THRIVE 2025-2028

Title (acronym): Innovation in hardwood timber for rural activation and climate resilience (THRIVE)

Reference: S2/2.7/P0220

Funding: Programa Interreg Sudoe – eSudoe 2021-2027

Duration: 01/06/2025 – 31/05/2028

Budget: 1.991.070,09€

ERDF assistance: 1.493.302,57€

Beneficiaries:

• SerQ – Centro de Inovação e Competências da Floresta – Associação (coordinating)
• UPM | ETSAM – Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura
• ULisboa | ISA – Universidade de Lisboa, Instituto Superior de Agronomia
• CSIC | INIA | ICIFOR – Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria. Instituto de Ciencias Forestales
• BASKEGUR – Asociación del sector forestal madera de Euskadi
• AITIM – Asociación de Investigación Técnica de la Industria de la Madera y Corcho
• Município da Sertã
• AVBP – Association pour la valorisation des bois des Pyrénées
• ENSAP Bordeaux – École nationale supérieure d’architecture et de paysage de Bordeaux

UPM Team:

Description

The SUDOE area comprises 22.2 million hectares of forests, containing species from the Eucalyptus, Quercus, Fagus, Castanea, Fraxinus, and Populus genera, which have seen significant growth in recent decades. This growth has occurred in some areas without adequate forest management due to abandonment, a consequence of population migration to large urban centers. This problem affects all three territories. These stands are particularly important because they can help disrupt conifer infestations, which is itself an attractive factor in terms of climate change mitigation, increased associated biodiversity, and reduced fire risk. These species possess interesting physical and mechanical properties, allowing their transformation into high-quality products for applications in the construction sector.

THRIVE emerges with the objective of contributing to the preservation of natural capital through the valorization and dissemination of broadleaf species. It will enable the valorization and dissemination of broadleaf species by applying active forest management with a direct impact across the entire value chain, aiming to strengthen social cohesion and territorial and demographic balance. It will reduce the risk of fires, pests, and diseases, contributing to climate change mitigation and natural capital conservation.

THRIVE will ensure the mapping of the broadleaf timber sector, the economic valorization of timber resources through the qualification of construction-related products, as well as the promotion and implementation of architectural solutions using broadleaf timber within the SUDOE area. It will enhance the resilience of this entire territory to climate change and its consequences through the application and dissemination of forest practices. These are essential problems that extend throughout the SUDOE area, and their solutions derive from the transnational cooperation established in this project, benefiting all involved regions equally.

Map of hardwood timber projects in the SUDOE area (work in progress)