ICFPA Quarterly Update (February 2021)

Updates from ICFPA

ICFPA Task Force on Certification

Ibá, as leader of the ICFPA Certification Task Force, held in December 2020 a meeting to evaluate the most relevant motions submitted so far to the FSC General Assembly. The Certification Task Force brings together 10 associations from Australia, the United States, Chile, the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, Japan and South Africa.

Motions 15 on sustainable intensification were discussed; 21 and 23 on high conservation values ​​(HCV) and intact forest landscapes (IFL); 10, on the role of standards developers in motions; and 20, on climate change. Great convergence of opinion was identified in motions 15 and 20. Most associations do not want the discussion on sustainable intensification to be paralyzed, that is, they are against motion 15, and consider that motion 20 needs to focus on providing climate solutions for certificate holders and not for governments.

With regard to motions 21, 23 and 10, difficulties were reported in defining positioning, due to the lack of clarity in terms of intention and practical objective of the motions. Ibá, Canada and the United States understand that there are credibility risks associated with motion 10. Ibá and CEPI also had the opportunity to present their motions on FPIC and ASI, respectively. The FPIC motion received the attention of Finland and Chile, in particular, who wish to collaborate more closely in its development. The Task Force will repeat this exercise for the motions that will be proposed in the second submission window and the idea is to take the most relevant and strategic motions to the ICFPA Annual Meeting, in order to deliberate potential actions against them.

Blue Sky Awards Recognize Game-Changing Forest Sector Innovations

The International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) released the list of candidates from around the world who are candidates for the Blue Sky Young Researchers and Innovation Award. Launched in 2016, the international contest is a biennial effort to recognize, celebrate and promote some of the game-changing innovations being developed in the global forest sector.

The  Blue Sky Young Researchers and Innovation Award collected proposals from aspiring scientists and young researchers who conceived innovative solutions that could advance the forest-based bio-economy. This year’s finalists include twenty one contestants from nine countries around the world.  The winners will compete for three cash prizes and the opportunity to present their work to to ICFPA’s Global CEO Roundtable discussion being held virtually on April 29.

An international judging panel has been struck to assess the strength and potential of each entry. It includes the following leaders from around the world with connections to industry, academia, and public policy:

• Dr. Lyndall Bull, Forestry Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• Barbara Tavora Jainchill, Programme Management Officer, Forest Affairs, with the United Nations Forum on Forests Secretariat
• Fernando L. Garcia Bertolucci, Executive Director of Technology and Innovation at Suzano S.A. and Member of IUFRO
• Professor Gil Garnier, Director of BioPRIA within the Department of Chemical Engineering at Monash University
• Dr. John Innes, Dean of the Faculty of Forestry at University of British Columbia.

Dr. Lyndall Bull, Forestry Officer with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations offered her praise and support for the awards. “On behalf of our international judging panel, I would like to congratulate all the finalists for the Blue Sky Young Researchers and Innovation Award. Each of the entrants offers innovative solutions to help maximize the contribution that sustainable forest products can make to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.”

“In face of the biggest health and economic crisis of our lifetimes, we are reminded that the global forestry sector has the potential to address some of our most urgent social, environmental, and economic challenges”, noted ICFPA President and CEO Derek Nighbor. Nighbor is also President and CEO of Forest Products Association of Canada. “Forestry workers and forest products are in the unique position to drive our move to a lower-carbon world through sustainable forest managment, mitigating pest and wildfire risks, advancing the forest bioeconomy, and building more with carbon-storing wood products. Today we recognize and celebrate the brilliant young minds whose disruptive ideas and breakthrough innovations will pave the way forward,” Nighbor added.

To learn more about the Blue Sky Young Researchers and Innovation Award, visit our website: https://www.icfpa.org/

Updates from FPAC

Innovative, Sustainable, Resilient: Recommendations from Canada’s forest sector to drive economic recovery and a net-zero carbon future

FPAC has released a paper positioning the forest sector as a key player in national economic recovery. As a designated essential industry, the forest sector remained committed to doing its part in the fight against COVID-19 and is well-positioned to be a collaborative and solutions-based recovery partner. Framed around key themes from the Speech from the Throne and other commitments made by the federal government, this document outlines critical recommendations that will ensure economic opportunity for our sector and its people, while upholding important values that support human health, inclusive growth, and our environment.

