ISSN 1022–5439

TFU
Tropical Forest Update

Promoting theconservation andsustainable developmentof tropical forests
Volume 33 No.1 2024

Science and technology: anchoring the drivefor sustainable timber
In some parts of the world, political commitment to greening our societies
and economies, including the push to tackle climate change, can appear tobe wavering. In Europe, for example, leaders have scaled back regulations
designed to reduce agricultural subsidies and restore ecosystems in theface of protests from farmers.
But the drive to spread the benefits of development around the world, andto ensure that the resulting prosperity is sustainable, goes on. And as global
temperature records continue to tumble, the pressure to reduce greenhousegas emissions, including from tropical deforestation, and to adapt to thechanging climate is as urgent as ever.

Supporting good science and applying it with the help of new technologies areimportant to maintaining broad social and political support for sustainable
development policies and programmes including those designed to foster
sustainable forest management and trade in forest products. The collectionof accurate data and its careful analysis, for instance, help ensure that thesedeliver the intended benefits—and make it easier to adjust them when
they do not.
This edition of TFU provides several good examples of how science andtechnology are deeply embedded in ITTO’s work, helping its members
to bolster their credibility and transparency.

Inside: Tropical forests and climate . Council . timber forums . governance in Panama . moreContents
At COP28, ITTO appeals for more climate financefor tropical forests....................................................................3
Global community recommitting to 2050 net-zero goal hears how
sustainable forest management can advance both mitigation andadaptation. ITTO Secretariat

Donors pledge new funds at Council session..................6
The most recent session of the International Tropical Timber Council
also discussed the Organization’s policy and project portfolio andmade a range of decisions. ITTO Secretariat

ITTO secures Green Climate Fund accreditation.............9With its successful application, ITTO has become one of 128 Green
Climate Fund partners channelling resources to climate projects
in developing countries. ITTO Secretariat

Strategies for sustainable development of timber
sector identified......................................................................10

Nine actions should be taken to ensure the sector’s future, sayparticipants in the inaugural Global Legal and Sustainable Timber
Forum. ITTO Secretariat

Strengthening forest governance in Panama..............13
ITTO projects have advanced sustainable forest management andsupported far-reaching changes in Panama’s forest policy. Malleux
Advancing forest landscape restoration in the tropics...16
A new report examines experiences gained and lessons learned onenhancing socioecological resilience in ITTO projects. Subramanian
Using genetics to identify dipterocarps inSoutheast Asia........................................................................20
An ITTO Fellow is developing DNA tests to identify the species andgeographic provenance of Southeast Asian members of the family
Dipterocarpaceae. Low

Sustainable tropical timber coalition builds
momentum...............................................................................23

An alliance of tropical countries launched to promote their sustainable
forest industries is pressing forward with its programme. Jeffree

Tropical and topical................................................................26
Recent editions........................................................................27
Meetings........................................................................................28
EditorConsulting editor
Editorial assistant
Secretarial assistant
DesignPrinting/distribution

Ramón Carrillo
Stephen Graham
Kenneth Sato
Kanako Ishii
DesignOne (Australia)
INKISH Publishing Aps (Denmark)Tropical Forest Update (TFU) is published three times a year in English, French and Spanish by
the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). Content does not necessarily reflect theviews or policies of ITTO. Articles may be reprinted without charge provided TFU and the author
are credited. The editor should be sent a copy of the publication.
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International Tropical Timber Organization
International Organizations Center – 5th Floor
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tfu@itto.int
www.itto.int
Cover image: Tropical wood products from a teak plantation in Thailand.
Photo: Diego Noguera/IISD-ENB
Above: View of the iconic Landmark tower in Yokohama, Japan. Photo: R. Carrillo/ITTO.

2 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

… Editorial continued
The two opening articles, written by the
ITTO Secretariat and beginning on p.3,
highlight how ITTO is beating the drumfor greater investment in science-basedsustainable forest management and tradefrom both the public and private sectors.
This includes the prominent participationof ITTO officials at events during the 28th
Conference of the Parties to the United
Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change and the annual meetingof the International Tropical Timber Council,
both of which were held in late 2023. ITTO
donor member countries pledged morethan USD 6 million in additional funding
for a wide range of projects and activities,
including the development of blockchainbased timber traceability systems as wellas the restoration of degraded mangrove
ecosystems, the promotion of sustainable
wood consumption in domestic markets
and the production of high-quality teak.
The Global Legal and Sustainable Timber
Forum, whose inaugural event is featured
on p.10, identified the promotion of newtechnologies among nine priorities for thedevelopment of a timber sector based on
legal and sustainable forest management
and supply chains. Participants at the Forumin November 2023 called for the use of newtechnologies, tools and methodologies toensure the legitimacy and sustainabilityof timber resources, including theimplementation of digital timber traceability.

How digital timber tracing systems are beingrolled out in Panama is a central element of thearticle by Consultant Jorge Malleux on p.13.
The article details the achievements of oneof a series of recent ITTO-funded projects
to strengthen monitoring, control andtraceability systems amid a wider effort toimprove forest governance in the country.
More examples of ITTO field projects
are the focus of an article by Suneetha
M. Subramanian on p.16. Ms Subramanian,a research fellow at the United Nations
University-Institute for the Advanced Studyof Sustainability, describes the valuablelessons learned through 14 ITTO-funded
projects to advance forest landscaperestoration and social and ecologicalresilience across the tropics.
Science and technology are firmly in theforeground of the article by ITTO Fellow
Melita Low on p.20, where she describes how
a grant from the Organization has helped
her to advance her work to develop a DNA
test to identify the species and provenanceof Southeast Asia member of the family
Dipterocarpaceae. Such advanced timber
identification techniques are key to building
credible timber tracking systems and apotential weapon for law enforcement agencies
battling illegal logging and deforestation.
Tracking systems help tropical timber
producers to meet increasingly stringent
sustainability and legality standards in both
domestic and export markets. In the regularmarket trends feature on p.23, timberjournalist Mike Jeffree profiles the Broader
Market Recognition Coalition, an initiative
to secure greater access to world markets
for tropical timber products from countries
with national sustainable forestry systems.
It is evident that science-supported policies,
innovations and technology will advancesustainable forest management in the tropics,
encourage the use of sustainable wood andwood products and accelerate the transition
to circular bioeconomies, which in turn, will
benefit the environment and humankind.

At COP28, ITTO appeals for more climate finance for tropical forests
Global community
recommitting to 2050
net-zero goal hears
how sustainable
forest management
can advance both
mitigation andadaptationby the ITTO Secretariat(itto@itto.int)

Spotlighting tropical forests: Officials of ITTO and its partners at a side-event on “Advancing Sustainable Forest Management: Financing Mechanisms
for Carbon and Biodiversity” during COP28. Photo: Angeles Estrada/IISD-EBN

More funding must flow into sustainable forest management(SFM) to realize the potential of tropical forests to provide
urgently needed nature-based solutions to the challenges
of climate change and sustainable development.
ITTO amplified this message while participating in
numerous events during the 28th Conference of the Parties
to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (COP28), held from 30 November to 13 December
in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
While the conference made headlines for acknowledging
the need to shift away from all fossil fuels and agreeing a“loss and damage” fund to compensate poorer states forclimate impacts, ITTO and its partners kept a spotlight on
the key role of tropical forests in achieving sustainability.
At a side-event on “Advancing Sustainable Forest
Management: Financing Mechanisms for Carbon andBiodiversity”, ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru notedthat tropical forests have struggled to attract the investment
needed to maximize their contribution to a host of priorities.
“There is so much more that forests can be acknowledged
and recognized for in terms of not just socioeconomic andenvironmental protection, but also [carbon] sequestrationand storage rates,” Ms Satkuru said.
Ms Satkuru said it was of “paramount importance” toimplement sustainable finance mechanisms for tropicalforests to reduce their loss, optimize their management,enrich ecosystem services and boost social and ecologicalresilience, including for Indigenous Peoples and forestdependent communities.
While ITTO and other organizations have implemented
many SFM, forest landscape restoration and REDD+ projects
in the tropics, their capacity is limited by funding frommember governments, she said.

As well as more public finance, speakers at the side-event
underlined that tropical forests need more investment fromthe private sector, while policymakers need to redouble
efforts to create incentives to reduce investor risk, including
through tax reforms and blended finance.
Hwan Ok-Ma, Officer-in-charge, Division of Forest
Management, ITTO, talked of SFM as a nature-based solution
for carbon emission reduction through timber production
enhancement, including practices such as reduced impact
logging and wood-based bioenergy. He showcased ITTO’s
programmatic line on Legal and Sustainable Supply Chainsfor tropical timber and tropical wood products, illustrating
its multiple benefits through an ITTO project1 that promoted
sustainable production of teak in the Greater Mekong. The
project improved silvicultural practices, value-addition andmarketing benefiting forest-dependent communities. The
second phase2 of the project has just started.

Finance gap
Yasumasa Hirata of the Forestry and Forest Products
Research Institute, Japan, said that, by one estimate, publicfinance for SFM is less than 1 per cent of the USD 460 billion
required and is dwarfed by public spending on potentiallyharmful forest activities.
“Even if all gray public finance flows were redirected to green,
finance totals would still fall woefully short,” Dr Hirata said.
“Therefore, a significant increase in funding for forests is
an urgent issue.”

1 ITTO Project PP-A/54-331
2 ITTO Project PP-A/54-331A

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 3

… At COP28, ITTO appeals for more climate finance for tropical forests

Advancing forest goals: Forestry officials discussing harvesting plans and practices in Peninsular Malaysia. Photo: Forestry Department Peninsular Malaysia

Faiha Azka Azzahira, President of the chapter of theInternational Forestry Students’ Association (IFSA) at
LC Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, emphasized theimportance of youth for securing tropical forests and theirrole in sustainable development.
Young people can contribute through organizations like
IFSA, as well as through their communities, their studies andcareers, Ms Azzahira said. IFSA members are networking
and connecting youth across different regions, advocating
for forests and raising awareness.
“The younger generation plays a crucial role in shaping
the future. We are the agents of change,” she said.
Ms Satkuru said ITTO views youth as “the custodians of
the future,” and appealed for more young people with anawareness of the need for sustainability to enter the forestry
and timber industries.
“There are so many policies, practices, manuals, frameworks
and systems—you name it, it’s there. But we need people on
the ground to make it happen,” she said.
The side-event also heard presentations from Oseas BarbaránSánchez, President of the Confederación de Nacionalidades
Amazónicas del Perú (Confederation of Amazonian
Nationalities of Peru), who called for more direct climate
finance for Indigenous Peoples who have shown their ability
to manage the ecosystems of the Amazon sustainably;and from Suneetha Subramanian, a Research Fellow at theUnited Nations University-Institute for the Advanced Studyof Sustainability, who described in a video presentation anassessment of fourteen ITTO forest landscape restoration
projects (see full article on page 16), in closing sheemphasized the relevance of stakeholder consultation
for this type of projects.
4 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

Advancing the SDGs
ITTO officials also participated in several other events
during COP28.
At the side-event “Climate and Canopy Amplifying Action for
SDGs 13 & 15 through Primary Forest Conservation”, ITTO
informed the audience of the signature of a memorandumof understanding between the Organization and the UN
Forum on Forests (UNFF) during the 59th session of theInternational Tropical Timber Council, held in Pattaya,
Thailand, in November 2023. The memorandum aims toassist UNFF and ITTO member countries to restore, maintainand sustainably manage tropical forests and promote thesustainable production of timber, non-wood forest products
and ecosystem services, as well as to identify, develop andimplement joint actions to support achievement of the
Global Forest Goals.
ITTO also underlined the wealth of knowledge and experience
gained from the implementation of about 1200 field projects
across the tropics since it became operational 36 years ago.
The projects have promoted the conservation, restorationand sustainable management, use and trade of tropical forest
resources. ITTO’s capacities represent a valuable resource
for accelerating actions that favour the sustainable use andconservation of remaining tropical primary forests.
The objective of the event, jointly organized by the Foodand Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, theGlobal Environment Facility, the International Union forConservation of Nature and the UNFF, was to foster better
understanding and awareness of the importance of primary
forests and to explore concrete next steps to champion theirconservation and maximize their contribution to Sustainable
Development Goals 13 (Climate action) and 15 (Life on land).

