The Lebanese government initiated an extensive forest and landscape restoration (FLR) project in the Shouf Biosphere Reserve (SBR), Lebanon. The SBR spans ~50,000 ha of mountainous topography along the Mount Lebanon range. Home to a quarter of Lebanon’s remaining cedar forests, it is highly diverse with a mosaic of different land covers created by a long history of traditional agrarian practices. Restoration was initially undertaken to restore and conserve the region’s biodiversity but quickly evolved to include economic and social goals given the needs of the region. The Al-Shouf Cedar Society (ACS), formed originally to manage the Shouf biosphere reserve, was the main implementation partner. By piloting forest restoration and management interventions that provided synergistic environmental, social, and economic benefits, they demonstrated how FLR could address many challenges the region was facing.

Type of Case
Printed publication (book, sourcebook, journal article…)

Publisher
Forestoration International

Region
Middle East

Biome
Temperate

Forest Type
All forest types (natural and planted)

Primary Designated Function
All