European initiative to accelerate the responsibly sourced tropical timber market
04-12-2013
Market Demand
Jamie Lawrence, Senior Sustainability Advisor - Kingfisher Net Positive: “At Kingfisher, timber and wood-fibre is a fundamental resource. Timber makes up a considerable proportion of our cost of goods. Our aspiration is to ‘create more forests than we use’ by 2050 and we aim to achieve 100% responsibly sourced timber and paper in all our operations by 2020. The aim of the European STTC to reach a tipping point through a collaborative commitment across the industry is welcomed and will no doubt help the European market lead the way.”
Mainstream responsibly produced timber
Evaluations conducted by the World Bank and the UNEP conclude that sustainable forest management is an effective way to combat deforestation. Therefore, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and IDH (The Sustainable Trade Initiative) initiated this coalition. Hans Stout, IDH Tropical Timber Program Director: "We strive to bring responsibly produced tropical timber from niche to mainstream by increasing the demand for responsibly produced tropical timber. In that way, we contribute to the survival of the forests and the assurance of the supply of tropical timber.”
Minister Sharon Dijksma of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs: “I am very happy we succeeded in bringing together so many partners from the private and public sector to work on the same goal: sustainable tropical forest management. This coalition is a support for the EU action plan on combating illegal timber trade and contributes to the goals of the International Tropical Timber Agreement and the Convention on Biological
Diversity.”
The European STTC is linked to initiatives that work closely with the local stakeholders, companies, governments and certification organisations such as FSC to stimulate tropical forest management.
For more information on the Coalition: http://www.europeansttc.com/