SFM supporters: Speakers at the side-event “Sustainable Forest
Management for the Mitigation and Adaptation against Climate Change”,
held at the Japan pavilion. Photo: S. Kawaguchi/ITTO

Focus on youth: ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru speaks at the“Dialogue and new experiences for climate action and care of the planet”
during COP28. Photo: S. Kawaguchi/ITTO

At the Congo Basin Forest Partnership multi-stakeholder
dialogue entitled “The Central African Forests, vital global
biodiversity and carbon reserves: a major challenge fordomestic and international mobilization”, ITTO Executive
Director Sheam Satkuru highlighted ITTO’s longstanding
partnership with Congo Basin countries and how its fieldprojects have supported the goals of the Central African
Forest Commission (COMIFAC). She said that ITTO stands
ready to strengthen collaboration with the Central African
Forest Initiative and the Green Climate Fund for the
execution of joint projects in support of the Declaration ofCommitment of COMIFAC Member States for the Forestsof Central Africa and the Call for Equitable Financing.

Momentum for change

Sustainable wood use
Meanwhile, in a side-event titled “Sustainable Forest
Management for the Mitigation and Adaptation against
Climate Change” at the Japan Pavilion, Ms Satkuru explained
how sustainable wood use can contribute to climate change
mitigation by adding value to forests—a key factor in reducing
their conversion to other land-uses.

Ms Satkuru also took part in a discussion entitled “Dialogue
and new experiences for climate action and care of the planet”
organized by the United Nations Development Programme
and non-governmental organization Istituto Buddhista
Italiano Soka Gakkai at the Italian Pavilion. The discussion
focused on how to generate momentum for transformationalchange, including further engagement with youth.
ITTO also participated in the session “Promoting Robust
Sustainable Mangrove Ecosystems Governance” at theIndonesian pavilion and jointly organized by ITTO, theCenter for International Forestry Research-World Agroforestry
Centre (CIFOR-ICRAF), the Ministry of Environment andForestry of Indonesia and PT. Nusantara Carbon/PT.
Kandelia Alam.
Ms Satkuru moderated the session, where ITTO’s Hwan
Ok-Ma described ITTO support for the development of aregional strategy for sustainable mangrove ecosystems by
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

She highlighted ongoing case studies by ITTO in
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Viet Nam with the aimof strengthening the domestic use of wood as a substitutefor less environmentally friendly materials. The use ofsustainable wood offers great potential to cut the constructionindustry’s greenhouse gas emissions and assist countries
to fulfil their commitments under the Paris Agreement.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 5

Donors pledge new funds at Council session
The most recent
session of theInternational Tropical
Timber Council
also discussed theOrganization’s policy
and project portfolio
and made a range
of decisions
by the ITTO Secretariat(itto@itto.int)

Food for thought: ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru addresses the International Tropical Timber Council, whose members supported theOrganization with an additional USD 6.16 million. Photo: Nonthaphat Saetan/ITTO

Convening in its 59th session in Pattaya, Thailand, on
13–17 November 2024, the International Tropical Timber
Council made five decisions, including one that endorsed
seven new projects and one new pre-project and formalized
the financing of five projects and 25 activities, with funding
totalling USD 6.16 million.
Other decisions addressed the administrative budget for
2024–2025 (Decision 2(LIX)); the Biennial Work Programmefor 2024–2025 (Decision 3(LIX)); the management of the
Administrative Budget (Decision 4(LIX)); and matterspertaining to the possible extension of the International
Tropical Timber Agreement, 2006 (Decision 5(LIX)).
Of the total amount of donor funds announced during thesession, Japan contributed USD 2.01 million, Macao SAR,
China, USD 1.53 million, Germany USD 1.41 million, theRepublic of Korea USD 579 000, the United States of America
USD 551 000 and Finland USD 5000; private organizations
Soka Gakkai (USD 75 000) and Kisso-an (USD 2600) also
made contributions.1

Projects fundedAmong other things, these funds will be used in ITTO
initiatives to help raise the living standards of communities
in the collective territory of Bajo Calima, Colombia, with afocus on gender equality and the empowerment of women[PD 916/21 Rev.2]; conserve African barwood (Pterocarpus
erinaceus) in the gazetted forests of Palée and Boundiali
in the Bagoue region of northern Côte d’Ivoire [PD 808/16
Rev.5 (F) Phase I]; enhance and diversify the domestic
consumption of sustainable wood and wood products
in Malaysia and promote local markets [PD 935/23 (I)];
1 Numbers are rounded. Some of the funding indicated here was announced before
the Council session.

6 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

strengthen and consolidate Cameroon’s national process foraddressing illegal logging and associated trade [CN-21009];
and promote community-based restoration and management
regimes in cyclone-affected degraded mangrove forests in
the Rewa Delta, Fiji [PP-A/59-351].
Funds were also committed for second phases of the Global
Timber Index Platform [PP-A/53-323I]; a project to develop
blockchain-based timber traceability systems [PP-A/53-323J];
and a project to promote high-quality production of teakand other valuable species in plantations among smallholders
and communities in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Myanmar,
Thailand, Togo and Viet Nam [PP-A/54-331A]. The third
phase of a project in Togo to support forest landscaperestoration led by women’s groups [PP-A/56-341B] wasfinanced, along with various other activities in the Biennial
Work Programme, such as work to enhance cooperation
between ITTO and the Convention on International Tradein Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Sixteen
young and mid-career forestry professionals (including five
women) were awarded ITTO Fellowships, at a total value of
USD 107 000. Other projects and activities received partial
funding and will commence should the balance of funding
be forthcoming.2
Under Decision 4(LIX), the Council adopted a trial measure
to allow members that are ineligible to submit project
proposals and concept notes because of arrears in theirassessed contributions to the Administrative Budget tosubmit one project proposal or one concept note for every
two years of arrears paid, provided that a payment plan for
the total arrears owed is submitted at the same time. Under
Decision 5(LIX), the Council will take a decision without
meeting by 1 June 2024 on the question of whether the ITTA,
2006 will be extended for three years to December 2029.
2 The full list of activities receiving voluntary contributions is contained in Decision
1 of the session, which is available at www.itto.int/council_committees/decisions.

Also during the session, ITTO’s executive director andthe director of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF) signed
a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to increasecooperation between the two bodies (Box 1).
In his closing remarks on the final day of the session, Council
Chair Mohammed Nurudeen Idrissu referred to the Tradeand Markets Day (Box 2), conducted on day 2 of the session,
as “an extremely important part of the Council’s calendar”.
He informed the Council that all presentations from the
Day are available on the ITTO website, and he encourageddelegates to use these resources to help inform decisions
and policies in their countries.

“I remind you that ITTO has generated many such
resources over its long history,” said Dr Idrissu. “We should
not undervalue this immense body of work and the extent
to which it has helped shaped policies on sustainable forest
management and the timber trade globally, nationallyand locally.”
Dr Idrissu thanked Ms Satkuru for her steadfast guidanceover the course of the session, and two retiring membersof the Secretariat, Steven Johnson and Hwan Ok Ma, fortheir outstanding contributions to the Organization overtheir careers.
The 60th Session of the International Tropical Timber Council
will be held in Yokohama, Japan, on 1–6 December 2024.

Together for forests: The directors of ITTO (left) and UNFF signed a new memorandum of understanding to deepen theirorganizations’ cooperation. Photo: Nonthaphat Saetan/ITTOBox 1: ITTO and UN Forum on Forests strengthen
cooperation on tropical forests

Ms Satkuru said the joint initiative is an opportunity to takeadvantage of complementarities between ITTO and UNFF.

ITTO and the UNFF Secretariat will work more closely together inassisting tropical countries and stakeholders to conserve, restore
and sustainably manage their forests under an MOU signed during
the Council session by ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru
and UNFF Director Juliette Biao.

“Both ITTO and the UNFF Secretariat are strong supporters oftropical countries and their efforts to use and conserve theirforests as part of their sustainable development,” she said.
“We have complementary mandates and approaches, so it makes
sense for us to combine forces in areas of mutual interest, thereby
magnifying our impacts.”

The overall objective of the joint initiative is to support UNFF
and ITTO member countries to restore, maintain and sustainably
manage tropical forests and promote the sustainable productionof timber, non-wood forest products and ecosystem services.
The two bodies will identify, develop and implement joint actions
to support achievement of the six Global Forest Goals and thesustainable development of ITTO producer members, promote
capacity building in ITTO producer countries, enhance collaboration
with other partners, and increase forest cover in the tropics.

“This MOU is timely and has the potential to enhance thecontributions of ITTO country members who are also members of
the broader UNFF membership to implement the UN Strategic
Plan on Forests 2017–2030 and its Global Forest Goals andother forest-related global agendas,” said Dr Biao.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 7

… Donors pledge new funds at Council session

Box 2: Trade and Market Day discusses new European
Union deforestation regulation

The European Union’s new regulation on deforestation-free andforest-degradation-free supply chains, known as the EUDR, wasthe topic of lively discussion on the Trade and Markets Day, held
during the Council session, with some members and the Trade
Advisory Group (TAG) expressing concern about potential
consequences of the regulation.
The Council convenes Trade and Markets Day during each session
to explore developments and trends relevant to the tropical timber
sector. It comprises diverse presentations by experts from aroundthe world and culminates in the Annual Market Discussion,organized by TAG. At the 59th session, the Civil Society Advisory
Group (CSAG) also organized a segment of the Day, which (among
other things) explored the implications of the EUDR for smallholders
and community forestry.
Speaking during the CSAG segment, Laurent Lourdais from the
Delegation of the European Union to Thailand provided an overview
of the EUDR. He said the expansion of agricultural land is the main
driver of deforestation and this, in turn, is strongly linked to the
production of agricultural commodities. The EUDR is designed to
exclude from European Union markets commodities linked to suchdeforestation and also to forest degradation. The EUDR enteredinto force on 29 June 2023, and its obligations for operatorsand traders will apply from December 2024.

Franz-Xaver Kraft and Nils Olaf Peterson of The German Timber
Trade Federation presented on the implications of the EUDR for
timber importers in Europe. For example, anyone can submit“substantiated concerns” about non-compliance that authorities
must investigate. Mr Kraft said this was a double-edged sword.
On the one hand, non-governmental organizations might be able
to help in detecting actual cases of non-compliance with the EUDR.
There was fear, however, that use of the provision could hinder
imports and disrupt legitimate trade.

Mr Lourdais said the EUDR creates mandatory due-diligence rules
for all operators that place relevant products on the European
Union market or export them from the European Union. One of therequirements is strict traceability linking the commodity to theplot of land where it is produced. A benchmarking system willassign risk categories to countries or regions according to therisk of deforestation, for which data-gathering would start soon.

Mr Kraft forecast that, for large tropical timber companies,
compliance with the EUDR should not present major challenges
because they are already well prepared. But it will be a significant
challenge for smallholder producers to comply.