These recommendations are centred on creating jobs and strengthening communities through investment, inclusive growth and diversity, reduction of land-based emissions while providing renewable materials, nature-based solutions through sustainable forest management, supporting the forest sector’s role in meeting net-zero commitments and constructing wood buildings to support greener and more resilient communities.

Learn more: https://www.forestryforthefuture.ca/posts/canadas-forest-sector-offers-recommendations-to-federal-government-on-green-recovery

FPAC Testifies Before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Natural Resources

On November 3, FPAC’s Derek Nighbor and Kate Lindsay appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources to discuss the promise of Canada’s forest sector for national economic recovery. The appearance, alongside representatives of the Quebec Forest Industry Council and FPInnovations, provided a forum for FPAC to highlight the important role played by our sector in climate change mitigation through sustainable forest management. It also provided an opportunity to emphasize the need for federal partnerships if the sector is to live up to its potential as a jobs provider and driver of economic growth. Read FPAC’s introductory remarks: https://www.fpac.ca/wp-content/uploads/11-03-20_RNNR-FinalRemarks.pdf

Cepi annual event – Paper & Beyond 2020: Sourcing the Green Deal

On 17-18 November, the 2020 edition of Paper & Beyond brought together over 200 participants from pulp and paper producers, paper and cardboard product manufacturers, technology suppliers, European policymakers, researchers, and press. The two-day event was held digitally and focused on the European paper industry’s significant contribution to the European Green Deal.

Guided by 6 different moderators, we went beyond recycling with 4evergreen, we discovered the potential of biorefineries in Europe, we discussed the importance of a harmonized recyclability test method, introduced the Cepi Energy Solutions Forum, assessed the digitalization of the pulp & paper industry and discovered why our products are so irresistibly sustainable.

Watch the Paper & Beyond video highlights here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oZWoi5QktE&feature=youtu.be

Cepi 2030 Industry Manifesto: Our industry, our solutions, our future

In the context of its annual conference Paper & Beyond, Cepi launched the “2030 Industry Manifesto: Our industry, our solutions, our future”. The manifesto maps out the ways in which the pulp and paper industry can support the EU efforts in mitigating climate change. In particular, with strong political support, our sector can and will contribute – with product substitution, sustainable forest management and decarbonised production – to reaching the 2030 goal and European carbon neutrality in 2050. “The European paper industry has a unique role to play in the fight against climate change by offering immediate and affordable solutions. We have a vision on how we can contribute, and we could do even more with the right regulatory environment. Our 2030 Industry Manifesto published today maps out the ways in which we can deliver potential for carbon reduction. With substantial and targeted support from the EU as part of its Green Deal legislative package, these factors can play an essential role in reducing carbon emissions, potentially exceeding the already ambitious targets.” commented Ignazio Capuano, Cepi chairman, in occasion of the Manifesto’s launch during the 2020 edition of Cepi’s annual conference, Paper and Beyond. The report is available at the following link: https://www.cepi.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Cepi-2030-Industry-Manifesto.pdf

Launch of 4evergreen alliance

By the end of 2020, Cepi also secured the support of EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius for the launch event of the 4evergreen alliance.

The commissioner welcomed the initiative of the fibre-based packaging industry via a dedicated video address: “This alliance is clearly in line with the thinking of the European Commission and our objectives for a circular low-carbon future.”

The address is a clear endorsement of the efforts from the paper industry to work with the entire fibre-based packaging value chain and find solutions to have all packaging either reusable or recyclable in 2030, in line with the European Commission ambition.

His message also mentions our performance on recycling, and even our efforts on sustainable sourcing in relation to the biodiversity strategy, which comes from our two communication campaigns, #GreenSource and #ForestBiodiversity.

