The recent Forest Leadership conference in Toronto from March 1-3 was a largely North American affair with delegates from business, government, NGOs and the First Nations of Canada. Some 300 people attended the conference which had ‘Partnerships’ as its theme.
Companies, agencies, community groups and not-for-profits have a history of working in opposition but the conference showed that there is an increasing desire among former enemies to understand each other’s perspectives and work together for the betterment of supply chains, the environment and community development. Industry is recognising the important conservation issues of the day and NGOs are waking up to the fact that the forest industry needs guaranteed supply lines. All recognise the rights of indigenous people to frame the discussion. Together, under the banner of sustainable forest management (SFM) a framework is emerging which can satisfy all.
Business was represented by large and small companies and both forest products businesses and retailers. Main speakers came from Weyerhaeuser Co Ltd, Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries, Office Depot Inc, Proctor & Gamble, Lowes, Tembec, International Paper, Stora Enso, Domtar Inc and Mead-Westvaco. There were also presentations from senior staff in the US Forest Service and natural resource ministries of Ontario and British Columbia and representation from various First Nation groups. The NGO sector had delegates from WWF, ForestEthics, Ducks Unlimited, Conservation International, NatureServe, CPAWS and The Nature Conservancy.
Canada is home to around 30% of the world’s forests and the increasingly unique boreal forests. The Canadian Boreal Initiative is one partnership which is battling to conserve this ecosystem, under competing pressures from forestry, oil and gas exploration and the needs of the indigenous population. The Forest & Biodiversity Conservation Alliance is funded by Office Depot and supports SFM through the development of best practice, technically sound and scientifically based forestry. ForestEthics and Domtar, previous enemies, are now working together to show that conservation does not need to exist in opposition to forest industries.
Independent third party certification was a popular theme running through the conference. FSC, CSA and SFI all had a presence and usefully reiterated the multiple benefits of forest certification. From the perspective of corporate social responsibility, certification provides a means to promote good behaviour to a wider audience, whether the public, investors or regulators looking for compliance with international, national and regional legislation.
International perspectives
The conference discussed international perspectives on certification, illegal logging and trade only in passing. In North America, as in Europe, timber trade flows are a fundamental economic driver, whether as tropical logs, paper products or building supplies. Consumption of the public goods associated with forestry are higher than ever and the pressure on forestry to get it right remains strong. All those involved in SFM should be proud of their efforts – foresters lead the way in developing and implementing a sustainable future. While the certification and chain of custody systems currently employed to manage and measure SFM are far from perfect they represent a firm base from which to grow and a minimum standard which all of us in the industry should be aspiring to, not just for local markets, but in the difficult but important regions of the world where environmental, social and business standards fall below ours. As the US increasingly imports huge volumes of timber, the partnerships described at the conference were encouraging, but global efforts at SFM will be undermined if they do not insist on the continually improving standards which they themselves require of producers and manufacturers at home.
Competing land uses
Forest management has undergone an evolution over the past 30 years or so and increasingly foresters walk the line between competing land uses. Forestry today is about a protective balance; facilitating an open dialogue between commercial, conservation and community interests, and managing the resource to meet those needs.
The conference confirmed the important influence that North America has in terms of forest trade and conservation. Independent third-party verification, sustainable forest management and ongoing communication between competing voices are essential for the survival of many species and habitats, cultural practices and the forest industry.
At Interface NRM, we are interested in best practice in SFM and developing approaches to multi-purpose land use that satisfy the range of competing interests. The conference highlighted some interesting examples of partnership working in North America and represented a good opportunity for us to network and gain insight into what is happening across the pond. However, the conference failed to discuss wider issues and I was left with the feeling that, from some perspectives at least, North America is unaware of forestry’s global influence and capacity for positive, or negative, change.