Also speaking during the CSAG segment, Chandra Silori, Deputy
Executive Director of RECOFTC, which works with community
forestry groups in the Asia-Pacific region, outlined some of thechallenges the EUDR presents to smallholders. For example, they
will likely be asked to provide more information than before, suchas on the geolocation of their land, and there will be more scrutiny
on whether they are complying with national laws and regulations.
“We see this regulation as promising for reducing deforestationand forest degradation and promoting biodiversity conservationand meeting the [Sustainable Development Goals], but there aremany challenges on how these will be applied on the ground,especially for smallholders,” Dr Silori said.
This point was touched on by Stephen Midgley, speaking during
the Annual Market Discussion. He said the EUDR and othertrade-related regulations cause headaches for small growers,
increasing costs for which they are not compensated.

Daily highlights of the session and presentations are availableat www.itto.int/ittc-59
Daily coverage of the session by the International Instituteon Sustainable Development’s Earth Negotiations Bulletin
is available at https://enb.iisd.org/ittc59-internationaltropical-timber-council

8 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

Hot topic: European Union delegates fielded questions about the
impact of bloc’s new deforestation regulation during the Council’s
Trade and Market Day. Photo: Nonthaphat Saetan/ITTO

ITTO members that made interventions related to the EUDR during
Trade and Markets Day included Brazil, New Zealand, Peru, theUnited States of America and Viet Nam, in addition to the European
Commission. Issues raised from the floor included:• the potential impacts of the EUDR on smallholders, who maylack the technologies and even literacy needed to comply withthe regulation;• the difficulties presented by complex supply chains for many

timber products;• whether the replanting of a forest destroyed by wildfire

would constitute deforestation (or forest degradation)
under the regulation;• the short timeframe for implementation of the EUDR; and• whether the EUDR made the European Union’s Forest Law

Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) voluntary
partnership agreement (VPA) process redundant.

ITTO secures Green Climate Fund accreditation
With its successful
application, ITTO has
become one of 128
Green Climate Fundpartners channelling
resources to climate
projects in developing
countries
by ITTO Secretariat(itto@itto.int)

Onboarded: ITTO is now listed as an Accredited Entity on the website of the Global Climate Fund. Photo: GCF website

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has approved ITTO’s
application for accreditation, opening the way for theOrganization to become an official partner in channelling
GCF resources to climate projects in developing countries.
The GCF Board gave ITTO’s application the green light at
its 38th session in Kigali, Rwanda on 5 March 2024. ITTO
is now a GCF Accredited Entity (AE) and fully meets GCF
requirements, including its specialized fiduciary standard
for project management. GCF now has a total of 128 AEs.
GCF invests in climate-change mitigation and adaptation withthe goal of driving a paradigm shift towards low-emission
and climate-resilient development pathways. AEs may
develop funding proposals for GCF consideration andoversee, supervise, manage and monitor their GCF-approved
projects and programmes. The GCF’s project portfolio isvalued at more than USD 11 billion.

Optimistic outlook“This accreditation is an excellent milestone and wonderfulnews for ITTO and its members because it confirms that
ITTO is now a GCF-approved international organization
enabled to execute GCF projects in line with the GCF’s
Strategic Plan 2024–2027, ITTO’s governance structure
and the ITTO Strategic Action Plan 2022–2026,” said ITTO
Executive Director Sheam Satkuru. “This provides grounds
for optimism for ITTO’s future in addressing members’
priorities that can be supported by the GCF. Moving
forward, ITTO will work very closely in consultation
with the GCF and member countries to identify priority
areas of work for the GCF’s consideration, focusing on theachievement of results on the ground.”With GCF, ITTO aims to propose programmes to scale
up forest landscape restoration and increase the provisionof goods and services from planted and restored forests
in ITTO tropical member countries, and to advance legal
and sustainable supply chain for tropical timber.

Watch the streaming video of ITTO’s accreditation by clicking
agenda item 11 to start the video. ITTO’s accreditation starts
at 00:52:40 at www.greenclimate.fund/boardroom/
meeting/b38#videos.
For more details, visit https://www.greenclimate.fund/ae/itto

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 9

Strategies for sustainable development of timber sector identified
Nine actions should
be taken to ensure
the sector’s future,
say participants in
the inaugural Global
Legal and Sustainable
Timber Forumby the ITTO Secretariat(itto@itto.int)

Putting heads together: View of the plenary on the opening of the 2023 Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum. Photo: GGSC/IPIM/ITTO

Timber is a crucial material for a sustainable future, according
to around 700 participants from governments, enterprises,
international organizations and research institutions at
the inaugural Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum(GLSTF), which issued a set of nine actions to ensure thestability of the timber sector’s future based on legal andsustainable forest management and supply chains.

Nine key actions

The Forum, convened jointly by ITTO and the Macao Tradeand Investment Promotion Institute in collaboration with
the Global Green Supply Chain Initiative (GGSC) and heldin Macao SAR, China, on 21–22 November 2023, aimed tobring together key players in the global timber sector andmap a course for its sustainable development.

1) Strong networks and partnerships: there is an urgent
need for strong networks and partnerships built on
mutual respect and trust to support legal and sustainable
forest management and timber supply chains.

“Timber is an environmentally friendly, renewable,
carbon-storing, recyclable material and thus a pillar ofsustainability when produced, processed, traded and usedlegally and sustainably,” said ITTO Executive Director Sheam
Satkuru during the Forum. “We believe in the benefit ofbringing all stakeholders in the sector together because
forests and timber are vital for the planet’s future.”
The world is facing many challenges, such as economic
volatility stemming from the aftermath of the COVID-19
pandemic, global conflicts, trade wars, rising energy prices,climate change, biodiversity loss and resource pressure.
But Forum participants agreed that such challenges
present opportunities for timber to become a cornerstoneof circular bio-economies.
A sustainable and resilient timber industry, it was asserted,
would not only contribute to wealth creation but also support
healthy lifestyles and reduce the risk of climate change. The
sustainable use of timber can also help conserve biodiversity,
soil and water, store carbon, preventing land degradation,and reduce the risk of disasters.
10 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

After two days of presentations and discussions, consensus
emerged among participants about key strategies to promote
the legal and sustainable development of the global timberindustry and accelerate its recovery. These included thefollowing nine key actions:2) Nature-based solutions: building and improving
legal and sustainable timber supply chains should berecognized as key nature-based solutions to local-toglobal challenges.
3) Trade promotion: the trade of legal and sustainabletimber products should be promoted in a stable, fair,transparent and predictable environment to enable therecovery and growth of the global timber industry.
4) Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum:
the Forum is a necessary platform for scaling up
cooperation and information exchange between the
public and private sectors and should be held annually.
5) Global Timber Index: this initiative, which has been
piloted for about a year and was launched officially at
the Forum, improves the quality and regularity of timbermarket information, encourages greater informationexchange in the private sector, and enhances theefficiency of policy formulation. It should be continued
and scaled up.

Forest leaders: ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru (third from the left) and other speakers at the high-level segment of the Forum.
Photo: GGSC/IPIM/ITTO

6) Advanced technology and traceability: the useof new technologies, tools and methodologies should
be encouraged to help ensure the legitimacy andsustainability of timber resources, including theimplementation of sustainable forest managementand digital timber traceability.
7) Financial mechanisms: innovative financial
mechanisms, such as payments for ecosystem services,
should be further developed and used to increase
investment in support of sustainable forest
management and sustainable supply chains.
8) Timber industrial parks: legal and sustainabletimber industrial parks should be established to incubate
enterprises as models for the wider industry, thereby
accelerating the adoption of best practices andadvanced technologies.

9) Support: the global timber industry requires more
support for adopting advanced technologies as a means
for accelerating its sustainable development.
At its conclusion, the Forum urged participants to continue
working together by connecting, cooperating and sharing
knowledge. The inaugural GLSTF, planned to be an annual
event, has emerged as a cornerstone for building thisglobal network.

The Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum 2024
is scheduled to be held on 11–12 September 2024 at the
MGM Cotai resort, Macao SAR, China. For more details,
see the announcement on page 12.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 11

Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum 2024
11–12 September
2024, MGM COTAI
resort, Macao SAR,
China

Recent developments have underlined the need forthe timber industry to intensify collaboration among
stakeholders including producers, buyers, processors
and market players both nationally and internationally.
The industry must address supply chain issues left by
the COVID-19 pandemic and other uncertainties andbridge the widening gap between demand and supply forwood products. Building a collaborative platform for thepromotion of legal and sustainable timber supply chainscan play an important role in sustaining and enhancing
cooperation and the exchange of views and information.
As part of ITTO’s Legal and Sustainable Supply Chain(LSSC) Programme, the Organization and the Macao
Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) haveentered into a collaborative framework agreement toco-host annually the Global Legal and Sustainable Timber
Forum (GLSTF) to accelerate the pursuit of this goal.

Theme and topics

The inaugural Forum, GLSTF 2023, was held in November
2023 in Macao SAR, China, in collaboration with the Global
Green Supply Chains Initiative (GGSC). The first global forum
on how to improve the legality and sustainability of tropicaltimber supply chains, GLSTF 2023 brought together nearly
700 participants from 36 countries (see article on p. 11).
GLSTF 2024 has now been scheduled to take place in
September 2024.

A legal and sustainable timber industry exhibition will beorganized in parallel with GLSTF 2024 with around 30 booths.

Objective
GLSTF 2024 aims is to increase networking, collaboration
and business exchange among timber industry stakeholders
with a view to promoting sustainable forest management,
creating legal and sustainable wood product supply chains,facilitating the legal and sustainable use and trade of wood
products in a stable, transparent and predictable businessenvironment, and contributing to sustainable development
and climate-change mitigation.

Date and venue
GLSTF 2024 is scheduled to be held on 11–12 September
2024 at the MGM COTAI resort, Macao SAR, China.

Co-hosts and organizer
The Forum will be co-hosted by ITTO and Macao IPIM andorganized by the GGSC Secretariat. Specialized sub-forums
will be co-organized by partner agencies; ITTO, IPIM andthe GGSC Secretariat may also organize sub-forums.

Forum structure
Like the inaugural event, GLSTF 2024 will have twocomponents:
1) The Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum(main forum)
2) Four specialized sub-forums

12 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

The theme of GLSTF 2024 will be “Together Towards
Reliable and Effective Global Timber Supply Chains”.
The main forum will discuss topics related to reliable andstable timber resource supplies, trust and effectiveness along
timber supply chains, and prospects for revitalizing global
timber supply chains.
Specialized sub-forums organized by partner agencies willcontribute to the theme, with selected topics related to timber
legality and sustainability; sustainable timber resources,
markets and trade; advanced technology and machinery
for wood processing; and green finance and innovative
facilitating measures.

Legal and sustainable timber industry exhibition

Other events and activities
The achievements of initiatives including the Global Timber
Index and work to create blockchain-based timber tracking
systems will be presented at GLSTF 2024. Other activities
and side-events, such as B2B matchings, will be arranged
accordingly.

Participants
GLSTF 2024 is expected to attract around 700 representativesof stakeholders including wood enterprises and trading
companies, industrial and business associations, governments,
international organizations and research institutions.

Languages
The Forum will feature simultaneous interpretation in
Chinese (Mandarin), English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

Details of the venue, registration procedures andaccommodation will be posted on ITTO’s website in due courseat www.itto.int/events. For more information contact also:
ITTO Mr Li Qiang at li@itto.int; IPIM Mr Steve CHAN at
pcel@ipim.gov.mo; or GGSC Secretariat Ms Gao Xuting
at gaoxuting@itto-ggsc.org.

