Indroniel Ganguly

Presented at the: Forest Resources Summit

Menominee Casino Resort, Keshena, WIJune 6th – 7th, 2012

Presented by:

Dr. Indroneil GangulyCenter for International Trade in Forest Products (CINTRAFOR)

University of Washington

Co-authors:

Dr. Ivan L. Eastin & Dr. Gary S. Morishima

* Eco-Labeling Native American Tribal Forest Products

*Acknowledgements:

*Research sponsored by:

* Intertribal Timber Council

*Contributors to the research: * C. Larry Mason; James D. Petersen; Wade

Zammit; James Freed; Scott Atkison

*Outline

1. Background

2. Objectives

3. Survey

4. Results on Branding

5. Results on Certification

6. Summary

7. Post research activities and initiatives

Background

*America’s Indian tribes own and manage more than 7.7 million acres of timberland and another 10.2 million acres of woodlands in the continental United States.

*Alaska natives own another 44 million acres of forestland.

*Native Americans have been managing forests for millennia and, unlike other forestland owners, have an intergenerational cultural commitment to continuation of stewardship practices in perpetuity.

Total area of tribal reservation(in the continental US)

57,105,943 acres

Forested (32%)18,637,903 acres

Unreserved (90% of forested)

17,382,324 acres

Accessible forestlands

15,330,420 acres

Timberlands6,316,133 acres

Woodlands9,014,287 acres

Commercial Timberlands

5,959,361 acres

Timberlands3,810,083 acres

Summary: Commercial forestland totals 9,769,444 acres with 61% being located in timberlands and 39% located in woodlands

* Summary statistics of tribal forestland in the US, in acres:

Objectives

*Project Objective

*Exploring potential opportunities and benefits from branding and marketing initiatives of tribal products:

*Differentiate forest products from Indian lands by virtue of

*Unique cultural aspects

*Environmental services

*Public benefits

*Sustainability, and

*product quality values provided through Tribal forest management.

*Beyond Wood Products

* Enhance value from forest resources to enable tribes to care for their lands and people

* Increase public awareness of the virtues of tribal natural resource management

*Potential strategic importance in efforts to protect and advance tribal sovereignty and influence natural resource management across the landscape

*Specific Sub-Objectives

*The specific sub-objectives of the tribal branding study conducted by CINTRAFOR were to:

1. Understand how various forest certification and eco-labeling programs are perceived and used by the tribes in marketing their wood/wood products

2. Explore the potential and acceptability of a tribal branding program and

3. Identify the branding attributes favored by Tribal respondents

*The study explored

opportunities in

*The study explored

opportunities in

Survey

*Survey Response: various metrics

A total of 54 tribes responded to the survey out of a population of 229 tribes for a response rate of 23.6%.

Total reservation area is 57,105,943 acres and survey respondents represent 31,255,168 acres with tribal reservation coverage of 54.7%.

Total forest area is 18,637,903 acres and survey respondents represent 12,929,237 acres with tribal forest coverage of 69.4%.

The total commercial forest area of the tribes is 9,769,444 acres and survey respondents represent 6,540,013 acres, with tribal commercial forest coverage of 66.9%.

Response rate for ITC member tribes was 62.3% (38 of 61 members responded)

*Location of respondents

Forestland SurveysProcessing Facility Surveys

AK 2

*Comparative interest in the three potential

tribal marketing programs

Branding Results

Center for International Trade in Forest Products

Interest in participating in a tribal branding program

6%

2%

20%

36% 36%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Not I nterested

At All

Not Very

I nterested

Neutral Somewhat

I nterested

Very I nterested

Perc

enta

ge o

f Res

pond

ents

.

Interest in a Tribal Branding Program

Attributes for a Branding Program


Respondent ranking of tribal values in forming the foundation of a tribal forest products brand



Respondent ranking of attributes varied substantially by region

1 2 3 4 5 6

Traditional f orest

stewardship

Spiritual/ Cultural

respect f or the land

High quality wood

Tribal interest in

supporting economic

development

I mportance .

