News - tropenbos.org

MSD Platform Successfully Established in Two New Districts

Wed, 16 May 2012 10:33:00 +0200

The EU chainsaw milling project has expanded its multi-stakeholder dialogue (MSD) platform to two new forest districts: Tarkwa and Nkwanta.

TBI Viet Nam holds a successful final phase two workshop

Tue, 15 May 2012 09:44:00 +0200

TBI Viet Nam held its final workshop of phase two on April 17th, 2012 in Hue, Viet Nam. The overall objective of the workshop was to evaluate the obtained results compiled by TBI Viet Nam, and to introduce the programme’s orientation thru 2016.

Workshop to assess the policy and practice of Forest Land Allocation held in Ha Noi

Tue, 15 May 2012 09:41:00 +0200

On April 10th, 2012, TBI Viet Nam, with support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), conducted a workshop in Ha Noi entitled, “Forestry Land Allocation: Policy and Practice.” The event was held in cooperation with the Department of Science, Technology and Environment (under MARD) and the Institute of Forest Planning and Inventory (FIPI).

Moving Forward with Forest Governance

Tue, 08 May 2012 09:53:00 +0200

The need to improve forest governance as an important prerequisite for promoting sustainable forest management and reducing deforestation and forest degradation is widely acknowledged. To make governance better work for people and forests is not an easy challenge due to divergent interests and mind-sets and imbalanced power relations and unequal access to information, decision-making, resources and benefits.

Call for papers: ETFRN news on Private Business and Forest Finance: Insights, Opportunities and Good Practices

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:03:00 +0200

In order to contribute to documenting and analysing the experiences and lessons generated from private actors engaged in the SFM arena, the European Tropical Forest Research Network (ETFRN), together with Tropenbos International and GIZ, will publish a special issue of ETFRN News on ‘Private Business and Forest Finance: Insights, Opportunities and Good Practices’.

Forest Land Allocation: What has been Achieved?

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:12:00 +0200

On April 10th, 2012, TBI Viet Nam will cooperate with the Department of Science, Technology and Environment (belonging to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), the Institute of Forest Inventory and Planning, and the Department of Forest Protection to organize the “National Workshop on Forest Land Allocation: Policy and Practice”.

TBI Viet Nam Participates in FGLG International Learning Event

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:01:00 +0200

The Forest Governance Learning Group (FGLF) held their 8th international learning event on March 26th-30th in Huế, Viet Nam. The FGLG is an informal partnership of in-country groups and international associations that is currently involved in eight African and three Asian countries.

REDD het bos – OneWorld Live Talkshow about Forests (27 March 2012 from 20:00-21:30 hrs in De Balie, Amsterdam)

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:39:00 +0100

Forests are very important for the quality of life on our planet. They help stabilize the world’s climate, provide a home to many plants and animals, maintain the water cycle, protect against flood, drought, and erosion and are a source for medicines and foods.

TBI Ghana project to build capacity of local communities to produce legal lumber for the domestic market launched

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 10:03:00 +0100

Forest communities in Ghana will soon be producing lumber to shore up the volume of legal lumber supply for the domestic market. This is to be made possible as Tropenbos International Ghana implements a project that seeks to link local communities to forest concession holders to produce legal lumber under the FAO/ACP/EU-FLEGT Support Programme.

Promoting legal timber trade for sustainable forest management in Ghana

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:14:00 +0100

The domestic timber market in Ghana is large (2.5 million m3) and will expand significantly as Ghana’s population is predicted to double by 2030 to almost 50 million. More than 700,000 livelihoods depend on this trade. Non-regulation of the domestic timber market will lead to forest degradation, loss of environmental services and rural and urban poverty, as well as jeopardizing the legal international timber trade.

The CELOS Management System: a contribution to improved forest management

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:53:00 +0100

The CELOS Management System (CMS) is a system for harvesting tropical rainforests which aims to cause minimal disturbance to the ecosystem while also providing economic return. CMS was developed by the Centre for Agricultural Research in Suriname (CELOS) and the Agricultural University of Wageningen (The Netherlands; nowadays WUR). Starting in the 1960/70s, it was originally developed for Suriname, but has gained international recognition.

Food security and energy development in Viet Nam

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:18:00 +0100

The economic structure of Vietnam has drastically shifted since the mid 1980's from an agriculture based system to one that is multi-based.

How Viet Nam is prepared to meet legal requirements of timber export markets

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:43:00 +0100

More and more markets are demanding legal verification of timber products, e.g. the EU with its Timber Regulation and the US with its Lacey Act. The EU and VS are important export destinations for Viet Nam’s timber products (more than 80% of total export revenue). In the report “How Viet Nam is prepared to meet legal requirements of timber export markets” TBI aims to provide some initial assessments of the impacts of these emerging market requirements.