Strengthening forest governance in Panama
ITTO projects
have advanced
sustainable forest
management andsupported farreaching changes inPanama’s forest policy
by Jorge Malleux
Consultant(jmalleux@gmail.com)

Operational and sustainable: The STCP is already operational in the Darien region and the Government of Panama is planning to expand it acrossthe country. Photo: R. Carrillo/ITTO

Panama has been a regular recipient of ITTO support forthe sustainable management of tropical forests, with several
inter-related projects implemented in recent years. The
impact of these projects is evident in many areas, including
in strengthened national forest governance, monitoring andpolicy as well as greater awareness among local communities
and the private sector of the value of well-managed forests.
This article focuses on the achievements of a project tostrengthen the management capacity of Panama’s Ministryof Environment (MiAmbiente) to reduce illegal logging
and trade in the eastern Bayano and Darien regions of thecountry.1 Funded through the ITTO Thematic Programmeon Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade, theproject was implemented between 2016 and 2019 by WWF
and the ministry. The article summarizes the findings of an
ex-post evaluation conducted from July to September 2023
and presented at the 59th Session of the International Tropical
Timber Council in November 2023.

National effort
The government of Panama has been working for many
years to improve forest governance in the country. Following
a 2003 government directive declaring principles andguidelines for the country’s forestry policy, the National
Environmental Authority (ANAM)2 issued the National
Forest Development Plan in 2008 with an aim to achievesustainable forest development.
The plan resulted from an analysis of the country’s needs
and of the institutions responsible for forest management.
1 Project TFL-PD 044/13 Rev.2 (M): “Strengthening of ANAM’s management capacity
to reduce illegal logging and trade in the Eastern Region of Panama (Bayano andDarien) through monitoring and control mechanisms.”
2 The National Environmental Authority (Autoridad Nacional del Ambiente (ANAM))
became the Ministry of Environment (MiAmbiente) in 2015.

It includes several programmes, including the Forest
Administration Programme, which proposed actions toimprove oversight and control, monitoring, and the increased
participation of stakeholders in the timber production andmarketing chain.
The plan also gave rise to a programme to promote
community forest management, with financial support
through an ITTO project3 that extended the area undersustainable forest management in the forest lands of the
Emberá-Wounaan Comarca, an Indigenous people in Darien
province, which was implemented by WWF between 2009 and2011. Within the framework of this project, an analysis of theinstitutional, administrative, economic and social factors
leading to illegal logging in Eastern Panama was carried out
and a draft strategy for its prevention and control was produced.
The strategy4, which drew on consultations with a wide rangeof stakeholders, underscored the urgency of strengthening
forest governance in the region, and was in line with otherforest development initiatives promoted by ANAM with thesupport of ITTO and donors including the United States and theEuropean Commission. Another of its key aims was to bring
350 000 hectares under sustainable forest management to meetthe demand for raw materials from local forest industries.
Following the strategy described above, the ITTO projectto strengthen MiAmbiente’s management capacity focusedon systems of monitoring, control and traceability as well
as forest law enforcement, with the overarching goals of
improving forest governance and countering forest
degradation from illegal and unsustainable activities.
3 PD 405/06 Rev. 3 (F): “Extending the area under sustainable forest managementin the forest lands of the Emberá-Wounaan Comarca, Darien, Panama.”
4 The National Forestry Strategy 2018-2050, approved by Decree No 20 (Gaceta Oficial
Nº 28.745, 2 de abril de 2019), also aims to increase forest cover, stimulate thesustainable forestry industry, conserve forest heritage and mitigate the effects ofclimate change.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 13

… Strengthening forest governance in Panama

Kicking-off the evaluation: The author (second from the left) and project
staff visiting the office of Panama’s vice-minister of environment (third fromthe left) to launch the evaluation. Photo: J. Malleux

Multiple outcomes
As well as building capacity for STCF, the ITTO projecttrained and equipped staff at MiAmbiente and the new
National Forest Directorate to enable them to monitor
forest management units in remote regions, including
using aerial drones.

Corroborating the system: The author (second from the right)
verifying the operation of the STCF. Photo: J. Malleux

Monitoring and verification
Central to the project outcomes was the establishmentof a forest monitoring and verification system (Sistema deTrazabilidad y Control Forestal (STCF)) to close off avenues
for illegal timber harvesting. The system was piloted in
Darien and Eastern Panama with the goal of replicating
it in other regions.
STCF involves the identification of individual trees in forest
inventories and the tracking of harvested logs and pieces
using electronic chips attached to each tree. The system
also records data on logging permits, transport waybills
and generates geolocated statistical data for monitoringand decision-making in sustainable forest management.5
In the pilot regions, STCF enabled the monitoring offlows of legal timber from both natural and planted forests
through storage yards and processing facilities to wholesalers.
It streamlined the issuing of permits and the clearing of
shipments along transport routes. The system also createdmore transparency in the management of forest resources,
fostering its acceptance among users and other stakeholders.

The project’s area of direct influence was extended7 to
the Panamanian section of the Choco Darien Ecoregional
Complex, a region where 42.8% of Panama’s native forests
are located, over 80% of them in Indigenous territories.
Another important outcome was the establishment of a
network for trading legal timber. The Network for Legal
Timber was established with 11 organizations that signed
commitments to adopt responsible purchasing policies.
The project also had an important catalytic effect inhelping Panama attract strategic partners as well as
additional funding and technical support for larger forestrelated projects by the Global Environment Facility and the
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
The strengthened systems have helped communities tobetter understand the condition of their forests and thevalue of sustainably produced timber. This has improved
their ability to negotiate with third parties and led to
improvements in their income from forestry activities, thus
further incentivizing the conservation of forest resources.
Civil society also participated in the project throughthe Forest Oversight Programme (Programa de Veeduría
Forestal), which was formally adopted by MiAmbiente.
The programme provides a mechanism for individuals,
community organizations and civil society groups tomonitor forest management.

The government aims to replicate STCF, which was linked
to the country’s integrated control system under a decree
issued in 2018, in other regions. In 2023, the Ministry ofEnvironment initiated a training programme for technicalstaff across the country on the application of the system.6
5 For details of the system, see also the article beginning on page 13 of TFU 29-1,
available at: www.itto.int/tfu/back_issues
6 www.miambiente.gob.pa/miambiente-actualiza-a-tecnicos-en-trazabilidad-delsistema-forestal-en-panama-oeste/

14 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

7 With respect to the objectives established by ANAM, this project has contributed toan improvement in the incorporation of at least 350 000 hectares of natural forests
into a sustainable forest management regime in the Darién region.

Talking legal trade: The author consulting representatives of Orozco enterprises, a Panamanian timber company. Photo: J. Malleux

Sustainable impacts
Many outcomes of the ITTO project have proven to besustainable. The building of MiAmbiente’s technical capacity
has been effective in strengthening and consolidating national
efforts to improve forest sector governance and combat
illegal logging, as well as in building responsible institutions
both at the national and regional levels. The STCF has also
been improved.
In addition, the STCF has had a positive impact on forest
communities, which now understand better the conditionand value of their forests. This has given them tools tonegotiate more effectively with other parties, leading to
improvement of their incomes and the management of
their forest management units.

In a further demonstration of ITTO’s support for SFM andgood forest governance in Panama, a follow-up project8 aims
to further strengthen forest monitoring in the country, extend
the STCF’s coverage nationwide, implement a scheme ofsimplified forest management plans, and strengthen thelegal timber network.

The summary of the ex-post evaluation report is available
as document CEM-CFI(LVII)/4 at www.itto.int/council_
committees/documents/?pageID=2. The full ex-post
evaluation report (in Spanish) is available upon requestfrom the ITTO Secretariat at ti@itto.int
Outputs of the projects mentioned in this article can befound by inserting the project codes into the ITTO project
search function at www.itto.int/project_search.

8 PD 913/20 Rev.4 (M) “Strengthening Forest Monitoring and Extending the Coverageof The Traceability System in Panama”.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 15

Advancing forest landscape restoration in the tropics
A new reportexamines experiences
gained and lessons
learned on enhancing
socioecologicalresilience in
ITTO projects
by Suneetha M.
Subramanian
Research Fellow, United Nations
University-Institute for the Advanced
Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)(subramanians@unu.edu)

Hands-on approach: Women working to restore a degraded forest landscape in Togo. Photo: Soka Gakkai

Landscape restoration is focused on rejuvenating theecological integrity of a landscape to benefit both its humanand natural components economically, environmentallyand socially. As an integrated strategy, it aims to holisticallyaddress issues of land degradation, making clear linkages
between underlying and direct drivers and the state of thelandscape (Sabogal et al, 2015; UNEP and FAO, 2022). These
drivers derive from natural events, but several are linked
to political, economic and socio-cultural decisions madeby various actors operating in the landscape (Nishi andSubramanian, 2023). Hence, landscape restoration is also
a vehicle for deliberation between stakeholders regarding
multiple use priorities of land and resources. It is also an
exercise in identifying which ones could lead to sustainableoutcomes and lower trade-offs.
Following this concept, forest landscape restoration (FLR) is
an ongoing process of regaining ecological functionality andenhancing human wellbeing across degraded and deforested
forest landscapes. It focuses on active participation, adaptive
management and the establishment of a consistent monitoring
framework (ITTO, 2020; IUCN et al, 2023). It is also an effort
to ensure that all stakeholders, from local communities tobusinesses and policymakers, are fully involved in the design
and implementation of FLR-related activities. This affirmsthat everyone in the landscape is engaged in practices alignedwith sustainability that would minimize the risks of negativetrade-offs and conflicts over potential land uses.
ITTO offers guidance on principles of FLR developed by
the Global Partnership on Forest and Landscape Restoration.
The six principles are:
1. Ensure the focus is kept on entire landscapes rather
than individual sites
2. Engage stakeholders and support participatory governance
3. Restore multiple landscape functions for multiple benefits
16 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

4. Maintain and enhance natural forest ecosystems
within landscapes
5. Tailor interventions to local contexts
6. Manage adaptively for long-term resilience
Using these principles, ITTO has been fostering FLR by
supporting its implementation through field projects indifferent countries.
This article presents findings from a joint policy reportpublished by United Nations University-Institute for the
Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) and ITTO1
analyzing case studies of 14 ITTO-funded projects acrossthe tropics (see Table 1) to identify lessons regarding
the effectiveness of FLR in achieving socio-ecologicalresilience as well as challenges encountered in its design
and implementation. This report also examined how wellgender considerations were included in project activities.
The main implementing agencies for the projects were
forestry-related institutions. Their primary interest was toconserve forest species and native germplasm and maintain orenhance forest ecosystem integrity within the broader pursuitof forest restoration. Most projects adopted a landscapeapproach factoring in the necessity to include other land
uses around the forest ecosystem, and working with otherstakeholders including local communities, academics andother departments to identify solutions that work for all
actors. In the process, emphasis was placed on stakeholder
consultations, training for youth and women members ofcommunities to address their motivations and, importantly,
co-designing options to augment livelihood through better
cropping practices and opportunities to add value.
1 The full report, titled “Advancing Forest Landscape Restoration in the Tropics:
Experiences and Lessons for Socio-Ecological Resilience and Empowerment of
Women in ITTO Projects”, is available at: www.itto.int/other_technical_reports/

Landscape approach: An ITTO-supported project in the Cibodas Biosphere Reserve, Indonesia, was one of 14 analyzed in the new report. Photo: Anggia Ananda
Table 1: ITTO projects analyzed in the report and their main focus areas
Project title/area

Country (code for site)

Focus activities

Sustainable management of production forests at the commercial
scale in the Brazilian Amazon

Brazil (BRA)

Develop a software application and platform to monitor and manage sustainable forest
management with data integration and stakeholder collaboration

Increasing commercial reforestation competitiveness in Costa Rica

Costa Rica (CRA)

Community livelihood development and enhancing competitiveness of commercial
reforestation through an effective financing system

Community-based restoration and sustainable managementof vulnerable forests of the Rewa Delta, Viti Levu

