Distinguished Service Award Bestowed on Fredrik Ingemarson

On 22 May, at the conclusion of the 64^th IUFRO Enlarged Board Meeting of IUFRO held in Vienna, Austria, Dr. Fredrik Ingemarson and Dr. Elisabeth Johann were presented with Distinguished Service Awards for their longstanding and extraordinary achievements for the Union. 

For many years, Dr. Fredrik Ingemarson envisioned bringing the IUFRO World Congress to Sweden and making it the largest in the Union’s history. Together with the Congress Secretariat, he turned this vision into reality: in June 2024, the XXVI IUFRO World Congress was successfully held in Stockholm, Sweden, co-hosted by the Nordic and Baltic countries.

Innovative ideas

As Chair of the Congress Organizing Committee, Dr. Fredrik Ingemarson played a pivotal role in the success of the event. Under his and the Congress Organizing Committee’s leadership, the IUFRO World Congress became the largest in the Union’s history, drawing approximately 4,300 delegates and featuring 3,500 presentations. True to the spirit of IUFRO, Dr. Ingemarson emphasized collaboration, ensuring the Congress was delivered in close partnership with the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences as local host and the co-hosting organizations from the Nordic and Baltic countries. His many innovative ideas – such as the Innovation Stage and the Green Job Arena – made the Congress a uniquely memorable experience, significantly enhancing IUFRO’s global visibility and strengthening international scientific cooperation.

IUFRO World Congress in Kenya

In December 2024 Dr Ingemarson was in a leading role to convene the Summary Day, bringing together about sixty Nordic and Baltic stakeholders to reflect on the Congress’s outcomes, the Nordic hosting and the Stockholm Congress Statement, thus also paving the way to the IUFRO World Congress in Kenya in 2029.