The Commissioner also confirmed the European Commission support to the bio-based sectors via the implementation of the bioeconomy strategy.

In January 2021, Japan Paper Association has released the Long-Term Global Climate Measures ‘Vision 2050’ -Constructing a carbon-neutral industry-, with the Slogan as below:

“The paper industry supports the government’s declaration of ‘net zero GHG emissions by 2050’ and, in order to help maintain a sustainable global environment, will actively work on measures* to reduce CO2 emissions to construct a carbon-neutral industry by 2050.”

*Measures to reduce CO2 emissions

South African paper industry responds to Covid-19 with agility and compassion

PAMSA is immensely proud of the sector it represents and how its member companies have responded to the needs of its employees and the communities they serve. “Responding with agility and compassion is what we do best and it’s why our sector often shows resilience in the toughest times,” says Jane Molony, executive director of PAMSA.

“We wish to extend our thanks to each and every industry employee who has gone above and beyond, while trying to balance a new way of working and living.”

PAMSA compiled an ‘anthology’ of how its members worked within and beyond its fences to support Covid-19 efforts.

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

Sappi Southern Africa’s beekeeping project is ‘a hive of activity’

Above left: Isaac Buthelezi with his bean field in the background; top right, Petritia Hlatswayo at one of her hives and, bottom right, young Nkazi Sibaya looks forward to her fresh orange

A Sappi-sponsored beekeeping programme, which helps communities adjacent to forestry plantations to become beekeepers, has shown some unexpectedly encouraging results during the pandemic. Programme facilitators were struck by the incredible resilience demonstrated by the families that have been part of this beekeeping project. Collectively, since the beginning of 2020, the participating families have harvested about five tonnes of honey, earning close to R360 000 ($24 000), despite the national lockdown in April and May 2020.

During a survey undertaken in the Sokhulu community in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, where the project has been running for a few years and a new community in Thembalethu, Mpumalanga where training had not yet begun, there were some marked differences in people’s approach to the situation brought about by the international health crisis. Families in Thembalethu were watching TV and waiting for government food parcels, while the 100 families interviewed in Sokhulu were producing and even selling vegetables, chickens, eggs and honey. All 100 families were producing honey, 85 were growing vegetables, 27 were producing eggs and 39 were producing chickens for meat.

The beekeeping project is based on Sappi’s overall philosophy of supporting ABCD – Asset Based Community Development. Most of the beekeeping families are part of Sappi Khulisa supplier programme and are already part of the valuable forestry supply chain.  By learning to harvest honey, grow vegetables and produce poultry and eggs they are not just producing food to feed their own families, but many of them are also supplementing their income from timber by selling this produce.

Farming for the future – Mondi Zimele’s Food Security Programme transforms landscapes and lives

Mondi Zimele, the small business development arm of Mondi Ltd in South Africa, provides equity, loans and business development support to employment-creating small businesses within the Mondi value chain and surrounding communities.

Its grassroots food security and agricultural development programme assists communities in establishing and improving small farms in and around Mondi and SiyaQhubeka forestry areas in Zululand. Nine co-operatives and three individual farmers are currently enrolled in the programme, which benefits over 2 100 households across the region.

“Employment opportunities in rural areas are challenging and due to Covid-19, the situation has worsened,” explains Nelly Ndlovu, CEO of Mondi Zimele.“Food security is a top priority within our communities and we recognised that we need to help our communities optimise what they have at their disposal, which is fertile land,” she said.

“The first aim is subsistence,” says Ndlovu, “but we are identifying those with the potential to upscale their farms to small businesses. We provide basic agricultural and business training. We also work closely with Mondi and SiyaQhubeka Forests to improve infrastructure, where possible, and look to leverage government and development agency support.”

Mondi Zimele appointed a full-time agricultural extension officer, Tholinhlanhla Dindi, to assist people in establishing, maintaining and improving their small farms, and the company connects farmers with markets for the sale of excess produce.