Fiji (FJI)

Tackle illegal trade in wood and non-wood products and strengthen the governanceframework for sustainable mangrove management

Sustainable pure and mixed forest plantation development in thetransitional zone of Ghana’s Biakoye district assembly, employing
poverty reduction strategies

Ghana (GHA)

Promote planting of mixed indigenous timber species of commercial value andsupport development of intercropping of staple food crops

Encouraging customary landowners in the lowlands of Papua New
Guinea’s Central Province to reforest their grasslands with highvalue trees

Papua New Guinea (PNG)

Community reforestation through customized training, awareness raising and support,
including forestry using well-suited species and food crop production

Development of a regional strategy for the restoration andrehabilitation of degraded areas on the south coast of Peru

Peru (PER)

Develop a land management tool to improve environmental and socioeconomic
conditions through restoration of degraded lands and sustainable forestry andagroforestry systems

Improving forest functions in Bengkulu Province through community
participation in rehabilitation of degraded forests by using local
prospective commodities

Indonesia (IND-B)

Implement appropriate technology for production of quality planting materials,
and improve stakeholder involvement and community wellbeing through forest
and land rehabilitation

Initiating the conservation of Cempaka species through plantation
development with local community participation in North Sulawesi

Indonesia IND (C)Focus on enhancing Cempaka species restoration and production through community
participation

Accelerating the restoration of Cibodas Biosphere Reserve functions
through proper management of landscapes involving local stakeholders

Indonesia IND (CBR)

Address inadequate conservation and sustainable management of biodiversity andecosystems in the biosphere reserve through integrated strategic management plans
involving stakeholders in the landscape

Capacity building on forest and land fire management in Indonesia

Indonesia (IND-FM)

Participatory approaches to prevent forest fires engaging multiple stakeholders

Enhancing the implementation of landscape managementof Giam-Siak Kecil-Bukit Batu Biosphere Reserve (GSK-BR)
in Riao Province of Sumatra Island, Sumatra, Indonesia

Indonesia (IND-GSK)

Sustainable management and conservation of the biosphere reserve, strengtheningof institutional capacity, enhancing of stakeholder partnerships

Support for women’s groups with the restoration of forest
landscapes in the Prefectures of Blitta and Lacs, Togo

Togo (TGO-BL)

Food security, energy security and income generation from wood and non-wood
products, empowering women groups

Support for operational and planning capacity building forstakeholders in the private and community forestry sector in Togo

Togo (TGO-CF)

Enhance forest cover of Togo by 30% by 2050

Enhancing conservation and sustainable management of teakforests and legal and sustainable wood supply chains in the
Greater Mekong Sub-region

Thailand, Myanmar, Lao
People’s Democratic Republic,
Cambodia, Viet Nam (MKG)

Conserve natural teak forests and enhancing teak plantation forests, strengthencommunity- based forestry and agroforestry activities, and enhance regional andinternational collaboration for information sharing, networking and policy development
ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 17

… Advancing forest landscape restoration in the tropics
socio-ecological resilience, a broader pursuit that calls forengagement and consultations with diverse stakeholders
in a landscape, mapping and taking stock of resources andecosystem integrity, co-designing management plans anddecisions on the use of land- and seascapes that factor in
specificities (e.g. culture, economy, demography, gender,
natural assets) and thereby minimize negative trade-offs.

Based on their completion reports, the 14 projects wereassessed against the FLR principles. They were scored on
their design, implementation and outcomes. Broad trends
and gaps in implementing FLR were identified (see Table 2).
The analysis shows that the projects incorporated FLR
principles in most respects. However, they were lessconsistent in their reflection of gender priorities.

The analysis also helped to identify critical areas to focus
on to ensure FLR interventions can be effective, including:

Challenges for FLR• Investing in education and awareness-raisingon FLR-related practices across stakeholder groups

The most common challenges to successful FLR
implementation identified across the case studies include:
poverty resulting in overexploitation of forest resources, orunsustainable production practices that adversely impact
forest ecosystems; poor law enforcement to check
environmental degradation and enhance forest conservation;
inadequate capacities, skills and awareness about FLR among
stakeholders from policymakers to local communities; disputes
and consequent lack of trust between stakeholders requiring
measures to build confidence, capacity and awareness; rural
migration in search of better economic opportunities thatdeprives the landscape of manpower and skills; and poor
resources and infrastructure including human, technicaland financial resources (see Table 3).

• Meaningful community-level consultation
to co-design interventions• Building trust and consensus among stakeholders• Identifying socio-ecological resilience and wellbeing issues• Identifying and supporting the development ofalternative economic activities• Establishing joint monitoring and assessment teams
between state and non-state actors• Setting up systems of rewards and incentives for goodpractices to encourage uptake of concepts and practiceof FLR

Addressing these challenges through consultative anddeliberative processes is key to ensuring that the complex
interdependencies between people and nature in theforest landscape are well factored into the design of FLR
interventions. This enables the achievement of enhanced• Ensuring greater representation of marginalized groups,
especially women and youth, to address their priorities andfurther assure the process of FLR is equitable and justTable 2: Incorporation of FLR principles in the projects (X = Low, XX = medium, XXX = high)Principle

BRA

CRA

FJI

GHA

IND-B

IND-C

IND-CBR

IND-FW

IND-GSKPNG

PER

Focus on landscapes

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

X

X

XXX

XXX

XX

X

XXX

XXX

XX

XXX

Engage stakeholders andparticipatory governance

XXX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XXX

Restore multiple functions
for multiple benefits

XX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

X

XXX

XX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

XX

Maintain and enhancenatural forest ecosystems
within landscapes

XX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

X

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

Tailor to the local context
using variety of approaches

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XX

X

XXX

XXX

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

XXX

Manage adaptively forlong-term resilience

XX

XX

XXX

XXX

XX

XX

XXX

XXX

XX

XX

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

X

XXX

XX

XXX

XXX

XXX

Gender priorities

X

TGO-BL TGO-CF

MKG

Table 3: Challenges encountered in FLR project implementation
Challenges identified

BRA

Poverty

CRA

FJI

GHA

IND-B

IND-C

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

Poor enforcement
Lack of capacity and awareness, information

X
X

Rural migration linked to poverty on site

18 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

IND-FW

X

Poor resources, infrastructure
Disputes between stakeholders

IND-CBR

X

X

X

X
X

X

PNG

PER

TGO-BLTGO-CF

MKG

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X
X

X
X

IND-GSKX
X

X
XFrom a research and policy standpoint, the findings from thestudy show the need to promote transdisciplinary approaches,
encourage multi-stakeholder discussions on socio-ecologicalresilience, embed FLR principles in all forestry-related
implementation policies, design and implement appropriate
capacity development programmes, and ensure that principlesof equity, including gender-sensitive plans, are deeply
entrenched in policy plans and programmes.

References
Sabogal, C., Besacier, C., and McGuire, D. 2015. Forest and landscaperestoration: Concepts, approaches and challenges for implementation.
Unasylva 66, (245): 3-10.
UNEP and FAO. 2022. Action plan for the UN decade on ecosystem
restoration, 2021–2030.
Nishi, M., and Subramanian, S.M. (Eds). 2023, Ecosystem Restoration
through Managing Socio-Ecological Production Landscapes andSeascapes (SEPLS). Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review Series.
Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-1292-6
Community-based approach: A Nasilai woman plants an indigenous
fruit tree behind a mangrove forest. Photo: Aporosa Ramulo Livani,
Ministry of Forestry, Fiji

ITTO, 2020. Guidelines for forest landscape restoration in the
Tropics-Policy Brief. ITTO, Yokohama.
IUCN, FAO and UNEP. 2023. The Restoration Initiative: 2022 Yearin Review. Rome.

Two new directors appointed
to ITTO Secretariat
ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru has appointed
Jennifer Conje and Mohammed Nurudeen Iddrisu as directorsof the Division of Forest Management and the Division ofTrade and Industry, respectively. Ms Conje and Dr Iddrisu
both took up their appointments in February.
Ms Conje, a national of the United States of America,
was previously Assistant Director of Policy – International
Programs at the United States Department of Agriculture
Forest Service. She has worked on forest policy and project
development for more than 23 years, spanning issues such as
illegal logging, climate change, forest products trade, biomass,and conservation. She was Chair of the International Tropical
Timber Council in 2016 and has also served the Council
in various other capacities. She recently finished a two-year
term as Chair of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
Experts Group on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade.
Dr Iddrisu, a national of Ghana, was previously with the
Ghana Forestry Commission, where he held several positions,
including Executive Director of the Timber Industry
Development Division and Director of Operations. He has
worked in the forest sector for about 30 years, involving
teaching, academic research and work with smallholders,
the timber industry, regional and state governments, andnational (federal) programmes. He has a master’s degree

in forest resource management from the University of Pinardel Río, Cuba, and a doctorate in forest genetics from the
University of British Columbia, Canada. He was Chair of theInternational Tropical Timber Council in 2023 and has also
served the Council in different capacities.
Ms Satkuru said she was delighted to bring such a wealthof experience into the Secretariat.
“Both Jennifer and Nurudeen are highly experienced andtalented professionals with a longstanding commitment tointernational cooperation,” she said. “Both have also showna deep understanding of ITTO and a passion for its mission.
I welcome them to the Secretariat and look forward toworking with them.”
The appointments follow the retirement of two experienced
ITTO staff members, Steven Johnson and Hwan Ok Ma.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 19

Using genetics to identify dipterocarps in Southeast Asia
An ITTO Fellow isdeveloping DNA tests
to identify the species
and geographic
provenance ofSoutheast Asian
members of
the family
Dipterocarpaceae
by Melita Low(melita.low@adelaide.edu.au)

Spreading knowledge: ITTO Fellow Melita Low presented findings from her research at the IUFRO Div 5 Conference in Cairns, Australia in June 2023.
Photo: Trinh Huynh

My journey to tropical timber research was not direct
and started with a Bachelor of Science majoring in botany,
zoology and ecology; an honours year exploring chemical
uptake in fish ear bones; three years scuba diving withgiant Australian cuttlefish investigating their population
structure; followed by ten years assessing and managing
environmental impacts in aviation, mining and integrated
water management.

Borneo in focus

Driven by a resolute desire to return to research and aserendipitous conversation with a friend from my university
days, I became interested in the timber tracking work coming
out of the Advanced DNA, Identification and Forensic Facility
at The University of Adelaide. I particularly loved the applied
nature of the science and its use in the fight against illegal
logging in addition to providing industry with a tool tocontrol their supply chains and demonstrate legal andsustainable practices. Upon discovering there was stillwork to be done for tropical rainforests in Southeast Asia,
I commenced a PhD supervised by Andy Lowe and Eleanor
Dormontt from the University of Adelaide, Alison Shapcottfrom the University of the Sunshine Coast and Ed Biffinfrom the State Herbarium of South Australia, developing a
DNA timber tracking system for Southeast Asian species in
the plant family Dipterocarpaceae.

A particular focus has been Borneo, the third-largest islandin the world and a biodiversity hotspot for flowering plants,
trees, terrestrial mammals and birds. The island, which is
divided among the countries of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia
and Malaysia, has been logged since 1970 (Gaveau et al. 2014)and has experienced some of the most intensive logging
ever recorded in a tropical forest. One study reported thatbetween 1980 and 2000 more wood was harvested from
Borneo than from Africa and the Amazon combined(Curran et al. 2004).

I was grateful to receive the ITTO Fellowship early in my PhD
journey and commenced my fellowship activities in 2021.
This support enabled me to complete the genetic work
necessary for my project as well as to publish a review
paper and attend an international conference.