West

South

Midwest

Northeast


1 2 3 4 5 6

Traditional f orest

stewardship

Spiritual/ Cultural

respect f or the land

High quality wood

Tribal interest in

supporting economic

development

I mportance .

< 10,000 acres 10,000 to 100,000 acres > 100,000 acres

Respondent ranking of attributes were quite consistent by size of forest area


Suggestions for tribal forest product brand (some examples)

Tribal Certification Results

Interest in a Tribal Certification Program


4% 4%

32%

30% 30%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

Not I nterested

At All

Not Very

I nterested

Neutral Somewhat

I nterested

Very I nterested

Perc

enta

ge o

f Res

pond

ents

.

Interest in participating in a tribal forest certification program

Forest Certification Status


6%4%

29%

22%

39%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Not Aware Aware but never

considered

Considering forest

certification

I n the process Have certification

Perc

enta

ge o

f Res

pond

ents

.

Tribal awareness and current status of forest certification

Usefulness of Forest Certification


0%

29%

9%

22%

13%

27%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

I don't know Not At All

Useful

Not Useful Neutral Somewhat

Useful

Very Useful

Perc

enta

ge o

f Res

pond

ents

.

Tribal perceptions of the usefulness of forest certification

Perceptions of Price Premiums


45%

30%

21%

2% 2%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Don't know No price premium Small price

premium

Substantial price

premium

High price

premium

Perc

enta

ge o

f Res

pond

ents

.

Forest managers perceptions of price premiums for certified wood

• Respondents presented a mixture of experiences and expectations with many (especially in the South) indicating little knowledge of certification options.

• Better understanding of the costs and benefits of certification for aiding sales into emerging “green building” markets could benefit Native forest products marketing programs.

• Despite regional differences, the tribal branding program is generally preferred by the tribes over other options across the country.

• Development of a tribal brand will require a long-term commitment of resources (both financial and human) to create, promote, and maintain an effective branding program.

• The branding campaign will emphasize the tribal values identified in the research

*Summary Results

*Summary Results

The survey results also suggest that a large number of tribes are interested in learning how to access international markets to provide a measure of protection against downturns in the domestic markets and/or to receive higher prices for their forest products.

While domestic market remains in recession, US exports of wood in products increased by 29.6% in 2010

Given the interest by the Obama administration in increasing US exports by 50% by 2015, how might Native American tribes take advantage of this effort to increase their international marketing capacity and expertise?

Tribal Branding Program


The survey results suggest that there is support for developing a tribal brand for forest products that could be based on a unique set of tribal values:

• Traditional forest stewardship ethic

• Spiritual and cultural respect for forests and land

• High quality timber resource

Then we talked to the tribes


First Things First

1) Do the tribes want to proceed with the development of a tribal brand for forest products?

2) Do the tribes want to proceed with a cooperative marketing program?

3) Do the tribes want to proceed with a tribal certification program?




Strategic Issues

1) Scope of a tribal brand• national vs. regional vs. enterprise specific• solid wood products vs. generic forest products (incl.

NTFP’s)2) Brand Development (who takes the lead in the

development of a tribal brand and quality standards?) • ITC• tribal forest products brand council• outside consulting firm

3) How would a branding program be funded?• start up funding• programmatic funding

4) Which tribal enterprises wish to participate?

Initiatives taken by

CINTRAFOR


Project funded by US Department of Commerce:Developing the International Forest Products Marketing Capacity of Native American Tribes (Eastin and Ganguly)

1. assessing the technical and marketing capabilities of tribal forest operations

2. identifying potential niche markets where tribal forest products would be competitive

3. providing workshops on export topics such as international marketing, export logistics and export financing,

4. working with tribal cooperators to develop strategic business plans for export markets,

5. linking tribal managers with potential customers in international markets through trade missions


Project funded by USDA-CSREES – NNF program:

National Needs Fellowship for Tribal Students (Eastin and Ganguly)

Developing a strategic partnership with Native American colleges, this program will identify qualified students from tribal communities to transfer the necessary technical and forestry business skills into Native American communities.

Thank you

Education

Indroniel Ganguly