TBI Cameroon Programme closes

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:05:00 +0100

At the end of 2011, the TBI Cameroon Programme came to an end after almost three years of operation.

A pathway to a green economy

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:00:00 +0100

Country-Led Initiative in Support of the United Nations Forum on Forests, Hanoi, 10-13 January 2012. “A pathway to a green economy in the context of sustainable development: Focus on the role of markets in the promotion of sustainable forest management” is the theme of the Country-Led Initiative (CLI), organised by Viet Nam with the support of the Netherlands and Finland.

Current status of community forestry in Cameroon

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:30:00 +0100

In the publication “Etat des lieux de la foresterie communautaire et communale au Cameroun” (Current status of community forestry in Cameroon) Tropenbos International reviews more than 15 years of community forestry in Cameroon and gives some lessons for its application in other Central African countries.

Book launch "Sustainable Management of Tropical Rainforests - The CELOS Management System"

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 10:08:00 +0100

On 20 January 2012 a book with contributions from 25 authors on the experiences of the CELOS Management System will be launched as result of a Tropenbos International Suriname project in collaboration with the Centre for Agricultural Research in Suriname (CELOS) and Wageningen University and Research centre (WUR), and co-funding of WWF-Guianas.

EU keen to support adequate supply of legal timber on the domestic market

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:42:00 +0100

Tropenbos International together with local partners have been awarded a next grant from the EU to continue the chainsaw milling project aimed at securing legal domestic lumber supply in support of the VPA. The project was launched on 26th October, 2011 in Accra, Ghana.

REDD+ platform meeting

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:33:00 +0100

On 16 November 2011, Tropenbos International, together with WWF-NL, the Dutch Ministry of Economics, Agriculture and Innovation and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is organising a REDD+ platform meeting.

Commemoration of the International Year of Forests 2011

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:38:00 +0100

Tropenbos International Colombia has joined the celebration of the International Year of Forests participating in various activities promoted by the environmental sector. At these events TBI Colombia has shared its experience on indigenous forest management.

Course on GIS and Remote Sensing for forest management.

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:52:00 +0100

In an effort to improve the capacity of individuals and organisations involved in forest resource management, TBI Viet Nam organised a course “Application of GIS and Remote sensing in Forest Management” on the 22nd of August 2011 in Hue. This event was a joint effort between TBI Viet Nam and the Center of Geo-Information Technology, University of Technology, Ho Chi Minh City.

Research on Forest Governance Monitoring in Viet Nam

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:47:00 +0100

Tropenbos International, in cooperation with FAO and the Wageningen UR Centre for Development Innovation, is implementing a pilot project on Forest Governance Monitoring (FGM) in Viet Nam. With support from MARD, the programme director (PD) of TBI Viet Nam and an independent expert from FAO organised several meetings at national and local level institutes and organizations.

The importance of the domestic timber trade for FLEGT and REDD: Experiences from TBI’s chainsaw milling project in Ghana and Guyana.

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:55:00 +0200

Tropenbos International would like to invite you to an informal networking event on 23 November 2011, to learn about the practical dilemmas of regulating domestic timber markets. During this seminar our partners from Ghana and Guyana will briefly present their experiences, after which there will be time for informal interaction and discussions.

Call for papers: ETFRN News 53 Enhancing forest related governance for development:Recent country experiences and what they teach us

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:45:00 +0200

The European Tropical Forest Research Network (ETFRN), together with Tropenbos International and GIZ, will publish a special issue of ETFRN News. The publication will focus on the incentives, drivers and enabling factors for states and the private sector to improve forest governance and on the approaches and processes taken to improve forest governance. The Newsletter is scheduled for publication in May 2012.

Symposium: Halting deforestation and forest degradation in ghana – the missing link

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 14:16:00 +0200

To celebrate the International Year of Forests in Ghana, TBI Ghana in partnership with the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Forestry Commission is organising a symposium under the theme: “Halting deforestation and forest degradation in Ghana – the missing link’. This high-level debate is aimed at diagnosing the failure of sustainable forest management in Ghana and jointly discussing strategies to address it.

Food Security, Water and Tropical Forests - Are we on the right track?

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:36:00 +0200

On June 22, 2011 Tropenbos International together with Utrecht University, Wageningen University, Dutch Association of Tropical Forests (VTB), Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation and Ministry of Foreign Affairs organised the seminar Food Security, Water and Tropical Forests – Are we on the Right Track?

Forestry Investments in Emerging Markets

Mon, 30 May 2011 17:06:00 +0200

Investments in forestry have many desirable features. Under certain conditions, forestry investments yield attractive returns to investors and can contribute substantially to the economic, social and environmental development of countries. Environmentally and socially conscious investors are actively exploring the "ins and outs" of forestry opportunities, motivated by opportunities that are profitable, but also in line with their core values.