“This landscape is excellent for farming and farms can produce from January to December,” says Tholinhlanhla, adding that farmers can supply in the off-season, which puts them in a good position for the market. Rainfall is sufficient and the soil quality is good.

The programme’s success is evident in the empowerment of women and youth. The end goal is to create sustainable livelihoods with growth potential, resulting in both social and economic mobility.

A total of 87 hectares of land, of which 67 hectares is a groundnut-intercropping project at Mondi’s forest plantation in Umfolozi, are currently part of the programme and 237 members are working on these projects.

Twinsaver tackles hand and face hygiene with fun TikTok campaign

From keeping our hands clean to doing the elbow greeting instead of hugs and handshakes, face and hand hygiene has been top of mind for many people. South African tissue and hygiene products manufacturer, Twinsaver, has tackled the topic in an entertaining way with a song and video to educate kids.

Twinsaver launched a TikTok campaign where kids with the assistance of their parents are invited to dance or sing along to the Twinsaver Blow & Throw song and stand a chance to win exciting prizes.

https://www.facebook.com/TwinsaverSA

Sappi achieves first international PEFC forest certification in South Africa

Sappi is proud to announce that it has achieved the first PEFC-endorsed Sustainable African Forest Assurance Scheme (SAFAS) certification in South Africa. This after years of collaboration and dedicated commitment in setting new forest certification standards for the country and despite the unforeseen obstacles created by the Coronavirus pandemic lockdown restrictions.

The SAFAS project has been a successful collaboration between Sappi and a number of South African forestry organisations who saw the need to develop a local certification standard with international recognition, which was achieved through the endorsement by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). Starting in 2015 with the establishment of SAFAS, the journey entailed the development of a Forest Management Standard, the development of certification requirements and, in 2018, the endorsement of the standard and certification procedures.  A certification tool was developed by the team to assess plantations, based on several factors including environmental, social and economic conditions specific to South Africa.

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

Forestry South Africa publishes second issue of Timber Industry Presents… Magazine

Timber Industry Presents… Magazine, TIP-Mag for short, was pioneered by Forestry South Africa’s Timber Industry Pesticide Working Group (TIPWG) in 2020. It provides a platform for researchers and forestry students alike to share their research findings which may otherwise remain unpublished.

As a knowledge transfer tool, TIP-Mag showcases the first-class research and scientific thinking within the forestry sector to a broader audience by presenting the scientific content in an interesting, accessible and easy-to-digest fashion.

“The first issue of TIP-Mag has proven its potential as a knowledge transfer tool, providing a much-needed platform for the publication of important research. The second issue builds on this, advancing the magazine’s scope and reach.” – Dr Ronald Heath, FSA Director: Research and Protection

This issue’s headline articles include:

• Genetic breakthrough: a new DNA marker resource for genome-assisted breeding of pine trees.
• A new perspective on pesticides: The revised FSC Pesticide Policy means new rules for foresters to follow but will it change the way they think?
• The enemy of my enemy is my friend! Using natural enemies of insect pests for their management is an old and generally well-known approach. But is this approach still valuable within the current and future plantation forestry landscape?

Link to TIP-Mag: https://www.forestrysouthafrica.co.za/tip-mag/

South African forestry celebrates Arbor Week during October

Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 restrictions, members of South Africa’s forestry community still did their bit to celebrate Arbor week. Each company found their own way to celebrate such as introducing learners to planted forests and the indigenous forests they conserve, planting new indigenous trees, restoring parkland and initiating conservation projects.

Read more about each project at their respective links:

• Merensky – Inspiring foresters of the future
• NCT Forestry – Turning a rubbish dump into a park for everyone
• York Timber – A vision for an indigenous forest
• Sappi South Africa – Fusing culture with conservation

An unstoppable force: when women unite

“What has been true for many decades is now a myth: the forestry sector is not a man’s world!” – Khosi Mavimbela, executive director of the Forest Sector Charter Council (FSCC)

More women are choosing careers that were traditionally reserved for men, and that includes those in the foresty sector. Women CEOs, CFOs, COOs, senior managers, heads of research groups and policymakers are all holding their own, along with those who excel in physically demanding roles like fire protection and the operation of heavy machinery.

