Anna JenkinsDirector, FSC UK

Forest Stewardship Council

• Background & evolution of FSC

• Brief overview of how FSC works

• Why do businesses and civil society engage?

• Successes and challenges

• Summary

Forest Stewardship Council

The problem

Forests are in crisis

• Massive loss of forests continuing– 60-80% of logging is illegal in Indonesia and Brazil– Rate of loss 14.6 million ha loss each year. 30 ha/minute

• Social issues – indigenous peoples’ & workers rights• Environmental damage – loss of habitat, species, soils• Economic loss – resource loss, loss of livelihoods

The problemThe timber trade is in crisis

• Environmental groups campaigning to boycott tropical timber

• Damaged reputation of timber trade, professional timber users & product retailers

• Bad reputation affects everyone, not just ‘the bad guys’• Bogus claims of sustainable forest management• Loss of demand for timber• Timber being replaced by alternatives from non-

renewable resources

Which has lead to mass confusion amongst timber users

How FSC helps…FSC was formed in response to the crisis

by environmental and social NGOs, leading businesses and forest managers.

• Brings together social, environmental and economic interests to define responsible forestry

• Independent of any one group• An accreditation system for forest certification schemes• A labelling system for products from well managed

forests• Voluntary market based incentive

FSC allows you to choose to support responsible forest management

• Independent, international, non-profit organisation

• An balanced association of over 500 members:

Economic: Timber traders, retailers, processors, manufacturers;

Social: Trade unions, indigenous peoples, development charities;

Environmental: Ecologists, campaigning groups, academics

What is the FSC?

FSC is a unique collaboration

FSC core activities

Standard Setting

• Maintains an international standard of forest management: Principles & Criteria for Forest Stewardship (P&C)

• Endorses national standards that apply the P&C• Sets standards of operation for certification bodies• Standards are used by the FSC accreditation unit

FSC provides a consistent standards framework for the comparison of forest management and certification globally

FSC Principles & Criteria

1. Compliance with laws and FSC Principles

2. Tenure and use rights and responsibilities

3. Indigenous peoples' rights

4. Community relations and worker's rights

5. Benefits from the forest

6. Environmental impact

7. Management plan

8. Monitoring and assessment

9. Maintenance of high conservation value forests

10. Plantations

FSC core activitiesAccreditation System (ABU)

• FSC is an umbrella under which independent forest inspection (certification) bodies can operate

• Certification bodies must meet the same minimum standards• FSC inspects the certifiers annually in the field and office• FSC accredits independent certifiers that certify forest

management and chain of custody (CoC) systems

The FSC Accreditation system ensures that the certifiers are following the same minimum standards

Forest Forest management & CoC certification

Board mill CoC certification

Furniture factory CoC certification

Retailer

The FSC label

• The mark of responsible forestry

• Single label on products from all countries

Why businesses engageMarket Demand • Certified companies retain markets (Eg B&Q suppliers) and

enter new ones. (Eg Softwood railway sleepers from the UK)• The demand is NOT from the person in the street• It is from risk averse and CSR aware companies and their

investorsInvestor Demand • Certified companies retain their investors. Eg Travis

PerkinsPrice• Sometimes higher, especially from tropical sources• Price penalties for uncertified material emerging in the UK.

Why civil society engagesConcern about forests and people• Conservation and sustainable resource use• Loss of traditional rights and livelihoods• Environmental degradation• Workers’ and indigenous peoples’ rightsAn equal stake • Social, environmental, economic, north and south balancedFSC offers a solution• Civil society increasingly solution focused• A tool that helps deliver NGO objectives

Why FSC works• Civil society and business support• Market based initiative: Money talks – quickly. • Successful system that has grown organically and spread –

leading to positive change at the forest level• Sense of ownership amongst the participants• The FSC system is audited – trusted• It contrasts with regulation which can take too long and is

often poorly policed (e.g. health and safety)• It contrasts with conventions which are often dumbed down

(e.g. Kyoto) or never signed (e.g. Rio forest principles)

Progress to date - Global

• 585 members in 67 countries• 12 Accredited Certification Bodies• 18 accredited regional/national standards • Over 40 million ha forest certified in 57 countries • 4 - 6% of global commercially viable forests are FSC

certified• Over 2500 Chain of Custody certificates in 69 countries• 32 National Initiatives• Over 8,000 FSC products worth £500 million in B&Q alone

FSC was established in 1993; first labelled product in 1996

Map to follow

Challenges ahead

• Including more tropical forest areas in the system• Including more smaller processors and growers • Including more community managed areas• Making FSC more sustainable in itself – moving away from

charitable support• Maintaining a responsive and equitable system that

stakeholders can engage in whilst meeting customer needs

Summary• FSC is the only independent, international timber labelling

system.• FSC is the only system with support from all these sectors:

• international environmental NGOs• indigenous peoples• timber growers and traders• manufacturers• major high street retailers

• For further information visit www.fsc-uk.org or call 01686 413916.

Specify FSC to ensure that you are supporting responsible forest management!