21 January 2015: The FOREST EUROPE Expert Level Meeting (ELM) for the preparations of the 7th Ministerial Conference agreed on a process to update the pan-European set of indicators for sustainable forest management (SFM) based on the framework of the six existing criteria. The meeting recognized the need for updating the indicators, but noted that drastic change should be avoided and that synergies should be sought with other processes related to criteria and indicators (C&I).

The meeting also concluded that the updating process should continue to balance the economic, environmental and socio-cultural aspects of SFM, consider data-availability and cost-effectiveness, and strive for meaningful indicators that can still be assessed against historical data. With regard to outcomes from the process, the meeting recognized that key indicators as well as subsets within these could be considered if time allows for their development. A report on the process will be considered by the next meeting of the ELM to be held in June or July 2015. [FOREST EUROPE Press Release]