"If the people who work in and depend on the forests cannot survive, then the forests themselves will perish."

14 November 2013 News

"We believe that the well-being of the people who own, live in and depend on forests is the single most important criteria to determine if a forest is being sustainably managed," said William Street Jr., PEFC Chairman, at the PEFC General Assembly yesterday. "If the people who work in and depend on the forests cannot survive, then the forests themselves will perish."

In his remarks welcoming the Malaysian Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities YB Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas to the General Assembly, Mr. Street reminded the audience of the importance of the economic and social dimensions of sustainable forest management.

A Sustainable Economic Contribution vs No Economic Contribution

"We believe that both poverty and profit seeking endangers natural and human resources. The poor need to sacrifice the forest in order to survive. Any forest management plan that ignores this reality is doomed to fail. Likewise we recognize the difference between poverty driven deforestation and profit driven deforestation. Forest land use decisions are subject to the demands of the market and of the profits derived from markets. But this cannot be the only driver or the sole determinant of how we manage our forests," Mr. Street said.

"The way forward [...] is to find the balance point, a balance point between making a sustainable economic contribution to society and no economic contribution to society. If forests cannot make a substantial economic contribution to society they will be replaced by palm oil plantations, soy bean fields, cattle pastures, golf courses, and destination resorts."

Bottom-Up Stakeholder Involvement

Mr Street highlighted that PEFC's unique, inclusive bottom-up approach is well-suited to balancing the environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability: "We believe that the best way to achieve these goals is through an inclusive process that recognizes that there is no single way forward for every forest type. We believe there is not even a best way applicable to all forests, but rather that the process of bottom up, stakeholder involvement that gives voice to those who rarely have an opportunity to be heard is the only way forward. Smallholders, native and indigenous populations, workers, women, minorities, as well as Fortune 500 multi-nation corporations and government land owners must all have a seat at the table where the decisions are made as to how to manage a specific forest."

PEFC Forest Certification Week, which in addition to the PEFC General Assembly also features the currently ongoing PEFC Stakeholder Dialogue, demonstrates the wide variety of stakeholder groups present in PEFC processes, with more than 300 people from very different backgrounds participating.

"We celebrate the diversity that such an approach empowers. We celebrate it as the output of a rich, diverse, multi-cultural process," noted Mr. Street.