“Do Global Intentions lead to Local Improvements? – The Forestry Case”

Fri, 27 May 2011 13:56:00 +0200

Together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Tropenbos International organised an expert meeting in the framework of the Knowledge Network on Sustainability Climate and Energy. The meeting “Do Global Intentions lead to Local Improvements? – The Forestry Case” focused on the challenges of designing and delivering effective international environmental policies

Visit Secretary General of the Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Tourism

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:58:00 +0200

On Tuesday 29 March the Secretary General of the Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Tourism visited the office of Tropenbos International in DR Congo.

Forest Land Allocation Review Workshop organized in Nam Dong

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 12:36:00 +0100

On 20 January 2011, a Forest Land Allocation (FLA) Review workshop was organized in Nam Dong District, facilitated and supported by TBI Viet Nam.

GIS course in support of forest information management

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 12:29:00 +0100

In an attempt to improve the capacity for its partners and stakeholders in the forest sector of Viet Nam, TBI Viet Nam organized a course on “GIS application in forest information management” from 13 to 16 January 2011 in Hue city.

Financing strategies for sustainable land and forest management: Sharing national experiences for the facilitative process in practice

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 15:42:00 +0100

During the ninth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), Tropenbos International participated in a side event on 26 January 2011 to showcase experiences and lessons in financing sustainable land and forest management as a contribution to the work at the country level and the Facilitative Process.

Workshop on ‘Options for Deploying Forest Investment Programme Resources in Ghana'

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:01:00 +0100

TBI Ghana held a workshop on ‘Options for Deploying Forest Investment Programme Resources in Ghana' on February 11, 2010. The aim was to create awareness on the Forest Investment Programme (FIP) and to identify potential options for deploying FIP resources in Ghana. These options are expected to feed into Ghana’s meeting with the FIP scoping mission late March 2011.

Seminar in Brussels draws attention to local timber markets in FLEGT - VPAs and REDD-plus

Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:52:00 +0100

Tropenbos International and six other organisations organised the seminar "Bridging local and global interests: Integration of domestic timber markets in FLEGT/VPAs and REDD+"to discuss how to address domestic timber trade and timber-dependent livelihoods effectively in VPAs; map the potential consequences of VPAs on local livelihoods; and discuss the relevance of these for the further development of forest governance programmes such as FLEGT and REDD+.

Science-policy dialogue on timber legality and social safeguards in Ghana

Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:10:00 +0100

A two-day international workshop on the “Illegal or Incompatible” research project was held in Elmina, Ghana on November 25 and 26, 2010. The workshop aimed at informing policy processes in Ghana and the EU on anticipated impacts of Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) signed between the two parties. This workshop was a sequel to one organized earlier in October 2009 to facilitate information exchange and dialogue on potential impacts of VPA implementation on local livelihoods.

Knowledge Dialogue in BIOEXPO 2010

Sun, 02 Jan 2011 11:59:00 +0100

From 18-24 November, Tropenbos International Colombia participated in the event BIOEXPO 2010 through the construction of a “maloca”, a traditional house and meeting place of the indigenous people of the Amazon. The maloca served as a place for a knowledge based dialogue on climate change, indigenous territories and natural resource management among different indigenous communities of Colombia and other countries of Latin America.

Workshop Generates Valuable Feedback on Land Allocation Research Project

Thu, 16 Dec 2010 12:21:00 +0100

On November 22, Tropenbos International (TBI) Viet Nam organized a workshop to report some findings on the research project “Impacts of Forestry Land Allocation on the Livelihoods of Local People and Forest Resources in the North Central Region,” one of six research projects currently being implemented by TBI Viet Nam. The event gathered over forty representatives from TBI’s partners and stakeholder institutions at the Festival Hue Hotel in Hue City for a spirited discussion.

Domestic Timber Market: Insights and Developments

Sat, 20 Nov 2010 12:53:00 +0100

On 12 November 2010, TBI Suriname organized a workshop titled ‘Domestic Timber Market: Insights and Developments’. The goal of the workshop was, through group discussions, to acquire insights in the deficiencies in the areas of knowledge, research and capacity within the domestic timber market.

Artisanal timber logging

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 12:04:00 +0100

Excessive artisanal timber logging is said to threaten the forest resource base especially in the east of Congo where there is a lucrative market for timber due to the high demand in neighbouring countries. Artisanal timber logging (chainsaw milling) refers to small-scale logging activities whereby the logs are being processed into planks on-site using a chainsaw. The planks are then carried out of the forest to a nearby road or river for its commercialization.

