January 2012: Jan McAlpine, Director of the UN Forum on Forest (UNFF) Secretariat, reflected on the achievements and activities of the International Year on Forests 2011 in an interview with the newsletter published by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).In the January issue of DESA News, McAlpine highlights a landscape restoration initiative in Rwanda as inspiring to neighboring countries, and commends the collaboration and efforts of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF). She underscores that people play a critical role in ensuring the well being of forests. She also reviews some of the year’s activities, including a forest film festival, a children’s art competition, and the Forest Heroes Programme. She notes that one of the key remaining challenges is integrating poverty alleviation and food security in addressing forest issues. [Publication: DESA News, Vol. 16, No. 1]