Göran Persson, ThinkForest closing speech, 04.04.2019

And then I just wanted to say that this is my last seminar in the Finke Forest activities as president. I leave today, and there will be a new president next time you meet. I just want to make two short reflections because this has been a fantastic series of seminars from 2012 until today. I have had two different perspectives. First, as I have said, I am a forest owner myself. I run my farm in the combination between forestry and meat production. That is not my background. I bought my farm when I resigned as prime minister because I wanted to do something completely different compared with political life. We have now built up that farm. It is in the midst of Sweden, and we have all the years ahead as a backbone in our economy. The forestry activities have been very successful, not extremely profitable, but successful and solid rock solid, until now. When I listen to this seminar and the first intervention this morning about climate change, I have heard it before. I knew about those figures, but nevertheless they are extremely striking, and I realized suddenly we have a new situation in front of us, completely new. Perhaps if I wait five years it is roughly the same situation, perhaps also ten years, but my children they can't wait because this is something that will take place if we don't act now. I have always, as a forest owner, been extremely loyal to the system. That is also interesting if I compare the seminars these years. The system—legislation, regulation, education, training, research, and development—has functioned extremely well for more than a hundred years in many European countries and has given us the wealth based upon products from the forest. That is impressive. This concept is also the only possible one for the future. I have been loyal to the concept because it has worked, it has delivered. The next generation foresters, forest owners, will they be loyal to the concept? Will it deliver also for them? Will it be a success story also in the coming generation? If not, you will see one thing: a lot of populists will show up telling what to do, how to do it, and reach quick fixes. We need to stick to the scientifically based forestry activity, especially now when it is such an uncertain future, especially now even if that is the most difficult situation you can have to convince people to follow advice from those who didn't really understand what should happen in the future in all days. So this is what we have ahead of us. There is no other solution than to follow research and development and to stick to training and education. That is one reflection, and it has been underlined constantly during these seven years of seminars. Then you have the other dimension: this is the forest owner's dimension. Then I am also a former prime minister, Minister of Finance, Minister of Education. I have had the task to lead the European Union and everything of that kind. I have been a politician on a macro level, and if there's anything that is bothering me just now, it is we lack a narrative for the sector—who can in a compelling way tell ordinary people about what we aim for, in which direction we shall go, what we have to undertake, and why we do it, and to do it in such an attractive way so that you have popular support to go ahead with new types of legislation. We lack that narrative, and that is a political perspective upon these seven years of seminar activities inside the European Forest Institute's Think Forest. I'm grateful for having had this opportunity, and I want to say to all of you: thank you for letting me, and especially to the leadership of the European Forest Institute with Director Fali as the leader—heartfelt thank you for friendship and for a lot of good discussions. And I must say, if I will miss anything for the future, it is the in-depth discussions with Mark and Lowry about how to run forest in Europe and to realize how diverse Europe is, and to realize nevertheless how necessary it is to find a common narrative. You ever helped me with that. I'm grateful for that. Good luck for the future.