Climate talks and Forest Day

The Forest Day 5 on the 4th of December was a success.

Published: 6.December, 2011

The South African forestry minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson gave a very inspiring speech at the opening of Forest Day 5

The G3 distributed both the GFP material as well as newly produced PEFC in collaboration with G3. The PEFC Forest Day stand was also the G3 hub.

Lennart Ackzell (left) collaborated on behalf of G3 with Liz Carlile and James Mayers from IIED and the Growing Forest Partnership

Very exciting speakers including South-Africa's Minister of Agriculture-Forestry-Fisheries Tina Joemat-Pettersson highlighted specifically GFP themes such as the importance of the people living in or close to the forest, livelihood of forest dependent people, that forest is much more than CO2 and the sustainable use of the forest is the solution to many of the problem raised at the negotiations.

As a contribute to Nobel Prize laureate Wangari Maathai, who recently died, and her mission in the Green Belt Movement with the basic element of engaging local people in the management of forests a touching film was presented.

The Forest Day 5 ended by the UNFCCC Secretary General Christiana Figueres and in her closing remarks she concluded that the Climate Change negotiations now have got a third leg besides mitigation and adaptation, namely poverty eradication. This was a very welcomed message to focus on the human component of Climate Change and Forests.

G3 and the PEFC stand, from left Sarah Price and Thorsten Arndt from PEFC and Lennart Ackzell from G3 and IFFA

Documents presented at the Durban conference from the Growing Forest Partnership and G3	Documents about the G3 and PEFC Group Certification Project were presented at the Durban conference