Gender, physicality and stereotyping, it seems, no longer carry any weight when it comes to forestry careers while the industry itself has benefited by embracing the varying skillsets and qualities brought by women.

“Despite all this, the stereotype of the bearded forester lives on in the minds of many outside the sector and this is something that needs to be addressed,” says Forestry South Africa (FSA) communications consultant Dr Katy Johnson.

In August 2019, FSA celebrated Women’s Month by profiling 25 women who are carving out a name for themselves in the industry. The idea was to showcase their success as a way of encouraging others to follow suit.

A rousing success on several fronts, the event exposed many of the gender-based challenges that exist while shedding light on how to break down these barriers going forward. Its most lasting impact has been the implementation of the She is Forestry SA Association, currently in the process of being registered as a non-profit.

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

AF&PA Congratulates Incoming President Biden, Monitors Administration Actions

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were inaugurated on Wednesday, January 20, 2021. AF&PA congratulated the new administration and welcomed the peaceful transition. The new administration said its immediate focus will largely, “address the COVID-19 pandemic, provide economic relief, tackle climate change, and advance racial equity.” President Biden has taken swift action during his first days in office, including:

• Rejoining the Paris Agreement on Climate Change
• Re-engaging with the World Health Organization (WHO)
• Rolling back Trump Administration Environmental Actions
• Signed an Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety during COVID-19

A summary of Administration priorities and executive actions can be found at whitehouse.gov

AF&PA Announces Sustainability Award Winners

At its November board meeting, AF&PA announced its annual Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 Sustainability Award winners, which recognize exemplary sustainability programs and initiatives in the paper and wood products manufacturing industry. Seven member companies were recognized for outstanding efforts to improve worker safety and the environment. The 2020 Sustainability Award winners are:

• Resolute Forest Products for Leadership in Sustainability – Energy Efficiency/Greenhouse Gas Reduction
• Clearwater Paper for Leadership in Sustainability – Safety
• Evergreen Packaging for Leadership in Sustainability – Sustainable Forest Management
• Sappi for Leadership in Sustainability – Water
• Appvion for Innovation in Sustainability for its direct thermal technology
• The Price Companies for Innovation in Sustainability for its restoration and management of marginal agricultural land
• WestRock for Innovation in Sustainability for its Pak On Demand™ pouch system

Visit sustainability.afandpa.org/awards to see videos from each of the award-winning companies.

Heidi Brock Joins NAM’s Council of Manufacturing Associations Board

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) announced 2021 leadership for its Council of Manufacturing Associations (CMA) at the CMA 2021 Leadership Conference in January. Among the new leaders, Heidi Brock, President and CEO of the American Forest & Paper Association, was selected to serve a three-year term to the CMA board. During the virtual winter meeting, Brock moderated a panel discussion on the “power of associations” to address some of the critical issues during COVID-19.  The conversation included Susan Robertson, The American Society of Association Executives’ (ASAE) Interim President and CEO; Mary Kate Cunningham, ASAE’s Senior Vice President of Public Policy; and Keith Smith, NAM’s Senior Vice President of Public Affairs and Mobilization. CMA’s membership includes 260 national manufacturing trade associations, representing 130,000 companies worldwide. The Council creates connections within the manufacturing industry and enables leaders to share perspectives, form coalitions and ensures that manufacturers have a strong voice in national policy.

