October 27, Seoul – The 3rd Friends of Asia and Asian Forests (FAAF) Forum, convened in Seoul, Republic of Korea united diverse stakeholders from governments, international organizations, civil society, and private sector to explore new investment pathways for nature-positive forests and resilient landscapes in Asia.
This year, the 3rd FAAF Forum was held under the theme “From Carbon to Co-Benefits: Rethinking Forest Investment in Asia,” and highlighted the need for forest investments that move beyond carbon markets, integrating biodiversity conservation, community resilience, and inclusive financing models. Building on the first and second Forums, the third FAAF Forum served as a regional platform to connect policy, finance, and implementation, demonstrating that sustainable forest cooperation is achieved through shared benefits for both people and nature.
Group Photo of the 3rd FAAF Forum
Main Session
Bringing together leading voices from the private sector, governments, and international organizations, distinguished speakers addressed the role of partnerships in advancing climate action.
Mr. Kook-Hyun Moon, Co-Chair of FAAF, opened the forum by emphasizing the importance of collaboration across governments, investors, and communities as the foundation of sustainable development.
Ms. Mira Lee, Deputy Minister of the Korea Forest Service, shared Republic of Korea’s progress in transforming forest cooperation from policy dialogue into tangible actions, underscoring that public–private partnerships are central to Asia’s climate response.
(Left) Opening remarks by Mr. Kook-Hyun Moon, Co-chair of FAAF
(Right) Ms. Mira Lee, Deputy Minister of the Korea Forest Service
Dr. Juliette Biao, Director of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF), also extended a congratulatory message calling for closer collaboration among governments, private actors, and civil society to accelerate forest-based climate solutions.
Congratulatory remarks by Dr. Juliette Biao, Director of the UNFF (Online)
Keynote speakers at the forum included:
Dr. Dindo Campilan, Regional Director for Asia and Hub Director for Oceania at IUCN, outlined strategies for catalyzing nature-positive investments. He emphasized the need to shift from one-dimensional funding toward blended approaches that align climate, biodiversity, and development goals.
Mr. Pengyu Li, Program Lead at the World Economic Forum’s Centre for Climate and Nature, addressed the urgency of mobilizing cross-sector cooperation to reverse forest degradation. He introduced initiatives such as 1t.org, UpLink, and Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA), which promote digital innovation and high-integrity partnerships for sustainable land use across Asia.
Following the keynote speech, Mr. Sunpil Jin, Vice Executive Director of AFoCO and Mr. Ok Su Lee, Head of the Sustainability & Climate Center at Kim & Chang and Head of the FAAF Expert Group, delivered presentation on FAAF Updates and Way Forward.
Presentation by Mr. Sunpil Jin, Vice Executive Director of the AFoCO
Presentation by Mr. Ok Su Lee, Head of the FAAF Expert Group
Mr. Sunpil Jin shared global context in forest sector and achievements of FAAF in 2025. He also introduced the Climate Action Match-making Platform (CAMP), which is a platform to link restoration projects with corporate investors to enhance transparency and blended finance opportunities.
Following his presentation, Mr. Ok Su Lee introduced the Group’s role as a frontrunner in piloting practical approaches for forest-based overseas emission reduction. He also explained the structure of the FAAF Fund, emphasizing the need to strengthen public–private partnerships to make forests investable, resilient, and profitable.
Panel Discussion (From left) Mr. Suho LEE, Deputy Director, Ministry of Economy and Finance of Republic of Korea; Ms. Veronica Kim, Vice President·Head of ESG Enabling Office, SK Securities; Ms. Joanne SAWICKI, Founder and CEO, Cerescom Ltd.; Ms. Myounghwa Hwang, Head of International Programs, Save the Children Korea; Mr. Pengyu Li, Program Lead, Centre for Climate and Nature, World Economic Forum; Dr. Dindo Campilan, Regional Director for Asia and Hub Director for Oceania, IUCN; Mr. Kook-Hyun Moon, Co-chair of FAAF
Moderated by Mr. Kook-Hyun Moon, the panelists discussed how forest finance can deliver measurable social and environmental impact. The discussion emphasized community-driven approaches such as the My Forest Child initiative in Viet Nam, biodiversity-credit models supporting indigenous stewardship, and stronger ESG valuation frameworks to attract private capital.
Special Session I
– Enabling Blended Finance for Forest and Landscape Restoration
Mr. Kwang W. Kim, Senior Advisor of the AFoCO opened the special session with introductory presentation to explore practical blended finance models that connect catalytic public funding with private sector innovation. He underscored the importance of building an ecosystem of partners linking public and private sectors to scale nature-based climate solutions in Asia. Under the theme of “Enabling Blended Finance for Forest and Landscape Restoration”, the Special Session I was structured into two thematic streams.
Under the Stream 1 “Catalyzing Global SDG Capital through Family Offices” three presenters delivered presentation and a Q&A Session was followed:
Mr. Ken Hynes, Co-Founder and CEO, Artha Networks Inc., introduced the AFoCO–Artha partnership as catalytic capital to reduce investment risk. Mr. Hynes presented key lessons from investor engagement, emphasizing the demand for verifiable impact, reduced transaction costs, and trust-based partnerships. He proposed using Official Development Assistance (ODA) as a de-risking capital, integrating anchor firms, and strengthening long-term investor relations to expand blended finance for sustainable forestry.
Ms. Jyldyz Galieva, Associate Director, European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), introduced the EBRD and its mandate to foster private-sector growth, while integrating climate action across all investments. She shared examples from Central Asia where EBRD combines financing, technical assistance, and incentive grants to promote green technologies and resource efficiency. She emphasized that models combining finance, expertise, and policy dialogue could help AFoCO mobilize effective forest and climate initiatives in the region.
