(L-R) Serge Wilmes, Luxembourg’s Minister of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity; Luc Frieden, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister; Credit: Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity (MECB)

On Monday 20 October 2025, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Luc Frieden and the Minister of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, Serge Wilmes, visited the project “FORLUX - Health, adaptation and resilience of Luxembourg City forests” at the “Bambësch” research site in the capital.

As reported by Luxembourg’s Ministry of State and the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, this visit formed part of Luxembourg’s ongoing commitment to strengthening its resilience to the effects of climate change.

According to the ministries, forests face increasing pressure from droughts, diseases and extreme weather events and the FORLUX project provides a scientific and strategic response to these challenges. The project focuses on forest health, adaptation and long-term resilience in the context of climate change.

The first part of the visit, led by Bruno Alves, Government Attaché at the Environment Ministry, together with Michel Leytem, Director of the Nature and Forest Agency, focused on the national strategy for climate adaptation and on the current state of the forest.

Later, researchers from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) presented the first monitoring structures set up in the Bambësch forest, including hydrological and ecological instruments designed to collect data and simulate forest evolution under different climate scenarios.

Researchers Christophe Hissler and Stanislaus Schymanski from the LIST presented the instruments and methodology on which the project is based, such as sap-flow sensors and meteorological stations, analyses of water-stress and air quality, all of which feed a digital twin of the forest capable of simulating its evolution under different climate scenarios.

Prime Minister Luc Frieden welcomed this integrated approach, saying: “In a constantly changing world, resilience becomes an essential foundation of our sovereignty. The FORLUX project represents a concrete step forward in our commitment to place climate resilience at the heart of national priorities. By supporting such innovative initiatives, Luxembourg reaffirms its determination to anticipate tomorrow’s challenges.”

Minister Serge Wilmes emphasised: “The link between forest health and the quality of drinking-water resources lies at the core of the FORLUX project, which perfectly illustrates how science, sustainable management and cooperation among public stakeholders can converge to protect our vital resources. As reservoirs of biodiversity and natural filters for air and water, our forests are invaluable allies in the fight against global warming and true pillars of our well-being.”

Financed by the Climate and Energy Fund of the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, and carried out by the LIST, the Nature and Forest Agency and the City of Luxembourg (VdL), this project aims to better understand, anticipate and support the evolution of forest ecosystems.

EO