Criteria and Indicators for sustainable forest management: lessons learned in the Southern Cone

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 315-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. LACLAU ◽  
A. MEZA ◽  
J. GARRIDO SOARES DE LIMA ◽  
S. LINSER
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Southern Cone ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
National Forest ◽  
Criteria And Indicators ◽  
Forest Policies ◽  
National Implementation ◽  
Montreal Process

The Southern Cone countries of Chile, Argentina and Uruguay have a common background regarding land use and land cover with a total of 46 million ha of forests whose benefits are prospering for the regional framework of the Southern Cone. The three countries do not articulate or interchange on their forest policies beyond circumstantial agreements. In this regard, and as our first research focus, we examined experiences while participating in the international Montréal Process on Criteria and Indicators for the Conservation and Management of Temperate and Boreal Forests. Secondly, we focused on the progress these processes have afforded regarding respective national implementation of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management (C&I for SFM) and uptake in forest policy. Thirdly, we examined also the obstacles experienced during participation and implementation. We based our findings on content analysis of key documents and author observations. Albeit the institutional and political frameworks between the countries differ, we found common constraints on budgeting, limited human resources and institutional capacity. Communication to society and policy makers' commitment are also important weaknesses. The engagement of the three countries in the Montréal Process and the application of related national sets of C&I for SFM have provided solutions to recent land use conflicts. This also strengthened the quality and effectiveness of recently approved laws and regimes for a sustainable forest management. In conclusion, the forest dialogues of these countries, within and between each other, were reinforced by participation in C&I for SFM processes, helping to bridge the gap between decision-makers, national forest agencies, academia and other forest-related stakeholders. Common indicators and related national reports facilitated the identification of affinities for regional integration on a common basis and helped to raise the level of national forest policies increasing its strength and commitment to global forest challenges. The lessons learned should be considered to reach progress towards sustainability.

Nationale Forstprogramme: Internationaler Kontext, erste europäische Erfahrungen und Lehren für die Schweiz | National forest programmes: Context and first experiences in Europe and lessons for Switzerland

2002 ◽  
Vol 153 (11) ◽  
pp. 419-429 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurt Bisang ◽  
Willi Zimmermann
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Forest Policy ◽  
National Forest ◽  
Policy Debate ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
International Policy ◽  
Forest Policies ◽  
Policy Level ◽  
International Forest Policy

Since UNCED 1992, national forest programmes(NFP) have served as a strategy to formulate and implement forest policies aiming at sustainable forest management. At the international policy level, the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests and the United Nations Forum on Forests have issued a set of proposals for action. A number of countries have started to plan and implement national forest programmes. However, precisely what NFPs are, and what their impact might be, is not entirely clear. This article gives an overview of the international forest policy debate and discusses first experiences made with NFPs in European countries. Against this background the article reflects on the lessons learnt and discusses the prospects for an NFP in Switzerland.

scholarly journals Would harmonizing public land forest policies, Criteria and Indicators, and certification improve progress towards Sustainable Forest Management?: A case study in Alberta, Canada

2008 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 410-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
P J Golec ◽  
M K Luckert
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Forest Policy ◽  
Public Land ◽  
Local Conditions ◽  
Criteria And Indicators ◽  
Forest Policies ◽  
Management Standards ◽  
Potential Benefits

As the concept of Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) has evolved, governments and other stakeholders have pursued three important frameworks for defining and pursuing SFM: public land forest policies, Criteria and Indicators and certification. In Canada, these three approaches frequently operate simultaneously as policy frameworks for private firms managing forests on public lands. Harmonization of these three frameworks could create potential benefits by simplifying a complicated array of sometimes conflicting forest management standards. But there are also potential costs of harmonization that could arise out of the diverse conditions that embody SFM. The diversity of social values and ecological conditions associated with forests creates difficulties in designing processes that are representative of stakeholders' interests. Moreover, this variety poses challenges to designing standards that are sufficiently flexible to address local conditions, yet useful in contributing to SFM planning and reporting at regional, provincial and national scales. Within this context, we suggest that the diversity inherent in SFM will continue to be accommodated by multiple management frameworks, unless a single framework arises that shows itself capable of being trusted by stakeholders and of being sufficiently flexible to accommodate various definitions of Sustainable Forest Management. Key words: Sustainable Forest Management, forest certification, Criteria and Indicators, public forest policy, harmonization of Sustainable Forest Management frameworks, case study, Canada, Alberta

The business of Criteria and Indicators in Sustainable Forest Management

2006 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 412-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Jeakins
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Forest Resource ◽  
Market Place ◽  
Criteria And Indicators ◽  
Day To Day Operations

