Forests and wooded lands are important in the European Green Deal (EGD). This growth strategy for a sustainable green transition in Europe goes hand in hand with constraints for production-oriented forestry and emergent bioeconomy strategies, thus challenging established practices. Therefore, forestry innovations may be key to facilitate the implementation of the EGD. Linking innovations with broader policy goals requires lesson-drawing of policymakers at different levels of European governance. The article reveals enablers and barriers of innovations in forestry and arrives at two hypotheses on forest-related policy learning for the EGD: First of all, policymakers' beliefs determine lesson-drawing on the role that forests and forestry can and should play in Europe's ambitious growth strategy. Secondly, genuine interest in experiential knowledge and deliberation about 'what works' in innovation practice can help generate ownership of the forest sector in the EGD. : KEYWORDS Forest, forestry, innovation, policy learning, European Green Deal : 1 INTRODUCTION The European Green Deal (EGD) is the current growth strategy of the European Commission (EC). It was published in December 2019 when Ursula von der Leyen took office as President. It aims at transforming the European Union (EU) into a "modern, resource efficient and competitive economy", and is committed to zero emissions of GHG by 2050, a decoupling of economic growth from resource use, and the social principle of "no person and no place left behind." Forests and wooded lands play important roles in the EGD.