1. The Cork oak research network was set up in March 1992 in the fifteenth session of Silva Mediterranea (Faro, Portugal, 1992). If it is recalled that the idea of Silva Mediterranea was launched in 1911 and set up in 1922 under the title "International Mediterranean Forestry League" and since 1948 has been a statutory body of FAO, one cannot but be surprised that despite cork oak economic and environmental importance and wide distribution in the Mediterranean it has received very scanty attention.

2. Portugal was elected to coordinate that network and several countries with interest in the species expressed their willingness to participate in further activities of the network. Members had the opportunity to present the work in which their organisations were engaged.

3. The Silva Mediterranea network is a framework for scientific cooperation allowing an easy flow of knowledge and information for wider access to data and build-up of complementary and mutually supportive relationships.

4. Within this framework all actions are:

- voluntary and à la carte, associating only interested countries;

- funded nationally

5. In trying to establish a programme motivating common interests, within the spirit and mandate of Silva Mediterranea networks, attention was given not only to opinion expressed in the informal meeting but also to the work done by IUFRO working party SO.02-22, Genetics of Oaks, and the work that is being developed within Strasbourg Resolution S2 (Conservation of Forest Genetic Resources). The intention was to find out complementarity and avoid overlaps. The species has several basic peculiarities that are still to be understood. Beyond problems of stand structure, silviculture, propagation and interrelated socio-economic problems that affect the species range may be mentioned a great gap in knowledge concerning biodiversity, the extent of introgression and appropriate breeding strategies.

6. Further to the approval of the second Ministerial Conference, several European countries have made a formal commitment by signing a Letter of Agreement with IPGRI and have set up four pilot networks aiming at the conservation of genetic resources. The Quercus suber network held its first meeting in Lisbon in July 1993, in which FAO was requested to serve as a link with North African Countries through its Silva Mediterranea network which included in its programme a proposal for the conservation and improvement of genetic resources of cork oak. In 1994 only Algeria expressed interest in exchanging seed material.

7. In previous contacts, it seemed clear that budgetary restrictions and difficult access to EEC research programmes to southern Mediterranean countries would prevent or strongly hamper the establishment of common projects linking all interested partners and allowing mutual knowledge and confidence build-up.

8. So, in trying to establish a common action involving the network as expressed above, the previous programme was reformulated and the following possible actions were identified for further consideration. It involved two main areas: i) the institutional setting; and ii) the ecological environment. Given the difficulties in putting this network in motion with a formal agreed programme, the consideration of socio-economic factors that may constrain or impact cork oak forestry was left out.

9. Exchange of information and assessment of the role of national forestry institutions with a view to examining their effectiveness and the way they address cork oak forestry problems, particularly in the framework of the Conventions on Biological Diversity and on Desertification Control in order to determine common approaches and mutual benefits;

10. Cork oak faces a considerable reduction of its total area in most countries of its natural range. This is mainly due to changes in land use but also to regeneration problems linked to the intensification of agroforestry techniques and to some tree health problems leading to a decline of the species in some zones.

11. Most of the points proposed for consideration by local nodes included items written in the UNCED Forest Principles and Agenda 21 and were consistent with the intention to draw up the framework needed to enhance cooperation for common forest problems and to help in formulating criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management and sound knowledge support.

12. Although recognising that fields of biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring are well embedded in international agenda, their complexities and lack of world-wide common accepted methodologies, it seems advisable not to include this area in the work content of the proposal. It must be said, however, that there is wide consensus among the scientific community that it is not possible to boost biodiversity in the absence of comprehensive surveys. In the list under this point, without figures on current biological diversity, the scientific community cannot even hope to make definitive policy recommendations. Accordingly, one major commitment by northern governments has been to support biological research and the development of systematic data-bases in order that recommendations may be made. The US National Science Board envisaged a global programme of information gathering, and ideally this would be based on a common, world-wide methodology. The consequences of this trend towards the systematic collection of biological data may be examined by looking at a European initiative known as Corine (Coordination of Information on the Environment). Notwithstanding recognition of the importance of promoting biodiversity (at three accepted levels - diversity between and within cork oak ecosystems and habitat; diversity of species; and genetic diversity) it was understood, at this stage, that there were no practical conditions to undertake such an action.

