Green building - a key driver of timber certification … The use of timber in green construction is a growing trend worldwide.  Backed by innovative techniques, its eco-friendly characteristics spell golden times for  sustainable timber as a sought-after …

FSC Policy for Association in action: for better or for worse? … For the second time in two years, FSC has used its Policy for Association to disassociate from a leading timber trader. We take a close look at the impact and repercussions of the …

FSC General Assembly 2014: key outcomes … As the FSC General Assembly 2014 unfolded, the temperature went up and down, perhaps reflecting the emotional state of the participants. Despite discords, there was consensus that FSC needs to modernise, to …

Mangrove mania: Snapshots from a field audit … During a field audit in mangrove forests, our auditor team learned about the woes and wonders of this enchanted …

FSC certification an asset for forest carbon projects … A study commissioned by the Rainforest Alliance reveals that numerous synergies exist between the FSC Principles and Criteria for forest management and voluntary forest carbon standards. Importantly, …

EU Timber Regulation: When is a product legal? … The EU Timber Regulation requires companies to exercise due diligence when placing timber or timber products on the EU market for the first …

Interpol enters battle against forest crime … Those who seek to raise their fortunes based on forest crime may not find their chosen career quite as convenient and fruitful in future as they have been accustomed …

London Olympic Park FSC and PEFC certified … The London Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has achieved dual FSC and PEFC certification for the Olympic Park construction …

Carbon footprint reporting on the rise among business … It has become relatively commonplace for businesses to voluntarily disclose descriptive information about what they are doing to ensure environmental sustainability in their operations via their …

Australia passes Illegal Logging Prohibition Bill … On 19 November 2012, the Australian Senate voted in favour of the Australian Illegal Prohibition Bill, which prohibits the importing of illegally logged timber and timber products as well as processing …

Leadership needed in absence of global climate deal … Governments of the world who gathered for the climate conference in Durban were unable to agree on an international, legally-binding …

Environmental devotion propels success for greeting cards … Perhaps more than other forestry products, greeting cards have a unique ability to connect with consumers on an emotional …

FSC and PEFC requirements: update on key changes … The FSC and PEFC forest certification systems are constantly evolving based on stakeholder feedback and new developments in the political and legislative …

Outlook 2012: sustainability trends in the timber market … Will the global financial crisis kill efforts to foster sustainability in the timber sector? This would seem likely, but the opposite seems to be the …

NGOs: PEFC fails to deliver key values … Despite recent revisions and improvements of a number of core PEFC standards, Greenpeace and eight other NGOs find that the PEFC system does not provide sufficient assurance of responsible forest …

FSC remains the sole choice of Tetra Pak … Despite improvements in the PEFC system, it has not attained an assurance level that satisfies the standards set by Tetra Pak, global leader in beverage …

Positive outlook for certified sales in Eastern Europe … The largest printing house in Central Europe, QuadWinkowski, sees clear business benefits of its dual FSC and PEFC certification. Demands for certified products are growing across all of the …

Timothy Synnott: "The controversies have calmed down" … He was a constructive voice in the sustainable forestry debate, while the concept of FSC was still bubbling in its primordial soup. Twenty years later, he remains strongly engaged in sustainable …

Forestry issues: interim standards and large operations … Members decided to move ahead with efforts to solve a long-standing issue on the consistent interpretation of the global Principles & Criteria at country level, when national standards are absent. …

To stay or not to stay: FSC members take stock … As FSC responds to changes in the political, environmental and economic landscape, new challenges and opportunities emerge that are transforming the system. These changes can be highly contentious for its …