The New Zealand Climate Change Commission has just unveiled its forest carbon offset plans for New Zealand achieving its legislative mandated zero-carbon economy by 2050. The independent Commission was set up along similar lines to the UK Commission and so its first carbon budget was much anticipated.  The Commission expects the exotic planation estate to add another 380,000 hectares to its existing 1.7 million hectares in the next 15 years.  This is a much more modest exotic forest expansion than previous projections which relied on carbon offsets from production forestry to achieve a net greenhouse gas reduction.  The Commission expects huge conversions of transport from fossil fuel use to renewables instead.  Farmer lobbyists, concerned that the long term profitability of sheep and beef farming was falling behind that of forestry, have been strongly lobbying that even modest carbon credits were an unfair incentive to plant trees and so should be restricted.  At the same time however the government is projecting a $2.6 billion increase in New Zealand forest product export earnings by 2030, through adding value to an export trade currently dominated by the export of logs, most of which go to China.  In the long term, the Climate Change Commission wants the government to subsidise the planting of indigenous trees.  Forests of native trees will sequester carbon much more slowly than pines or eucalypts, but the Commission asserts their value in fighting climate change will come into its own in the 22^nd Century.

Paper, Graphics and Editorial & resumed post-covid-19

The Brazilian Tree Industry (Ibá), the National Association of Paper Distributors (Andipa) and the Brazilian Association of the Graphic Industry (Abigraf Nacional) have been working intensively on several fronts to keep mitigating the effects of the pandemic for the various industrial segments represented.

Fostering information and knowledge is always important. At this challenging time for many, this can be the differential for business survival. For this reason, it sought information from the main partners in the chain that can contribute to business management. For further information click on the link and check it out: https://bit.ly/3j4FfAO

Incoming Chair of United Nations FAO forestry Committee says turbo-charging timber and forestry key to achieving ‘Carbon Neutral by 2050’

Incoming Chair of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) forestry advisory Committee, Ross Hampton, says the world’s renewable timber and forestry sectors must be turbo-charged if we are to have any chance of achieving the global goal of ‘Carbon Neutral by 2050’.

Mr Hampton, who is also Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA), has just been appointed Chair of the UN FAO’s Advisory Committee on Sustainable Forest-based Industries (ACSFI).

“I am honoured to be chosen for this role. The ACSFI is determined to promote world best practice sustainable forest management such as occurs in Australia and many parts of the globe. My ambition is to continue the powerful representation of outgoing Chair Carina Hakansson, who was DG of the Swedish Forest Industries Federation,” Mr Hampton said.

Mr Hampton said the world’s sustainably managed forestry and forest products industries were uniquely positioned to play a major role in the renewed global drive to achieve ‘Carbon Neutral by 2050’, and in the international post-COVID recovery efforts.

Mr Hampton pointed to the 4th assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which stated:

“A sustainable forest management strategy aimed at maintaining or increasing forest carbon stocks, while producing an annual sustained yield of timber, fibre or energy from the forest, will generate the largest sustained mitigation benefit.[i]“

“Wood and timber products don’t just store carbon as the trees grow, they also store it in the products produced from forests. Timber is also far less energy-intensive to produce than steel and concrete, making it the ‘green’ choice for construction. However, despite some outstanding breakthroughs in innovative engineered timber products, the shift to medium and high-rise timber buildings has been too slow in Australia and internationally if we are to make a meaningful impact on climate. Every major city authority with a climate action plan should be demanding developers use more timber.”

“Forestry products also have a huge role to play in providing biodegradable alternatives to single use plastics which are choking our waterways and oceans,” Mr Hampton said.

The Secretary of the ACSFI, based in Rome, Sven Walter said, “I congratulate Mr Hampton as incoming Chair. Our push to increase the uptake of forest-based renewables needs strong leadership and Mr Hampton has shown he is a passionate and serious advocate for sustainable forest industries.”

FAO Forestry Officer, Australian Lyndall Bull said, “I have known Mr Hampton for many years. I am looking forward to working with him to implement the new 2020-2030 ACSFI Strategic Framework ensuring that the vital work of ACSFI is at the forefront of the wider global audience”.

[i] https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/03/ar4_wg3_full_report-1.pdf

The original media release is here: 210208 Media_Release_-_Incoming_Chair_of_United Nations_FAO_forestry_Committee_says_turbo-charging_timber_and_forestry_key_to_achieving_‘Carbon_Neutral_by_2050’