20 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

It is estimated that 15–30% of traded timber worldwide
is illegal, meaning it is harvested, processed and/or
traded inconsistently with national and sub-national laws.
In tropical regions such as Southeast Asia, the Amazon
Basin and Central Africa, 50–90% of timber may be illegal(Nellemann & INTERPOL 2012).

Methods for ascertaining the species and/or geographic
provenance of timber are key to verifying legality in supply
chains and combatting the trade of illegal timber. Anatomical,
chemical and genetic methods have all been used for timber
identification with varying levels of success (Dormonttet al. 2015). Much work is being undertaken to strengthen
these technologies in light of the recently introduced
European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) thatspecifically highlights the use of technical and scientificmeans to verify the species or exact provenance of relevant
commodities including timber. In addition, several countries
have introduced or are developing legislation aimed ateliminating or reducing the trade of illegally harvested timber
and timber products, including Canada (Wild Animal
and Plant Protection and Regulation of International andInterprovincial Trade Act 1992), the United States (Lacey

Rimbawanto and in collaboration with the University of
Adelaide and Double Helix Tracking Technologies, Singapore.
The sampling was supported by ITTO through the AustralianGovernment-funded Thematic Programme on Forest Law
Enforcement, Governance and Trade. Samples collectedfrom Brunei Darussalam were provided by collaborators
at the Universiti Brunei Darussalam.

Building a library: One of the ITTO Fellow’s PhD supervisors, Andy Loweof The University of Adelaide (centre left), and collaborator Anto Rimbawanto
of Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency (centre right),
collecting samples in Kalimantan. Photo: ITTO project TFL-PD 037/13
Rev.2 (M)Act 2008), Australia (Illegal Logging Prohibition Act 2012),
Japan (Japanese Clean Wood Act 2017) and the United
Kingdom (United Kingdom Timber Regulation 2021).
Initiatives that bring together scientists, policymakers andindustry stakeholders are gaining momentum, including theForest Governance and Policy team at the World Resources
Institute and the Nature Crime Alliance.1 The internationalorganization World Forest ID is creating extensive global
reference collections and reference data for species
identification (e.g. mass spectrometry, genetics) andgeographic provenance (e.g. stable isotopes, genetics,
elemental profiling) as well as data analysis andinterpretation tools (Mortier et al. 2024).2

Genetic markers
The aim of my PhD is to develop species and geographic
provenance DNA identification tests for dipterocarp
timber species in Southeast Asia from the subfamily
Dipterocarpoideae. In particular, I am focusing on speciesof dipterocarps that occur on Borneo, where they dominate
tropical rainforests that are amongst the tallest and most
biologically diverse in the world. There are around 269 speciesof dipterocarps on Borneo and 162 of these are endemic(Bartholomew et al. 2021). Dipterocarps are of major
importance in the international timber market, providing
valuable woods, aromatic essential oils, balsam and resins,and play an important role in the economy of many Southeast
Asian countries (Appanah and Turnball 1998; Utomo et al.
2018). Of the endemic species on Borneo, 62% are at riskof extinction in the wild, with the greatest threats being
conversion of lowland forest to plantations, and logging(Bartholomew et al. 2021).
Our samples were collected in Indonesian-governed
Kalimantan and in Brunei Darussalam. In Kalimantan,
samples were collected by the Centre for Forest Biotechnology
and Tree Improvement Research of the National Researchand Innovation Agency under the supervision of Anto
1 www.forestlegality.org, www.naturecrimealliance.org
2 https://worldforestid.org/

To develop genetic reference data we analysed 85 species(from eight genera), of which half are from the largest generaof dipterocarps, Shorea. Two high-value species, Shorea laevis
and Shorea parvifolia, were sampled extensively acrossKalimantan and will be the focus of the geographic
provenance work. I am working with both plastid andnuclear genomes and considering genes and single
nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). SNPs work better withthe degraded and shorter fragments of DNA which arecommon with timber. With the support of the fellowshiparound 370 samples were analyzed using hybrid capture,
currently the most advanced method of screening, to target
plastid and nuclear markers with potential for discriminating
among dipterocarp species and the geographic provenanceof S. laevis and S. parvifolia timber samples. Post-sequencing
data processing is currently being undertaken. So far, wehave constructed plastid and nuclear phylogenies to increase
our understanding of the species relationships and for which
species we are most likely to find discriminatory DNA
markers. The family Dipterocarpaceae is a taxonomicallycomplex group and understanding the species relationships
is essential to the development of robust identification tests.
The next steps will be identifying markers for species andgeographic provenance identification.

Sharing progress
The fellowship has ensured that previously collected samples
will be utilized to identify DNA markers and develop DNA
tests for verifying economically important timbers in thefamily Dipterocarpaceae in Southeast Asia, in addition
to developing DNA tests for determining the geographic
provenance of two of the most valuable dipterocarp species,
S. laevis and S. parvifolia. I will share the results of my workwith researchers, industry and government stakeholders,
particularly those in producer countries where DNA tests
that can easily, cheaply and quickly distinguish between
Dipterocarpaceae species have the potential to increasetimber exporters’ access to high-value international
markets whilst at the same time helping control andprosecute illegal operators.
With the support of the fellowship, a review of timber tracing
technologies has been published with open access in the
IAWA Journal (Low et al. 2022). For the review, I worked with
16 researchers, both national and international, to assesses
the status of genetic, chemical and anatomical techniques for
identifying timber species and geographic provenance forthe top 322 global priority timber taxa. The results of theliterature and database searches, undertaken in August 2021,
indicated that the current potential for identifying species was
greater than for geographic provenance and more research
focused on determining the geographical provenance of
ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 21

… Using genetics to identify dipterocarps in Southeast Asia

References
Appanah, S., Turnball, J.M. (eds). 1998. A Review of Dipterocarps:
Taxonomy, ecology and silviculture. Centre for International
Forestry Research. https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor/000463
Bartholomew, D., Barstow, M., Randi, A., Cicuzza, D., Hoo, P.K.,
Juiling, S., Khoo, E. et al. 2021. The Red List of Bornean Endemic
Dipterocarps. BGCI. Richmond, UK.
Curran, L.M., Trigg, S.N., McDonald, A.K., Astiani, D., Hardiono,
Y.M., Siregar, P., Caniago, I., Kasischke, E. 2004. Lowland forest loss
in protected areas of Indonesian Borneo. Science 303(5660):10001003. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1091714
Dormontt, E.E., Boner, M., Braun, B., Breulmann, G., Degen,B., Espinoza, E., Gardner, S. et al. 2015. Forensic timber identification:It’s time to integrate disciplines to combat illegal logging. BiologicalConservation 191:790-798. https://www.sciencedirect.com/
science/article/abs/pii/S0006320715300033?via%3Dihub
Gaveau, D.L.A., Sloan, S., Molidena, E., Yaen, H., Sheil, D., Abram,
N.K., Ancrenaz, M. et al. 2014. Four Decades of Forest Persistence,
Clearance and Logging on Borneo. PLOS ONE 9(7): e101654.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0101654

Extracting DNA: The ITTO Fellow is working to identify genetic markers
for the species and geographic provenance of members of the subfamily
Dipterocarpoideae. Photo: Brittany Hogben

timber was required. Based on the rate of research up to
August 2021, we estimated it would take approximately
27 years to generate geographic data for all 322 priority
taxa. Thankfully we are seeing as increase in the rate ofreference database building (e.g. World Forest ID) thatwill significantly shorten this timeline.
The fellowship also enabled me to attend the International
Union of Forest Research Organisations (IUFRO) Div 5
Conference titled “The Forest Treasure Chest” in Cairns,
Australia in June 2023, where I presented the results ofmy PhD research in the session “Application and Prospectsof Interdisciplinary Forest Product Identification andTraceability Approaches”. The event is one of the world’s top
forest conferences and encompassed topic areas such as
wood quality and durability, carbon storage, climate change
impacts, forestry sustainability, new and emerging species
for forest plantations, the contribution of non-timber
products to the bioeconomy, community and first nations
forestry, and wood and forest cultural heritage. Attending
the conference provided me with invaluable opportunities
to interact with top international timber experts and topresent my research to the scientific community.

22 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

Low, M. C., Schmitz, N., Boeschoten, L. E., Cabezas, J. A., Cramm,
M., Haag, V., Koch, G. et al. 2022. Tracing the world’s timber: thestatus of scientific verification technologies for species and origin
identification. IAWA J. 44(1):63-84. https://brill.com/view/
journals/iawa/44/1/article-p63_4.xml
Mortier, T., Truszkowski, J., Norman, M., Boner, M., Buliga,
B., Chater, C., Jennings, H. et al. 2024. A framework for tracing
timber following the Ukraine invasion. Nature Plants. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-024-01648-5
Nellemann, C., and INTERPOL. 2012. Green Carbon, Black Trade:
Illegal Logging, Tax Fraud, and Laundering in the World’s Tropical
Forests: A Rapid Response Assessment. United Nations Environment
Programme, GRID-Arendal.
Utomo, S., Uchiyama, K., Ueno, S., Matsumoto, A., Widiyatno,
Indrioko, S., Na’iem, M., Tsumura, Y. 2018. Effects of Pleistocene
climate change on genetic structure and diversity of Shorea
macrophylla in Kalimantan Rainforest. Tree Genetics & Genomes
14(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-018-1261-1

Sustainable tropical timber coalition builds momentum
An alliance of tropicalcountries launchedto promote theirsustainable forest
industries is pressing
forward with its
programme1
by Mike JeffreeConsultant editor,
Timber Trades Journal(mjeffree1@gmail.com)

Smoothing trade: The BMRC aims to strengthen consumer market access for members’ sustainable timber and wood products. Photo: Interholco

The Broader Market Recognition Coalition (BMRC) was
formed in 2023 to underpin international market access andboost investment in tropical timber industries in countries
with independently endorsed national sustainable forestry
systems (NSFS). The coalition has launched a website21and isholding stakeholder meetings to further define objectives
and strategy.2
The core role of the BMRC is to increase consumer market
awareness and appreciation of its member countries’ NSFSs.
In communicating the systems’ environmental, social, andeconomic benefits, the objective is to strengthen members’
sustainability credentials and boost demand for their legal
and sustainable forest products. This, in turn, is intended toincentivize and underpin sustainable forest management—
and attract more member countries to the BMRC. Essentially,
it’s about harnessing the increasingly sustainabilityconscious international market to the cause of tropicalforest maintenance.
The BMRC has six founder members: Cameroon, Ghana,
Guyana, Indonesia, Liberia and the Republic of the Congo.
Its roots can be traced to the Tropical Forestry Accord signedby these and other countries and presented to the twenty-sixth
conference of the parties to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (COP 26) in Glasgow in 2021.
The accord contended that the European Union andUnited Kingdom’s Forest Law Enforcement Governance andTrade (FLEGT) programme, which is about incentivizing
sustainable and legal forest management by delivering market
access, has had positive results. Under FLEGT, supplier tropicalcountries enter voluntary partnership agreements with
the European Union and United Kingdom, undertaking to
1 A version of this article appeared in December 2023 in the Timber Trades Journal.
It is available to subscribers at www.ttjonline.com/features/sustainable-tropicalforestry-11408631/.
2 www.forestgovernance.org

establish national timber legality assurance systems. Oncethese systems are approved by the European Union, theUnited Kingdom and the producer country governments,
the latter can issue FLEGT licences, which exempt goods
from further import legality due diligence in the European
Union and United Kingdom markets.
While so far only Indonesia has achieved licensing status—with Ghana set to follow suit later in 2024—it is acknowledged
that, under FLEGT’s auspices, other partner countries haveprogressed their timber legality assurance and tracking
systems. FLEGT is also accepted as pushing environmental
performance up the agenda in both tropical timber consumer
and producer countries.
However, the Tropical Timber Accord also maintained that
FLEGT’s impact and appeal is limited by the fact that it is
only about access to European markets, whose share of the
global tropical timber trade has been in historical decline.
What was needed, said the accord, was something new “toincentivize good forest governance in tropical countries
through broader market recognition of national systems”.