Ms. Joanna Yeo, CEO and Founder, Arukah, shared Arukah’s work to turn agroforestry residues into biochar as an alternative to slash-and-burn practices. She described how this approach reduces emissions, generates carbon credits, and provides farmers with new income and fertilizer access through an equitable revenue-sharing model supported by digital monitoring and verification systems.
Next, Stream 2 explored “The Business Case for Forest-Positive Supply Chains” through three presentations:
Mr. Liam Sharkey, Director of Business Development Economics of Mutuality Alliance, emphasized that deforestation is driven by economic pressures and that forest protection must become financially viable for local communities. He introduced the Economics of Mutuality approach, which aligns incentives among governments, businesses, and communities to create shared value in forest-based economies. He highlighted a planned pilot project in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, aiming to build replicable, investable forest-positive models across AFoCO member countries.
Ms. Fay Fay Choo, Asia Cocoa Director, Mars Inc., shared Mars’ Cocoa for Generations strategy, which promotes a modern, inclusive, and sustainable cocoa ecosystem through science-based R&D, farmer training, and agroforestry initiatives in Indonesia. Ms. Choo call attention to the fact that forest-positive sourcing enhances supply resilience, farmer livelihoods, and investment confidence, with corporations like Mars acting as anchor buyers and co-investors in blended finance models. She encouraged AFoCO and its Member Countries to build pipelines for bankable restoration projects and establish robust MRV systems to support high-integrity, community-driven forest restoration.
Mr. Simon Baldwin, Senior Vice President APAC of the SecondMuse, introduced SecondMuse Capital’s regional investment platform designed to finance sustainable, place-based economies that regenerate landscapes and prevent deforestation. He explained how the Discovery Fund uses blended finance to close the funding gap of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in South and Southeast Asia through outcomes-based and landscape-level investment models. He shared ongoing due diligence in Indonesia, focusing on coconut replanting, biochar processing, and blue economy projects as part of locally rooted financing solutions.
Reverse panel discussion (From left) Mr. Simon Baldwin, Senior Vice President APAC of the SecondMuse; Mr. Ken Hynes, Co-Founder and CEO, Artha Networks Inc.; Ms. Soozin Ryang, Team Leader of Capacity-Building & Evaluation Team, AFoCO; Mr. Kwang W. Kim, Senior Advisor, AFoCO
The session showcased how multi-stakeholder cooperation can accelerate forest restoration. It further highlighted that data-driven validation is essential to ensuring transparency and maintaining financial integrity.
Special Session II
– Mobilizing Resources through Collaborative Platforms
The Special Session II explored ways to mobilize resources more effectively through collaborative platforms for tree planting.
Ms. Jiyeong Jang, Assistant Program Officer of the AFoCO, commenced Special Session II with introducing AFoCO’s efforts to connect donors and investors to restoration projects across Asia, particularly through CAMP. She presented three CAMP projects and future cooperation plan in partnership with Save the Children Korea and IFSA Korea.
Mr. Pengyu Li shared progress from 1t.org, the global platform promoting tree planting and restoration partnerships worldwide. Ms. Bayarmaa Bayarbaatar, Executive Director of Billion Tree Fund, also delivered the Fund’s transparent, community-centered financing model.
(Left) Mr. Pengyu Li, Program Lead of Centre for Climate and Nature, World Economic Forum
(Right) Ms. Bayarmaa Bayarbaatar, Executive Director of Billion Tree Fund
Panel Discussion (From left) Dr. Gun Gun Hidayat, Director of Sustainable Forest Management Development, Ministry of Forestry; Mr. Shagdarsuren Zuunai, Chairman of Board, Billion Tree Fund; Mr. Pengyu Li, Program Lead of Centre for Climate and Nature, World Economic Forum; Dr. Tongil Kim, Director of Planning & Operations Division, AFoCO
Moderated by Dr. Tongil Kim panel discussion was followed. Panelists provided insights on how to scale up forest restoration efforts by fostering cooperation among different actors, including 1t.org as a global platform, the Billion Tree Fund as an NGO, and the Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia as a government representative. They highlighted trust, transparency, and enabling policy environments as key to scaling blended finance. At the close of the session, AFoCO and the Billion Tree Fund signed an MOU to strengthen cooperation for forest restoration in the region, marking a new chapter toward a greener Asia.
The Forum concluded with a closing remarks of Dr. Chongho Park, Executive Director of AFoCO and Co-Chair of FAAF. Dr. Park emphasized that forest investment in Asia is evolving beyond carbon toward an integrated model that values both people and nature through blended finance. He reaffirmed AFoCO’s commitment to advancing this transition by fostering partnerships and ensuring that forest cooperation continues to create real and lasting value for a greener Asia.
The 3rd FAAF Forum deepened understanding of investment approaches that move beyond carbon, recognizing biodiversity, community well-being, and sustainable land use as essential outcomes of forest projects. It highlighted concrete opportunities to scale blended finance and develop inclusive, high-integrity investments across AFoCO Member Countries. The Forum also set a clear direction for FAAF’s future as a collaborative platform advancing climate-resilient, community-centered forest landscapes in Asia.
Contributed by IFSA Korea Members: Ms. Seoyeon Kim, Kookmin University (KMU); Mr. Jihu Hwang, Gyeongsang National University (GNU); and Ms. Junwon Bae, Chungbuk National University (CBNU)