13. Activities listed were proposed under the following guiding principles:

In this context actions proposed are:

a) Exchange of information action

The proposal consists of:

Each partner involvement would consist of:

14. The central node for the network or FAO/IPGRI would concentrate decentralised collected information and would proceed with its unification and dissemination. The central data bank could be further processed for access through the Internet.

b) Exchange of germplasm material

The proposal consists of:

15. Since there was no formal acceptance of the last proposal in 1995, as countries did not react, no contacts were made with IUFRO for descriptors development, and initiatives were taken for further concentrated data bank formats.

16. Collection of cork oak information written material in Portugal was completed by 1989 and is already in an UNIMAC application.

17. Fields concerning key-word descriptors and English translation were left open for further completion pending agreed upon definitions.

18. In the framework of the Euforgen Quercus suber network, established following the recommendations of the Ministerial Conference for the Protection of Forests in Europe (Strasbourg, 1990, Resolution N° 2) and for which Portugal plays a lead role, a concerted action was proposed to the European Union for funding (DG XII Programme). This concerted action is related with cork oak genetic conservation and involves Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Germany and Sweden. Although not a Silva Mediterranea action, it is convergent with the outlined programme of the network. This activity was launched in mid-1996. Unfortunately, southern Mediterranean countries could not accede to the project budget. Faced with the low activity of the Silva Mediterranea research network on cork oak, the Silva Mediterranea secretariat, FAO and IPGRI joined efforts to support participation of these southern Mediterranean countries in the project. FAO supported Morocco’s participation in project meetings in 1996 and 1997 and IPGRI supported Algeria in 1997. Unfortunately, Tunisia never responded to these calls for cooperation. Conditions and agreement were made to allow for seed collection and provenance testing in these countries and a proposal for their continued participation in this project has been submitted to the European Union. Although arrangements for a loose partnership were made, it is considered that better institutional arrangements should be made in order to guarantee continuation of the work beyond the three-year time frame of the project.

19. At the level of Euforgen, supported by IPGRI and FAO, actions involving Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Germany and Sweden concerning in situ conservation strategy are under way.

20. Experience with many networks shows that starting conditions are slow and institutional support is needed before confidence and recognition of the benefits of common work could be reached. Concurrent to the appointment of a focal point should be the country’s formal commitments from the signatories to a sufficient level of funding to reach the project operation threshold. This is considered to be a sina qua non condition for success. Conservation networks under IPGRI (Euforgen), ETFRN or CORAF are only possible because of the support of the European Union in financing their operation and the support of a full-time expert to keep operations and activities alive. Acknowledgement of cultural diversity and different perceptions of the problem at national level demand more intense action and dialogue and travelling efforts which need wider support and larger institutional backing. It is felt that the loose current model under Silva Mediterranea needs some change in its modus operandi. Network efficiency needs the formal institution of some sort of a steering committee, a mechanism of monitoring and evaluation and a structured information flow for the benefit of the cork oak community. It would seem that this again requires countries to sign a formal memorandum of understanding and a minimum of financial commitment. At this stage it is also felt, not only from the experience of the cork oak network but also from the information gathered from the other five networks of which Portugal is part, that their current contribution to overall objectives is very small indeed. The continuation of the Silva Mediterranea networks, and they are considered important and could be an important tool to strengthen institutional cooperation among Mediterranean countries but also as a platform for dialogue in forest and environment subjects, requires new definitions and working procedures. There are reasons for thinking that environmental threats and environmental awareness ought to support the logic of globalisation. In this context FAO by its international dimension is best placed to be the instigator of the needed changes.