Coalition roadmap
The coalition’s roadmap, agreed earlier in 2023, has beendeveloped through wide stakeholder engagement. It has
involved input from member countries’ governments,
private sector and civil society.
It explains that members commit to their NSFSs being
assessed and validated against international sustainable
forest policy criteria and indicators. They must be developedwith input from and backed by all stakeholder groups andcomply with laws that address environmental, social, andeconomic principles, ensure nationwide enforcement, andinvolve independent third-party compliance monitoring.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 23

… Sustainable tropical timber coalition builds momentum

Building capacity: Training on Ghana’s wood tracking system.
Photo: Ghana Forestry Commission

Online resource: The BMRC has launched a website that provides
background on the coalition as well as a copy of its roadmap andinformation about membership.

If the BMRC’s lead body, its council, is initially unable
to endorse an NSFS, an action plan will be drawn up forcorrective action.

ISO38200 standard for wood and wood product chains ofcustody. The idea is that companies accredited to thesestandards can easily adapt to that of the BMRC.

Countries will be supported in getting to endorsementlevel through best practice exchange with other members
and donor backing, leveraged by the BMRC.

On-product BMRC labelling won’t just be the preserve ofmember countries with fully endorsed NSFS, but also those
progressing to endorsement. The proviso is that they use
graduated claims alongside the logo, such as “progressing
to sustainability”.

The roadmap does not bill the BMRC as a replacement for
third-party sustainability certification, as provided by the
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for
the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), but it does
say that NSFSs have advantages. They encompass the entire
national landscape, it explains, whereas third-party
certification covers individual forest management units,
which can be “small islands of responsible production ina sea of illegal and destructive practice”. Moreover, thirdparty certification is voluntary, whereas national systems
are embedded in law. “Where significant reductions indeforestation and increased afforestation have occurred in
the past, it has always been in the context of national policies
designed to promote socioeconomic development on the
one hand, and sustainable use of the land resources on
the other,” states the roadmap.

Stakeholder engagement
In terms of the governance and structure of the BMRC,
the council, including representatives of each members’
government, private sector, and civil society, will be theexecutive. It will decide on admission of new members andendorsement of NSFSs and lead on market promotion of
BMRC countries’ NSFSs and forest products. A small
secretariat will undertake day-to-day management withresponsibilities including BMRC communications, trademarks,
and logo use. An independent review body will makerecommendations to the council on criteria and indicatorsfor endorsement of NSFSs. And independent panels willassess NSFSs against endorsement criteria and advise onachieving political and market recognition. Each member
country also has a national committee.
A BMRC chain-of-custody standard will build on thoseof existing certification schemes, such as FSC, PEFC,
and Indonesia’s Sistem Verifikasi Legalitas Kayu (SVLK)
timber legality assurance system. It will also align with the
24 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

The message behind the label will be that products deliveredby BMRC-endorsed NSFSs “are sustainable (or progressing
to sustainable), contribute to achievement of socioeconomic
goals, and provide for wider environmental benefits, suchas biodiversity conservation”.
“By connecting demand with supply from NSFSs, and byproviding for phased market recognition of NSFSs depending
on progress, the BMRC mechanism will also help to supportand incentivize members’ responsible national agencies toimplement effective forest governance, enforcement, andother regulatory and non-regulatory measures to deliver
legal and sustainable forestry”, says the roadmap.
BMRC marketing will engage key decision-makers, suchas architects, designers, civil engineers, and other specifiers
and lobby for harmonized import regulations to combat
trade in illegal and unsustainable forest products. It will
also support research into life-cycle impacts of products
delivered under BMRC-endorsed forest systems to support
credible, scientifically supported messaging on their low
carbon footprint and other environmental benefits.
The view is that the importance attached to independently
endorsed sustainable forestry systems will grow globally as
more consumer markets follow in the footsteps of those suchas the United States, European Union, Japan, and Australia
and implement timber and forest product import controls
to ensure legal origin.
At the same time, sustainability is becoming an increasingly
central plank of public and private sector procurement policy.
“By demonstrating conformance of robust NSFSs withclearly stated principles, BMRC will provide a harmonizedframework for recognition of legal and sustainable forest
products from participant tropical countries in the importregulations and procurement policies of trade partners,”
says the roadmap.

Leading the way: An audit under the SVLK legality assurance system in Indonesia, one of the architects of the BMRC. Photo: IMM

Attracting investment
Another BMRC objective is to make the forest productindustries of member countries more investible. As
sustainability moves up the agenda of government, businessand consumers, financial institutions and the wider investmentcommunity internationally are increasingly putting money
into financial instruments that meet environmental, socialand governance criteria. The BMRC says it will help member
countries tap into this growing investment pot by “giving
confidence to national and international creditors andinvestors that BMRC-endorsed NSFSs are robust andimplemented in accordance with internationally recognizedprinciples”. It will also promote BMRC-endorsed NSFSs “as afactor to improve the credit rating of forest sector enterprises
in participant tropical countries”.
The roadmap says that the BMRC will initially need seedfunding in the form of overseas development aid fromdonor governments. In the longer term, it will look to securedomestic public funding from member countries, given thatendorsed and effectively enforced NSFSs should increase
their tax take. It will also explore charging licence fees for useof the BMRC label along the supply chain and “innovative
mechanisms to raise finance for NSFSs in participant
countries and support BMRC activities at international
level”. These could include blended finance initiatives, where“public and private funders pool capital to reduce risk for
private investors, while enabling deployment of large projects
or provision of credit to large numbers of smallholders”.
The BMRC presented on its role and ambitions at COP 28 in
Dubai in November 2023. Its website launched at the sametime. The website describes the background of the BMRC
and explains its role and ambitions. Describing the coalition’s
structure, it highlights its multi-stakeholder constitution,with representatives of government, private sector andcivil society all involved in decision-making. It also explains
how other tropical timber producing countries can become
members, and how non-tropical countries and international
agencies can become associates of the organization.

The BMRC governance structure, it explains, is designed
to be logical and transparent; with functions of its various
constituent bodies clearly delineated to avoid conflictsof interest and to ensure impartiality.
The role of the coalition, says the website, will also be to act asa “forum to drive continuous forest governance improvement
and to exchange best practice between member countries”.
It also goes into the BMRC’s funding model, explaining that,while it will initially depend on donor funding, the goal is
the transition to sustainable private sector finance. Levies onmembers’ forestry and timber products industries are also
listed as a potential source of income to fund activities. It
also looks at how BMRC membership, through helping toformalize forestry and timber sectors and to promote theirsustainability, could leverage funding from international
financial institutions.
The function of the website is also clearly to attract othercountries to join the BMRC and pool resources with the six
founder members to further increase the coalition’s market
influence and impact.
“BMRC conveys a strong, single message on behalf ofmembers on the sustainability of products delivered under
their endorsed NSFS,” it states.“Presenting a united front, they
can better influence public and private sector procurement
policy in consumer markets.”
Applications to join, it adds, are submitted to the
BMRC Council, and prospective members will nominate
representative bodies from their government, private sector,
and civil society to sign up to the BMRC Joint Statement.
“While being a country member demonstrates commitment
to BMRC’s goals and principles, actual BMRC endorsement
and the benefits that come with this will involve separate
evaluation of their NSFS” by an independent panel, it says.
Visitors can also download the BMRC Roadmap fromthe website.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 25

Tropical and topical
ITTO–CITES cooperation on tree species listings
should continue, says Executive Director

Study: species are disappearing faster than they
are found

Cooperation between ITTO and the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has
greatly assisted countries in implementing CITES listings of tropicaltree species and should be continued, ITTO Executive Director
Sheam Satkuru has said. In a presentation during the United Nations
Environment Assembly, Ms Satkuru also highlighted successes
including the development of resource inventories, regulatory
systems and guidelines on non-detriment findings.

Researchers have compiled a database that shows that the numberof lost species is increasing at a faster rate than rediscovered species.
As reported by Mongabay, since 1800, over 800 species of amphibians,
birds, mammals, and reptiles have not been sighted by scientists forat least a decade. Even upon rediscovery, many lost species continue
to face the threat of extinction, as their populations are often small
and fragmented due to habitat loss. New technologies such as camera
traps and environmental DNA analysis are aiding in rediscovery
efforts. The involvement of local communities is also crucial in
the quest to find lost species.

Read the full story: www.itto.int/news/2024/03/01/itto_cites_
cooperation_on_tree_species_listings_should_continue_says_
executive_director/

ITTO and UNCCD extend joint work on tropical forests
ITTO and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification(UNCCD) have committed to another four years of joint work on thesustainable management of tropical forest landscapes. Under a newmemorandum of understanding, the ITTO and UNCCD secretariats
will also cooperate to promote the sustainable production of timber
products and ecosystem services.
Read the full story: www.itto.int/news/2024/02/20/itto_and_un_
convention_to_combat_desertification_strengthen_cooperation_
on_tropical_forests/

Singapore scientists develop method to estimate two
centuries of biodiversity loss
Scientists from the National University of Singapore have employednovel statistical methods to reveal the extent of biodiversity loss in
Singapore over the past two centuries. Their study paints the mostaccurate picture to date of the ecological impact of deforestation andurban development in the tropical city-state, ScienceDaily reports.
After compiling and analyzing a comprehensive dataset, thescientists estimate that Singapore has lost 37 per cent of its species,
including those that went extinct before they could be discoveredand documented.
Read the full story: www.sciencedaily.com/
releases/2024/01/240129122408.htm

ITTO chief: Malaysian plywood manufacturers should
diversify into niche markets
Malaysian plywood manufacturers should diversify into producing
hardwood plywood products for niche markets internationally, ITTO
Executive Director Sheam Satkuru said. Interviewed by The Star
newspaper, Ms Satkuru said businesses can consider diversifying into
products such as wooden flooring, high-density fibreboard and wood
panels for use in building interiors. The Malaysian government could
provide tax rebates or other incentives to encourage manufacturers
to upgrade their factories and invest in new technologies to produce
legally certified plywood products for export, she reportedly said.
Read the full story: www.thestar.com.my/business/businessnews/2024/03/11/call-for-plywood-manufacturers-to-diversify-intoniche-global-markets

26 ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1

Read the full story: https://news.mongabay.com/2024/02/werelosing-species-faster-than-we-can-find-them-study-shows/United Kingdom rejects calls to widen ban
on deforestation-linked imports
The UK government has said it does not intend to extend aforthcoming ban on the sale of imported products linked to illegal
deforestation to cover commodities linked to deforestation that is
technically legal in the country of origin, Edie reports. Members ofa parliamentary committee had been pushing to extend the scope ofthe ban to include all deforestation, not just that which was classed
as illegal in the source country. The report said the government has
written to the committee claiming that, because some researchers
believe that at least 69% of tropical deforestation carried out between
2013 and 2019 was illegal, the ban would already tackle the majorityof the most damaging kinds of deforestation.
Read the full story: www.edie.net/uk-government-rejects-calls-towiden-ban-on-deforestation-linked-imports/

Myanmar’s Karen people register lands beyond
government control
Karen indigenous organizations in Myanmar’s Kayin State, whichis partly under the control of rebel armed groups, are mapping anddocumenting their ancestral lands without seeking the approval of
the central government, Mongabay reports. Through the initiative,
residents in southern Kayin have been granted certificates designed
to cement their control of community land and forests, the reportsaid, citing local Karen leaders. Surveyors using geographic
information system and computer tools have reportedly mapped
more than 3.5 million hectares of land, including reserved forests
and wildlife sanctuaries.
Read the full story: https://news.mongabay.com/2024/02/notwaiting-for-the-government-myanmars-karen-people-register-theirown-lands/

onishi-ku, Yokohama, 220-0012, Japaneb www.itto.int

Furniture production in Indonesia fordomestic market. Photo: T. Yanuariadi

Kant, P. 2024. Encouraging greater
domestic use of legal and sustainable
tropical wood. Policy Brief. International
Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO).
Yokohama, Japan.
Available at: www.itto.int/policy_papers/

POLICY BRIEF

Tropical countries are consuming an increasing
proportion of their wood production domestically,making the promotion of policies to encourage
Lessons from experiences in Southeast Asia
sustainability a priority. This policy brief is basedon a review of three Japanese-funded ITTO projects
in Southeast Asia promoting the sustainableutilization of tropical timber in domestic markets. It contains a range of findings fromthese projects and recommendations for countries and organizations to ensure thatdomestic consumption of tropical timber is legal and sustainable.
Encouraging greater domestic use oflegal and sustainable tropical wood

Encouraging greater domestic use of legal and sustainable tropical wood 1

The full unedited report on which the policy brief is based (Sustainable Wood Use
in Selected Countries of Southeast Asia Region) is also available via the link above.

