Two years since the coup d’état against the newly re-elected Union Government of Myanmar (UGoM), and despite a logging ban imposed by the junta and sanctions imposed by the EU, UK, US, Switzerland, and Canada, exports of forest products continue — topping more than half a billion US dollars since February 1, 2021. Sanctioned jurisdictions […]
African populations of highly exploited commercial timber species, Afzelia, Khaya, and Pterocarpus, have recently been listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in order to support their sustainable and legal trade. Many of these species come from countries with poor governance, high levels of corruption, and weak enforcement. China and Vietnam […]
As deforestation rates soar in the Amazon, national and regional governments are under pressure from the international community to control forest loss. The problem is that the current economic growth model relies on forest conversion for agriculture and livestock production, putting immense pressure on the forest and the indigenous communities living in it. But alternative […]
Forest Trends partners with indigenous communities in Brazil’s Tupi Mosaic to develop economic enterprises that promote forest conservation. We’re building sustainable value chains for açaí, artisan products, Brazil nuts, and cacao, and demonstrating the business model for native seeds and seedlings. The “Amazon Bioeconomy” we are building mimics traditional Amazon management systems, creating a diversity […]
Forest Trends was founded with the mission of putting an economic engine behind nature conservation – the idea being that our economy, our society, and our wellbeing all depend in very real and material ways on healthy natural ecosystems. That idea’s time has come. The world is looking to “nature-based solutions” to combat climate change, mitigate […]
This report focuses on recent changes in India’s international timber trade, especially over the 2019–2021 period, and the implications (of identified changes) for India’s sourcing of illegally harvested or traded timber. The paper thus provides an update of Forest Trends’ 2020 report India’s wooden furniture and wooden handicrafts: risk of trade in Illegally harvested wood […]
Companies are setting stronger, more wide-reaching commitments to address commodity-driven deforestation, but greater transparency and more consistent reporting are needed across all stages of the value chain to achieve these commitments, and deliver meaningful positive impacts on forests and other natural ecosystems. In the second part of this two-part series on the findings of Supply […]