity Markets
  • Carbon markets: trends, challenges, and opportunities
  • Biodiversity credits and their role in conservation finance
  • Policy and regulatory frameworks shaping environmental markets
  • Case studies on successful carbon and biodiversity investments
  1. Innovations & New Technologies in Forestry
  • Digitalization and AI in forest management
  • Remote sensing, drones, and geospatial analytics for investment decisions
  • Blockchain and traceability in timber markets
  • Advancements in precision forestry
  1. Corporate Forestry, ESG & Biodiversity Investments
  • Sustainable finance and forestry-linked ESG investments
  • Corporate net-zero strategies and nature-positive investments
  • The role of biodiversity in corporate sustainability reporting (CSRD, TNFD, GRI)
  • Blended finance solutions for sustainable forestry
  1. Investing in Nature: Metrics, Markets & Impact
  • Valuing ecosystem services in investment decision-making
  • Measuring social and environmental impact in forestry investments
  • Certification schemes and market-based sustainability standards
  • Nature-based solutions for investors and businesses
  1. Forest Industry & Policy: Markets, Trade & Regulations
  • Global trade flows and supply chain disruptions in forest products
  • The role of international policy in shaping forestry investments
  • Certification, legality, and compliance in wood markets
  • Future trends in the bio-economy and wood-based materials
  1. Applied Forest Economics & Strategic Planning
  • Business economics of forest management
  • Economic modeling and valuation of forest assets
  • Risk management and financial planning for timberland investors
  • Market intelligence and investment analytics in forestry
  1. Forestry as a Natural Climate Solution
  • The role of afforestation and reforestation in climate mitigation
  • Scaling nature-based solutions in forestry investments
  • Case studies on climate-smart forest management
  • Public-private partnerships for climate action

Speakers IFBC2022

Bin Mei

Duke University

Professor Of the Practice of Natural Resource Finance

Tomasz Kozlowski

European Investment Fund

Head of Mandate and Product Development

Andrzej Bednarski

Shandong Sun Paper

International Project Director

Mike Strzelecki

Manulife Investment Management

Managing Director, Business Development, Senior Timberland Portfolio Manager

Keith Black

FDP Institute

Managing and Program Director

Chung-Hong Fu

Timberland Investment Resources

Managing Director, Economic Research and Analysis

Karolina Chudy

Forest Business Analytics

CEO & Founder

Austin Himes

Mississippi State University

Assistant Professor

Aleksandra Antsugai

Alexandra Antsugai

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Senior Environmental Advisor

Lawson Fite

Lawson Fite

Schwabe

Partner

Laura Merlini

Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association

MANAGING DIRECTOR, EMEA

Jacek Siry

University of Georgia

Professor in Forest Economics

Eric Cooperström

Manulife Investment Management

Managing Director, Impact Investing and Natural Climate Solutions

Asger Olesen

Asger Strange Olesen

Forest Stewardship Council

Chief Climate and Ecosystems Officer

Nabil Fawaz

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency

Sector Manager, Agribusiness, Manufacturing, and Services Operations Group

Fred Cubbage

Frederick Cubbage

North Carolina State University

Professor in Forest Economics

Andy Hiegel

University of Georgia

Doctoral Candidate in Forest Business

Peter Chappell

Tilhill Forestry

Head of Investment and Property

Carsten Brinkschulte

Carsten Brinkschulte

Dryad Networks

Co-founder and CEO

Mark Willhite

World Forest Investment

President

Doug Jones

Remsoft

President

Aleksandra Holmlund

Omorica

Researcher in innovative finance for biodiversity protection

Phil Cottle

ForestRe

Head of Forestry

Robert Adamczyk

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Senior Environmental Advisor

Krzysztof Wypij

Bureau Veritas

Forest Management Certification Technical Manager

David Evison

David Evison

University of Canterbury

Associate Professor in Forest Economics

Shauna Matkovich

The ForestLink

Founding Director

Antonio Carlos Arpini Tatagiba

Antonio Carlos Arpini Tatagiba

Inflor

Chief Executive Officer

Sven Kallen Life Terra

Sven Kallen

Life Terra Foundation

Co-founder and Secretary

Andreas Schnall

Forliance

CEO / Senior Consultant Land Use and Forestry

Lukas Schönach

Lukas Schönach

Descartes Underwriting

Senior Business Developer

Andreas Stephan

Andreas Stephan

Linnaeus University

Professor of Forest Industrial Economics

Bob Izlar

University of Georgia

Founding director of the University of Georgia Harley Langdale, Jr. Center for Forest Business

Maurice Ryan

Green Belt

Business Development Director

Frederic Fournier

Frédéric Fournier

Open Forest Protocol

CEO and Co-founder

Wendelin von Gravenreuth

Wendelin von Gravenreuth

MEAG a Munich Re Company

Senior Manager Global Forest Investments

Carlo Farina

Carlo Farina

CERN Pension Fund

Head of Real Estate and Private Markets

Doug Moore

PGIM Real Estate's Timberland Finance

Investment Vice President

Eimear McBride

IOB

Director of Digital and Innovation

Ian Cameron

Treeswift

Vice President of Operations

Dzintars Salavs

I Asset Management

Fund Manager

Charl de Villiers

Margules Groome Consulting

Director

Rafał Chudy

Forest Business Analytics

Founder and Chief Economist

Manoel de Freitas

Forest Engineer graduated at Federal University of Paraná, Business Administrator, graduated at Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas and with a postgraduate degree in Environmental Management from the Metropolitan Faculty of Campinas. Attended Development Course for Senior Executives at Darmouth School – USA.

He served as Executive for the American multinational in the forest products sector Champion International Corporation / International Paper. He acted as Director of several sectorial entities, among them, Forest Research and Studies Institute – IPEF / USP, FLORESTAR Fund, Brazilian Forestry Society. Author of several technical papers on the forestry sector. In the last few years, he has acted as a counselor and consultant, both for companies in Brazil and abroad.

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Keith Black

Keith Black currently serves as Managing Director of Content Strategy for the CAIA Association. He previously worked in hedge fund manager research at Ennis Knupp + Associates, as well as an assistant professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Prior experience includes commodities derivatives trading, stock options research and CBOE floor trading, and equity research.

Dr. Black has been published in The Journal of Wealth Management and The Journal of Alternatives Investments among others. He is the co-author of the second, third, and fourth editions of the CAIA Level I and Level II curriculum.

Dr. Black earned a BA from Whittier College, an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, and a PhD from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He has earned the CFA, FDP, and CAIA designations.

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