The 2026 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forestry Ministers'Meeting was held in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province, from July 27 to 28, where participants reached consensus on forest governance and green transformation and adopted the 2026 APEC Forestry Ministers'Joint Statement.

Shenzhen offers a replicable model of sustainable urban development. Its Futian Mangrove National Nature Reserve, adjacent to the bustling downtown, demonstrates how ecological protection can be integrated into urban planning. The city has reserved dedicated space for mangroves, imposed strict ecological control lines covering nearly half of its land area and advanced the forestry industry's upgrading through green finance and policy incentives.

Futian mangrove wetland serves as a precious ecological calling‑card for Shenzhen. [ Photo provided to en.gdfao.gov.cn/]

The joint statement calls for integrating forest governance and sustainable forest management into economic development frameworks. It urges strengthened intra-APEC coordination, policy dialogue and best practice sharing to enhance forest resilience across the region, where economies vary in much degree in their development stages and resource endowments.

Zhang Jingjia, a researcher at the APEC Research Center of Nankai University, proposed unified sustainable forestry certification systems and digital traceability to stabilize forest product trade. Wang Mou, deputy director of the Sustainable Development Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, highlighted innovative financing mechanisms, citing Shenzhen's mangrove carbon credit scheme as a viable funding model for conservation.

Shenzhen grassland. [photo/WeChat account: shenzhenfabu]

China launched the Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Management and Rehabilitation (APFNet) in 2007, which has supported over 50 forestry demonstration projects across more than 20 economies, laying a solid foundation for regional green development.