Commonwealth hosts debate on the future of the world’s forests
21 March 2000
An international panel of six environment and forestry experts will hold a debate on the findings of a recent report published by the World Commission on Forests and Sustainable Development (WCFSD). The debate will be held before an invited audience of representatives from government, environmental organisations, development agencies, foresters and the media and hosted by the Commonwealth Secretariat at Marlborough House, at 10.30am on Thursday, 23 March.
The panel will review current global efforts to reduce the rapid rate of deforestation, debate the possibilities of real policy change to recognise the vital function of the world forests in maintaining a habitable planet and explain why fundamental and far reaching changes are urgent and must go well beyond technical adjustments in forestry practice.
The experts on the panel, who played a key role in writing the WCFSD report, include WCFSD Co-Chair Ambassador Ola Ullsten (former Prime Minister of Sweden) and Commission Member Professor David Pearce, Director for the Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, University of London.
The role of forests in the amelioration of climate change and the prevention of flooding has long been recognised, but despite the best efforts of governments and environmental pressure groups, the rate of forest loss has remained high. The recent catastrophic flooding in Mozambique is the latest in a series of natural disasters which climate experts relate to global warming and much less stable climatic patterns. When combined with prolonged unsustainable land use, the impact of such catastrophes on local communities can be quite severe.
Against this background, the WCFSD report, Our Forest: Our Future, urges the international community to "choose a path that respects the ecological values of forests while recognising their role in social and economic development." The report makes a number of practical suggestions to reduce the degradation of the world forests and the conversion of forest land to other uses.
More than a third of the Commissioners were from Commonwealth countries and included the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku.
Note to Editors:
The report is based on a consultative process, which the twenty-six Commissioners undertook from 1995 to 1999. Public hearings were held to seek citizens' perspectives on the issues, especially among those whose lives are directly affected by forests and trees. The Commission held a series of public hearings in key areas of the world such as Indonesia and Cameroon, met with numerous specialists and received submissions from several thousand members of the public.
Our Forests, Our Future: Report of the World Commission on Forests and Sustainable Development is available for sale from Cambridge University Press, tel +44 1223 326 050, ref: 1572A.
00/16 21 March, 2000
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