While forest companies in British Columbia have been active in the development and implementation of Criteria and Indicators (C&I) in planning for sustainable forest management, in many cases they are not yet considered to be a core business function. A business case for C&I means going beyond the current paradigm of meeting legislative requirements and identifying C&I for sustainable forest management strictly within the context of certification. Without a comprehensive business case that articulates how C&I programs affect a company's position in the market place in terms of measurable benefits, costs and exposure to risk, activities essential to sustaining the broad range of forestry-related socio-economic and ecological values may not get the prioritization and resources needed. Quantifying costs and benefits will help define how forest companies will most effectively meet their sustainable forest management objectives and identify opportunities for partnerships with government, First Nations, stakeholders and other companies in the collective management of the forest resource. Although some companies have begun to develop approaches to the business case for C&I, more work is needed in integrating the objectives and activities of SFM planning into the basic day-to-day operations of a company as well as providing training to resource managers to communicate in the language of business. Government should adopt and encourage a C&I business case approach to forest resource management by developing strong links to legislative and land use planning requirements. Key words: Criteria and Indicators, business case, sustainable forest management, certification, land use planning, forest industry

scholarly journals A multi-purpose National Forest Inventory in Bangladesh: design, operationalisation and key results

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matieu Henry ◽  
Zaheer Iqbal ◽  
Kristofer Johnson ◽  
Mariam Akhter ◽  
Liam Costello ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Forest Inventory ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
National Forest Inventory ◽  
Forest Resources ◽  
National Forest ◽  
Land Cover Map

Abstract Background National forest inventory and forest monitoring systems are more important than ever considering continued global degradation of trees and forests. These systems are especially important in a country like Bangladesh, which is characterised by a large population density, climate change vulnerability and dependence on natural resources. With the aim of supporting the Government’s actions towards sustainable forest management through reliable information, the Bangladesh Forest Inventory (BFI) was designed and implemented through three components: biophysical inventory, socio-economic survey and remote sensing-based land cover mapping. This article documents the approach undertaken by the Forest Department under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change to establish the BFI as a multipurpose, efficient, accurate and replicable national forest assessment. The design, operationalization and some key results of the process are presented. Methods The BFI takes advantage of the latest and most well-accepted technological and methodological approaches. Importantly, it was designed through a collaborative process which drew from the experience and knowledge of multiple national and international entities. Overall, 1781 field plots were visited, 6400 households were surveyed, and a national land cover map for the year 2015 was produced. Innovative technological enhancements include a semi-automated segmentation approach for developing the wall-to-wall land cover map, an object-based national land characterisation system, consistent estimates between sample-based and mapped land cover areas, use of mobile apps for tree species identification and data collection, and use of differential global positioning system for referencing plot centres. Results Seven criteria, and multiple associated indicators, were developed for monitoring progress towards sustainable forest management goals, informing management decisions, and national and international reporting needs. A wide range of biophysical and socioeconomic data were collected, and in some cases integrated, for estimating the indicators. Conclusions The BFI is a new information source tool for helping guide Bangladesh towards a sustainable future. Reliable information on the status of tree and forest resources, as well as land use, empowers evidence-based decision making across multiple stakeholders and at different levels for protecting natural resources. The integrated socio-economic data collected provides information about the interactions between people and their tree and forest resources, and the valuation of ecosystem services. The BFI is designed to be a permanent assessment of these resources, and future data collection will enable monitoring of trends against the current baseline. However, additional institutional support as well as continuation of collaboration among national partners is crucial for sustaining the BFI process in future.

Using perceptual maps to communicate concepts of Sustainable Forest Management – Collaborative research with the Office of the Wet'suwet'en Nation in British Columbia

2005 ◽  
Vol 81 (3) ◽  
pp. 381-386
Author(s):  
S. Denise Allen
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Forest Management ◽  
Collaborative Research ◽  
Sustainable Forest Management ◽  
Software Tool ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
North Central ◽  
Criteria And Indicators ◽  
Perceptual Maps ◽  
Forest Resources Management

This article discusses collaborative research with the Office of the Wet'suwet'en Nation on their traditional territories in north-central British Columbia, Canada, a forest-dependent region where contemporary and traditional forest resources management regimes overlap. In-depth personal interviews with the hereditary chiefs and concept mapping were used to identify social-ecological linkages in Wet'suwet'en culture to inform the development of culturally sensitive social criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management (SFM) in this region. The preliminary results demonstrate how the CatPac II software tool can be applied to identify key component concepts and linkages in local definitions of SFM, and translate large volumes of (oral) qualitative data into manageable information resources for forest managers and decision-makers. Key words: social criteria and indicators, sustainable forest management, qualitative research, Wet'suwet'en

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document