USSE Board of Directors and General Assembly Held in Donostia-San Sebastian

15 / 07 / 2026

Last April, USSE held a meeting in San Sebastián (Donostia) with its member organisations as part of the organisation's Board of Directors and General Assembly. The meeting brought together representatives from the Basque Confederation of Foresters (CFPV) and its regional associations—Araba Basoa, Bizkaia Basoa and Gipuzkoa Basoa—as well as FORESNA-ZURGAIA, the Forest Owners' Association of Navarre; the Syndicat des Sylviculteurs du Sud-Ouest (SYSSO) from Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France; the Galician Forestry Association (AFG); and FORESTIS, the Portuguese Forestry Association.

The meeting provided an opportunity to review USSE's activities throughout 2025 and the first months of 2026, while updating member organisations on the key issues currently affecting the private forestry sector in Southern Europe. Discussions focused on a number of important topics, including developments in major European policy files affecting Sustainable Forest Management (SFM), the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the forest-based bioeconomy, integrated wildfire risk management, climate change adaptation, and new European policy developments relating to the Natura 2000 network.

The meeting also served to strengthen cooperation among member organisations and to exchange views on the common challenges faced by private forest owners across different regions. At a time of increasing regulatory requirements, growing climate-related challenges and the need to ensure the long-term viability of active forest management, USSE highlighted the importance of maintaining a coordinated and constructive dialogue with European, national and regional institutions.

The General Assembly also reviewed the organisation's main areas of work and helped define priorities for the months ahead, particularly regarding cross-border cooperation, institutional representation, and the monitoring of European policies affecting the forestry sector.

Through this meeting, USSE reaffirmed its role as a platform for coordination and technical representation, promoting and defending the interests of foresters and private forest owners across Southern Europe.

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