ITTO criteria and indicators for the sustainable management of African forests

and
pical
on of the. African
ed regional
n 2000 and
Africa,and theThis

Recent editions

POLICY DEVELOPMENT

26

ITTO
ITTO criteria and indicators
for the sustainable managementof African tropical forests

ITTO. 2023. ITTO criteria and indicators
for the sustainable management of African
tropical forests. Policy Development SeriesNo. 26. International Tropical Timber
Organization (ITTO), Yokohama, Japan.
ISBN: 978-4-86507-099-6 (English),978-4-86796-000-4 (French)
Available at: www.itto.int/policy_papers/

ITTO pioneered the development and use of
criteria and indicators (C&I) to monitor, assess
and report on tropical forests in the early 1990s,
and the most recent version of the globally applicable ITTO C&I was published in2016. African member countries that benefited from an ITTO-funded regional C&I
capacity-building programme between 2000 and 2010 requested support to develop
a set of C&I for Africa, focusing on lessons learned under that programme and thespecific needs and characteristics of African forests. This publication is the result.
Policy Development Series 26

International Tropical Timber Organization

UNU-IAS and ITTO. 2023. Advancing
Forest Landscape Restoration in the
Tropics: Experiences and Lessons
for Socio-Ecological Resilience andEmpowerment of Women in ITTO Projects.
Policy Report. United Nations University
Institute for the Advanced Study of
Sustainability, Tokyo, Japan.
Available at: www.itto.int/other_technical_reports/
This report aims to make forest landscaperestoration more effective in improving ecosystems
and livelihoods and increasing resilience to climatechange by providing valuable lessons for both practitioners and policymakers seeking
solutions to global environmental problems. The report analyzed 14 ITTO-funded
projects in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean to identify
common challenges and lessons learned, including on engaging stakeholders,
empowering women and mainstreaming restoration principles in government policies.
An article on this publication is also available on page 16.

Nelson, C.R., Hallett, J.G., Romero Montoya,
A.E., Andrade, A., Besacier, C., Boerger,
V., Bouazza, K., et al. 2024. Standardsof practice to guide ecosystem restoration– A contribution to the United Nations Decadeon Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030.
Rome, FAO, Washington, DC, SER andGland, Switzerland, IUCN CEM.
ISBN: 978-92-5-138471-8
Available at: www.cifor.org/knowledge/
publication/9084
The United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030 aims to prevent,halt and reverse ecosystem degradation; recover biodiversity and ecosystem
integrity; enhance human health and well-being, including sustainable delivery of
ecosystem goods and services; and mitigate climate change. To create a sharedvision of ecosystem restoration, UN Decade partners launched ten principles forachieving the highest level of recovery possible through restoration projects. To
facilitate application of these principles, partners have now designed and issued
standards of practice that provide key recommendations to guide all phases ofrestoration projects. The recommendations are applicable to the broad array of
restorative activities included as ecosystem restoration under the UN Decade,across all types of ecosystems and restoration projects, from voluntary community
member-led efforts to highly resourced, nationally funded projects.
Carrilho, C.D. and Chervier, C. 2023.
What influences the effectiveness offorest conservation interventions intropical regions? A systematic review.
Working Paper 22. Bogor, Indonesia:
CIFOR and Nairobi, Kenya: ICRAF.
Available at: www.cifor.org/knowledge/
publication/9063
Recent decades have witnessed a proliferationof forest conservation interventions in tropicaldeveloping countries. Impact evaluations mostfrequently report statistically significant but modest
conservation results. As tropical deforestation has persisted, how to increase theeffectiveness of interventions is an important question. This paper examines
peer-reviewed literature about the heterogeneous impacts of forest conservationinterventions. The goal was to synthesize evidence about how two main factors
shaped forest conservation outcomes: the design and implementation characteristics
that create heterogeneous treatments; and the characteristics of the context that act
as moderators of treatment effects. After screening 1486 studies, the authors selected
47 papers conducting robust heterogeneity analysis. They found interventions generallyachieve greater conservation results where forests are under higher deforestationpressure or risk. This implies the protection of forests that are most under threat
should be prioritized.

ITTO Tropical Forest Update 33/1 27

Meetings
ITTO meetings
6 May 2024 (13:15–14:30 hrs)
Principles and Strategies for Integrated LandscapeFire Management through Collaborative Governance(UNFF19 Side-event)
United Nations Headquarters,Conference Room 4,
New York, United States
The event aims to facilitate knowledge exchange and discussion
on recent initiatives, strategies, and best practices in promoting
integrated landscape fire management, including throughcollaborative governance according to the Landsacpe Fire
Governance Framework, as well as to explore innovations
in early warning, detection and control.
More: www.itto.int/events
7 May 2024 (13:15–14:30 hrs)
Mainstreaming Legal and Sustainable Supply Chainsof Tropical Wood Products for Responsible Production
and Consumption (UNFF19 Side-event)
United Nations Headquarters,Conference Room 4,
New York, United States
The event aims to raise awareness and understanding of theimportance of legal and sustainable wood products supply
chains for the sustainable development of tropical countries.
It will also foster partnerships and collaboration among
stakeholders to support sustainable forest management
and the responsible sourcing, consumption and productionof forest products.
More: www.itto.int/events
23–29 June 2024
ITTO booth at the 26th IUFRO World Congress 2024
Stockholm Exhibition and Congress Centre,
Stockholm, Sweden
Booth No. A06:31
More: www.itto.int/events
28 June 2024, 08:30–10:30 hrs
Strengthening Teak Forest Management for
Sustainable Teakwood Supply Chains and Trade(technical session at the 26th IUFRO World
Congress 2024)
Stockholm Exhibition and Congress Centre, Room 9
The session will examine the current international situation
with respect to the supply of quality plantation teakwood fromsustainable sources.
More: www.itto.int/events
11–12 September 2024
Global Legal and Sustainable Timber Forum 2024:“Together Towards Reliable and Effective Global
Timber Supply Chains”
Macao SAR, China
The forum aims to increase networking, collaboration andbusiness exchange among timber industry stakeholders—
producers, buyers, processors and market players—witha view to strengthening sustainable forest management,enhancing the uptake of legal and sustainable wood products
supply chains, facilitating the legal and sustainable use andtrade of wood products in a stable, transparent and predictablebusiness environment, and contributing to sustainable
development and climate-change mitigation.
More: www.itto.int/events(see also the announcement on p. 12)

1–6 December 2024
60th Session of the International Tropical Timber Council
and Sessions of the Associated Committees
Yokohama, JapanThe International Tropical Timber Council is ITTO’s governing body. It
meets once a year to discuss a wide-ranging agenda aimed at promoting
sustainable tropical forest management and the trade of sustainably
produced tropical timber. Council sessions are open to official delegates
and accredited observers.
More: www.itto.int/events

Other meetings
6–10 May 2024
19th session of the UN Forumon Forests (UNFF19)
New York, United States
More: www.un.org/esa/forests/
forum/index.html
13–16 May 2024
Short Rotation Woody Crops
International Conference: “The
Future is Green: Integrating
Short Rotation Woody Crops,
Agroforestry, and Ecosystem
Services for Sustainable,
Productive Landscapes”
Columbia (Missouri), United States
More: https://woodycrops.wixsite.
com/srwc2024
28–30 May 2024
Carrefour International
du BoisNantes, France
More: www.timbershow.
com/?lang=en
4–7 June 2024
2024 Sustainable Forestry
Initiative Conference
Atlanta, United States
More: https://forests.org/conference/
22–25 June 2024
2024 Association ofConsulting Foresters (ACF)
National Conference
Ponte Vedra Beach, United States
More: www.acf-foresters.org/
national-conference
23–29 June 2024
IUFRO World Congress
2024: “Forests and Society
Towards 2050”
Stockholm, Sweden
More: https://iufro2024.com/

June 30–July 5 2024
SWST 67th International
Convention: “Advancing
Regenerative Sustainability
with Wood Science”
Portorož, Slovenia
More: www.swst.org/wp/
meeting/2024-annual-conventionportoroz-slovenia/
22–26 July 2024
27th Session of the
FAO Committee on
Forestry (COFO 27)
Rome, Italy
More: www.fao.org/forestry/
committee-on-forestry/en
21–23 August 2024
IUFRO Division 7 Joint Meeting:“Theory and Practice toAddress Defoliating Insects,
Invasive Pests and BiologicalControl of Insects andPathogens in Forests”
Tokyo, Japan
More: www.iufro2024tokyodiv7.com/
26–28 August 2024
International Conference on
Tropical Wood – Advancing
the Sustainable Use of
Tropical Forests
Antananarivo, Madagascar
More: https://tropicalwood.
sciencesconf.org/
6–7 September 2024
Future Forest Forum 2024
Blankenburg, Germany
More: www.futureforest.de/en/home
8–13 September 2024
11th Meeting of the IUFROWorking Party 7.02.09:“Phytophthora in Forests
and Natural Ecosystems”
Paihia, New ZealandMore: www.scienceevents.co.nz/
iufro2024

ITTO provides this list of international meetings as a public service but is not responsible for changes in date or venue or for other errors.

10–14 September 2024
10th Pacific Regional
Wood Anatomy Conference(10th PRWAC)
Hokkaido, Japan
More: www.prwac2024.org/
17–21 September 2024
23rd International
Nondestructive Testingand Evaluation of Wood
SymposiumSão Paulo, Brazil
More: www.ndtesymposium.org/
16–17 October 2024
EGURTEK 2024 – International
Forum of Architecture andConstruction in Wood
Bilbao, Spain
More: https://egurtek.
bilbaoexhibitioncentre.com/en/
21 October 2024–
1 November 2024
Sixteenth meeting of theConference of the Parties to
the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD COP16)
Cali, Colombia
More: www.cbd.int/process/
11–22 November 2024
2024 UN Climate Change
Conference (UNFCCC COP29)
Baku, Azerbaijan
More: https://unfccc.int/cop29
2–13 December 2024
Sixteenth session of theConference of the Parties tothe United Nations Convention
to Combat Desertification(UNCCD COP16)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
More: www.unccd.int/cop16
17–21 March 2025
IUFRO Unit 1.01.04 conference:“Achieving forest establishment
success at scale to address
climate, environmental,social and economic challenges
around the world”
Rotorua, New ZealandMore: www.iufro.org/science/
divisions/division-1/
10000/10100/10104/