New Directions in National Forest Policy

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 12:17:00 +0100

On 26 October 2010, the Forest Science Institute of Viet Nam (FSIV) cooperated with the Science Technology and Environment Department/ MARD and Tropenbos International Viet Nam programme (TBI Viet Nam) to organize a national workshop in Ha Noi.

Land use issues in the Oriental province of the Democratic Republic of Congo

Mon, 08 Nov 2010 12:08:00 +0100

On 22 and 23 October TBI in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) organised a workshop with key informants from the government, the private sector, universities, technical colleges and NGOs to identify the most important issues concerning the use and management of natural resources in the Oriental Province in DR Congo.

Research on forest land allocation policy under way

Tue, 14 Sep 2010 12:12:00 +0200

As a researcher on the project “Creating Synergy in Forest Research” between HUAF and IDS/UU for mutual capacity development in forest research, PhD candidate Tran Nam Tu has been selected to develop the research proposal “The impacts of forest and forest land allocation policy on rural livelihood in Central Viet Nam”.

High Conservation Value assessment for the Kampar peninsula landscape

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:00:00 +0200

The 700,000-hectare Kampar Peninsula in Sumatra, Indonesia, is one of the largest peat deposits in the tropics. In the Kampar Peninsula, illegal logging, plantation development, migrant settlement, land clearing, and poorly constructed drainage canals in the periphery of the peninsula are slowly degrading the peatland ecosystem, even in the relatively well-protected central area. Significantly, degrading peatlands are one of the major sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the world.

Conservation and use of biodiversity in tropical forests. Are we on the right track?

Sun, 20 Jun 2010 10:10:00 +0200

With smart policies a lot of the biodiversity in the tropical forests can be preserved. This was the impression given during the seminar: Conservation and use of biodiversity in Tropical forests. Are we on the right track? Held on the 16th of June, Ede, the Netherlands.

Economy and Environmental Services in Indigenous and Afro-descendent communities: the local point of view

Sun, 06 Jun 2010 14:35:00 +0200

As part of the results of the cooperation agreement signed between TBI Colombia and Patrimonio Natural Fund for the Biodiversity and Protected Areas, on 16 and 17 June 2010 a roundtable discussion was carried out under the title ‘Economy and Environmental Services in Indigenous and Afro-descendent communities: the local point of view’.

Biodiversity in Brussels

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:18:00 +0100

17th Brussels Development Briefing, 10 March 2010 Tropenbos International was invited to present the study “Effects of Forests Certification on Biodiversity” at the 17th Brussels Development Briefing.

Workshop on social safeguards in FLEGT/VPA process in Accra, Ghana

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 12:17:00 +0100

The EU FLEGT Action Programme aims to combat illegal logging and its associated trade. Ghana was the first country to formulate a Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the EU for contributing to the FLEGT objectives. It is envisaged that improved legal timber trade will also stimulate good governance and poverty alleviation.

Seminar “Intercambio de experiencias de proyectos productivos en comunidades indígenas y afrocolombianas”

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:22:00 +0100

The seminar “Intercambio de experiencias de proyectos productivos en comunidades indígenas y afrocolombianas” took place in Bogotá, the 22nd and 23rd of October 2009. The seminar was developed under the Nuffic financed project “Formación en gestión ambiental y cadenas productivas sostenibles” which is implemented by SENA (National Training Service – Colombia) and Tropenbos International. The seminar had as objective the exchange of experiences and processes that indigenous and afro-colombian communities have developed in relation to productive projects.

Tropenbos International at the World Forestry Congress

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:31:00 +0100

The World Forestry Congress took place from the 18th until the 23rd of October 2009 in Buenos Aires, Argentina with as main theme: “Forest in development: A vital Balance”. The aim of the Congress was the exchange of the last developments, innovations, insights and knowledge on forestry, policy, research and performance. In this, the 13th edition over more than 7000 forest experts where present from more than 160 countries.

Chainsaw milling in Africa, the Guiana Shield and the Caribbean

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:46:00 +0200

Two regional workshops on chainsaw milling were recently concluded in Accra, Ghana (25-26 May, 2009), and Georgetown, Guyana (8-9 July, 2009). Each workshop presented case studies on the causes and consequences of chainsaw milling and the way in which this practice has been managed in a variety of countries in Africa, the Guiana Shield and the Caribbean.

Outcomes from the seminar: Tropical Forests and Climate Change; Are we on the right track ... beyond Copenhagen?

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:40:00 +0200

Tropical forests will play an important role in the new climate treaty that is to be signed in December 2009 in Copenhagen. Unlike its predecessor - the Kyoto Protocol - this new agreement will likely include a financial mechanism to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD). The REDD mechanism has received substantial attention since it was introduced at the Bali conference in 2007. It is commonly viewed as a potential global incentive for the conservation and sustainable management of tropical forests.