Keynote speakers
Emma Berglund
Emma Berglund is the Secretary General at the Confederation of European Forest Owners (CEPF). Based in Brussels, CEPF is the umbrella federation representing Europe’s family forest owners. CEPF works to promote family forestry and the concepts of sustainable forest management, ownership rights and the economic viability of the forest sector. Emma holds two master degrees in forestry – one from the Swedish University of Agriculture (SLU) and one from the University of British Columbia (UBC). Prior to joining CEPF in 2015, Emma gained work experience from Södra Forest Owners’ Association, Ecotrust Canada and Stockholm International Water Institute. She has also contributed as a volunteer, working in India and Costa Rica. Recently Emma received ‘’Greve Carl Bernadotte forest prize’’ from His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden for her ability to explain in Brussels what sustainable forestry is in practice.
Jiří Svoboda
Jiří Svoboda is a director of forest cooperative Lesní družstvo obcí Přibyslav, Czech Republic. Educated at the Forestry Faculty of the Agriculture University Brno (currently Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University in Brno). He has worked as a forester and in various management positions in forestry. He is certified as expert witness in forestry economics. Jiri played a key role in the restitution process of the forestry properties to the municipalities. He joined the National Forest Programme Expert Committee on the topic “To increase economic viability and competitiveness of sustainable forest management” from 2009 to 2011. He is a member of the Commission for Agriculture and Environment of the Vysocina Region. On the national level, he is a member of the Game Management Committee of the Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic and several others Expert Committees of the Ministry. Jiri serves as a member of the board of the Association of Municipal and Private Forest Owners in the Czech Republic and plays a key role in the joint sale of timber of the members of the Association.
Lesní družsvo obcí Přibyslav started with forest pedagogy in 2012, about 160 children joins the forest pedagogy events each year.
Rolf Jucker
Dr Rolf Jucker is currently director of SILVIVA, the Swiss Centre of Excellence in nature based education (www.silviva.ch). Previously he ran the department of conceptual ESD development at the Swiss Foundation for ESD, éducation21 (www.education21.ch) and from 2008-2012 he was director of the Swiss Foundation for Environmental Education (www.umweltbildung.ch), an independent body tasked with the mainstreaming of Environmental Education and ESD in the Swiss school system. Having gained an MSc in Education for Sustainability, he has worked extensively as a coach and consultant in organisational learning processes towards sustainability and has widely published on the subject (see rolfjucker.net), amongst others Our Common Illiteracy. Education as if the Earth and People mattered (2002) and Do we know what we are doing? Reflections on learning, knowledge, economics, community and sustainability (2014).
Martin Šrom
Martin Šrom is educated in Forest Engineering and Landscape Management at Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University in Brno. He also holds a degree in Pedagogy. Martin has been engaged in informal education of children for 20 years and in environmental education of all age groups for more than 10 years. He works in Lipka - educational institution for environmental training, the largest organizations in the Czech Republic to focus on public environmental education. Martin is Lipka‘s deputy director for pedagogy and education of adults. At Lipka Martin lectures environmental lessons for schools and develops free-time activities in nature. He also lectures the environmental education practice at the Masaryk University in Brno, presents at trainings for leisure time pedagogues and for forest pedagogues. He is a co-author and implementer of several European projects that aim to enhance environmental education in Czech educational curriculums.
