JICA & BCG Unveil the “Forest Stack” at COP 29: A Visionary Concept for Transforming Forest Conservation and Management through Digital Public Infrastructure

At COP 29, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) unveiled their groundbreaking report titled “Forest Stack: Transforming Forest Conservation and Management through Digital Public Infrastructure”. This initiative has the potential to generate an annual economic impact of $18-22 billion in India by 2030, strengthening forest conservation, enabling sustainable economic opportunities, and contributing to global biodiversity and climate goals on a global scale.

Forests cover approximately 31% of the Earth’s land area and are home to about 80% of terrestrial species. However, forests today are increasingly threatened by deforestation, fragmentation, and illegal activities. The Forest Stack aims to address these challenges by creating a digital infrastructure, transforming how data is managed, accessed, and used for informed decision-making across government, private sector, NGOs, and local communities.

The report presents the Forest Stack concept designed to support sustainable forest management and conservation. This infrastructure integrates data, technology, and governance across four key objectives: enhancing access to forest-related data, improving services for communities and private sector, fostering ecosystem innovation, and achieving biodiversity and carbon credit goals. Through interconnected data, technology, application, and infrastructure layers, Forest Stack aims to empower stakeholders—governments, corporates, startups, academia, NGOs, CSOs and local communities—to collaborate on efficient management of forest-related ecosystems which will aid in achieving national and global sustainability goals.

JICA also emphasizes the initiative’s inclusive approach: “Forest Stack concept embodies JICA's commitment to sustainable development and digital innovation. By connecting stakeholders through a unified digital infrastructure, we have conceptualized not just a solution for forest conservation, but a model for collaborative, data-driven sustainability that communities worldwide can embrace,” said Yushi Nagano, Head of JICA DXLab, flagship initiative of JICA that spearheads digital transformation.

BCG and JICA call on governments, corporates, tech builders, DPI advocates, academia, civil societies, and funders to collaborate in realizing the Forest Stack vision. “Through the Forest Stack, we are reimagining how technology can support forest conservation efforts and explore sustainable economic opportunities like carbon markets & forest produce management” remarked Sushma Vasudevan, Managing Director & Partner at BCG. “By building robust data exchange mechanisms and enhancing governance, Forest Stack will empower stakeholders to make informed decisions, protect biodiversity, and drive sustainable economic growth—a transformative moment for forest management", said Aparna Bijapurkar, Managing Director & Partner at BCG.

Download the report to explore the full vision and impact potential of Forest Stack. Join us in this transformative journey to safeguard our forests and foster a sustainable future.