Three representatives of the IMFN attended and delivered a side event at the 2009 Greenbuild Conference in Phoenix, Arizona on November 11th and 12th. The conference, dedicated to “green” design of buildings residential and commercial, was attended by 28,000 persons from all over the world. The keynote address was given by Al Gore on the subject of climate change and his latest book "Our Choice".

The IMFN represented by Peter Hall, of the Eastern Ontario Model Forest (EOMF), Eve Marie Landry, of the Ibero-American MF Network, and Chimere Diaw, of the African Model Forest Network participated in the "Education Sessions" through a session on "Building Sustainable Communities through Innovation and Broad-Based Citizen Engagement in the International Model Forest Network." The IMFN presentation was one of 112 selected proposals from over 1,300.

The session, chaired by Dr. Diaw, included an overview of the network and its core objectives and impacts, as well as an overview of the new African Model Forest initiative. It also included Ms. Landry’s presentation on Ibero-American Network experience of ecosystem goods and services in Model Forests; and Mr. Hall’s overview of how the EOMF promotes community sustainability through initiatives such as support for naturalized knowledge systems, integrated landscape management, and biomass and bioenergy, among others.

Many questions were asked about the participation of the forest industry and private companies in the MF, the governance structure of the MF, the potential integration of USA to the IMFN and the mechanisms of payments for ecosystem services. The IMFN Secretariat will confer with its participants about the possibility and possible outcomes of our participation at next year’s event, which will take place in Chicago.