Pu'er, China, October 29, 2025 – The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Beijing Representative Office co-hosted a Biodiversity Conservation sub-forum during the Second Pu’er Forum on Asia-Pacific Forests, using the platform to launch an initiative on Promoting the Enhancement of Forest Biodiversity Outside Protected Areas through Forest Management.The initiative calls on stakeholders to foster cross-sector collaboration, promote regional and industrial synergies, drive methodological innovation and local application, improve policy and financing mechanisms, strengthen technical support and capacity building, enhance public engagement, build industry consensus, and expand regional and international cooperation.

This sub-forum featured two thematic sessions: "Asian Elephant Protection --To strengthen Biodiversity Conservation and Habitat Quality Improvement" and "Exploring Synergies Between Habitat Restoration and Sustainable Forest Management Practices."

During the Asian elephant session, experts from the Asian Elephant Research Center of China's National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the Management Authority of Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in Yunnan, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Research Institute of Highway under the Ministry of Transport, HP China, and WWF shared the latest research findings and practical experiences. Topics covered international conservation experiences, China-Laos cross-border cooperation, habitat restoration cases, the impact of transport infrastructure on migration corridors, and innovative corporate participation. Roundtable participants emphasized that scientific planning enhanced by cross-regional and cross-sectoral collaboration is essential to improving Asian elephant habitats and achieving large-scale habitat connectivity.

In the session on habitat restoration and forest management,experts and scholars from the Beijing Municipal Forestry and Parks Bureau, the Forestry and Grassland Bureaus of Hebei and Shanxi provinces, the Chinese Academy of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Fudan University, and IKEA, along with international specialists from WWF shared insights and put forward policy recommendations on topics including international forest landscape restoration cases, Amur tiger habitat restoration, and multi-functional forest management in North China. As a pilot site for WWF's project on enhancing biodiversity through sustainable forest management, the Saihanba Mechanized Forest Farm in Hebei province presented its practical explorations and achievements in biodiversity-oriented management.