Hardwoods cost little more than good woods. Carving hardwoods is also more convenient, because there is no need for first curing the timber. The key is to give carvers an incentive to switch to good woods. Kenyan carvers, as with any business, are very responsive to falling trends in demand and there is a good chance that market-led demand for good woods could change their practice. People and Plants has used posters and produced a video to convey the message to prospective buyers.
Certification gives consumers an ethical choice.
The People and Plants Programme has now embarked on a campaign to achieve FSC certification for Kenyan carvings and raise awareness amongst importers, exporters and tourists about this ethical alternative. Much progress has already been made. A pilot cooperative is working on fulfilling the preconditions for certification, such as the development of a management plan. At the second International FSC Trade Fair, in the UK in June 2000, which was attended by 1,000 delegates, People and Plants used the Kenyan work as a case study to raise awareness about the need to reduce the costs and administrative burden of getting FSC certification. You can 'help save the wooden rhino' by asking for or buying good wood carvings when in Kenya or your local craft shop.