Timber Retail Coalition launched to curb illegal logging
06 April 2010
Source: Forest Stewardship Council
Leading European retailers Carrefour Group, Kingfisher, Marks & Spencer and IKEA launched the Timber Retail Coalition (TRC) on 6 April 2010 to ensure minimum ethical standards for all timber and wood products sold in the European Union. Read more >>

Fighting against illegal timber exports
18 May 2010
Source: European Commission Directorate-General for Development
On the 17 May 2010 the European Union and the Republic of Congo have signed the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade Voluntary Partnership Agreement. The agreement foresees that, starting in July 2011, all wood products entering the European Union from the Republic of Congo will be required to carry a license showing that they contain wood and wood products from a legal origin. Read more >>

New body to strengthen the dialogue between the scientific community and policymakers on biodiversity and ecosystem services
11 June 2010
Source: International Union for Conservation of Nature
Governments have agreed to establish the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) as a leading leading body in making information available to support more informed decisions on how biodiversity and ecosystem services are conserved and used around the world. Read more >>

GFTN’s Interactive Guide to Legal and Responsible Sourcing published
17 June 2010
The GFTN’s Guide to Legal and Responsible Sourcing combines previous publications on legality and responsible procurement into a single, more comprehensive resource. This interactive publication guides companies through the regulatory and legislative landscape governing trade in timber and timber products. Read more >>

Traditional farming and forestry practices for a sustainable green revolution in Africa
29 June 2010
Source: BBC
Rainforest Alliance’s President Tensie Whelan writes that using "good old-fashioned" farming techniques will help deliver a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable green revolution in Africa. According to Ms. Whelan, good farming and forestry practices can play an important role in mitigating food scarcity, protecting scarce water supplies and soil productivity, addressing climate related issues and both preserving and enhancing biodiversity across the continent. Read more >>  

European Parliament bans imports of illegally-harvested timber or timber products
07 July 2010
Source: European Parliament
The European Parliament approved a ban on the sale of illegally-harvested timber and introduced traceability measures and sanctions.  The new law aims to reduce illegal deforestation and give consumers better assurances about the products they buy. Read more >>

Historic deal signed to protect Ecuador’s Yasuní National Park from oil drilling
3 August 2010
Source: United Nations Development Programme
An agreement between the Government of Ecuador and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) establishes a trust fund to protect Yasuni’ National Park’s Ishpingo-Tambococha-Tiputini (ITT) fields from oil drilling. The Yasuní National Park is one of the world’s richest biodiversity hotspots and was designated a World Biosphere Reserve in 1989 by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Read more >>

Ecologists unveil plan for 'barometer of natural life'
08 April 2010
Source: The Guardian
An ambitious project to create a "barometer of life" will be set out by some of the world's leading ecologists. The plan is for thousands of scientists to collect information on 160,000 of the world's nearly 2 million known species - from great mammals, fish and birds to obscure insects and fungi - chosen to be representative of life on Earth. Read more >>

16 percent of mangrove species threatened with extinction
11 April 2010
Source: Mongabay
 The first ever assessment of mangrove species by the IUCN Red List found 11 out of 70 mangrove species threatened with extinction, including two which were listed as Critically Endangered. Threats include coastal development, logging, agriculture, and climate change. Read more >>

Amazon Tribes Embrace Technology to Protect their Rainforest Home
26 April 2010
Source: GeoWorld, Digital Magazine Technology
Tribes in Suriname, Brazil and Colombia are combining their traditional knowledge of the rainforest with technology to conserve forests and maintain ties to their history and cultural traditions, which include profound knowledge of the forest ecosystem and medicinal plants. Read more >>

The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) for Business Report launched
13 July 2010
A study of The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) reveals that over 50 per cent of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) surveyed in Latin America and 45 per cent in Africa see declines in biodiversity as a challenge to business growth. In contrast, less than 20 per cent of their counterparts in Western Europe share such concerns. Another recent survey, also spotlighted in the TEEB report for business, shows rising interest among consumers with 60 per cent of those surveyed in America and Europe and over 90 per cent in Brazil aware of biodiversity loss. Read more >>

WWF measures environmental footprint of world´s largest fine paper companies
14 July 2010
Source: WWF
WWF has launched the Paper Company Environmental Index, a new voluntary rating tool for paper companies to report on their global ecological footprint. The Paper Company Environmental Index covers impacts on forest ecosystems from fiber sourcing, emissions from manufacturing process such as water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and corporate transparency. Five globally significant fine paper manufacturers have been the first to voluntarily disclose their environmental profiles.  Read more >>

Map that details the height of the world’s forests produced with NASA satellite data
20 July 2010
Source: NASA
The map showing forest canopy heights is the first that spans the entire globe based on one uniform method. The map should help scientists build an inventory of how much carbon the world’s forests store and how fast that carbon cycles through ecosystems and back into the atmosphere. Read more >>