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2015 - Present

Conservation Timber Initiative

What is Conservation Timber?

  • Conservation Timber is wood that supports long-term conservation in natural forests

  • Conservation Timber is harvested from sustainably managed forests in a manner that protects biodiversity, carbon stocks and other ecological and social values

  • It generates financial incentives for sustainable forestry and local stakeholders who act as forest stewards.

  • Conservation Timber results in more and better forests compared to business as usual.


Cities worldwide are turning to sustainable wood procurement as a critical tool in their bioeconomy and climate action strategies. The goal of this initiative is to foster a shared understanding of Conservation Timber and its unique potential to meet the urgent requirements of stakeholders across the value system, from forest to city.


The Conservation Timber Initiative will directly address current barriers through engagement, network building, market development and capacity building. Our analyses and comparison of conservation timber enterprises in diverse geographies will support greater transparency in the links between climate, biodiversity, and social outcomes, and the timber harvested from these well managed forests. Based on the initiative’s methods and metrics, the specification of sustainable, responsibly sourced wood can be used to confidently help conserve forests, support community enterprises, and lead to massive climate and biodiversity benefits.


Over the past few years Pilot Projects and our collaborators have developed the concept of Conservation Timber as a crucial category within wood production and procurement. With the aim of advancing the concept, several events have been hosted including:

  • Wood at Work – annually since 2015

  • Forests & Livelihoods: Assessment, Research, and Engagement (FLARE) – annually since 2016

  • The Selva Maya Conservation Timber Summit, Playa del Carmen – Mexico 2023

  • Conservation Timber Forum – hosted at the Carrefour International du Bois, Nantes, France 2024

  • IUFRO World Congress – Stockholm 2024

  • Partner Forest Summit – Rotterdam 2024


These events explored the significance and implications of Conservation Timber as a category of wood products to address pressing needs across various stakeholders within the value system, from consumers to forest owners and managers. The exchange of recent experience and new ideas aimed to highlight best practices and ways to accelerate the use of Conservation Timber on behalf of forest outcomes such as forest youth, forest conservation, forest entrepreneurship and value system transparency.


Become a part of the Conservation Timber Initiative



Background

Tropical forests are one of the world’s most critical biospheres and assets for climate change mitigation (Roe et al. 2019) and continue to be at risk due to both natural disturbances and human-induced land-use changes (Curtis et al. 2018, Goldman et al. 2020, GFW 2022). These forests represent 8-10% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions annually (Harris et al. 2012, Seymour & Busch 2016). In balancing conservation and development interests, it is clear that supporting communities on the front lines of forest conservation is necessary, and that these connections and impacts be made evident to consumers through the wood products they specify.


A common misconception is that timber production is bad for forests. Illegal and over-extractive logging are serious threats to forests, but the largest drivers of deforestation, according to many scientific studies (e.g. Pendrill et al. 2019), stem from global demand for agricultural products. Illegal practices abet these processes. Where inroads are made by logging, chances increase the forest will be cleared and converted to another use.


The vast majority of the world’s forests are managed by indigenous and local communities. In a 2018 study by the Rights and Resources Initiative, Indigenous Peoples and local communities were legally recognized as owning at least 447 Mha of forestland. But there is no domestic market for wood products from sustainable forests and only fledgling connections to international markets where the willingness to pay for higher levels of sustainability is present.


Barriers to scale include:

  • Local markets do not value conservation timber products.

  • Communities face difficulties breaking into international markets

  • Lack of technical knowledge and testing discourage the use and purchase of lesser-known timber species.

  • Inefficiencies and the lack of investment in the local value chain (e.g. harvesting, milling, drying) make it difficult to add value to conservation timber products and keep profits within the community.


A sustainably managed forest can supply valuable timber and non-timber products such as nuts, fruits, and medicines -- providing livelihoods for whole communities. Research shows that low-intensity forest use over long terms can sustain and even increase forest biodiversity and carbon sequestration. It takes knowledge, planning, and secure forest rights, as has been demonstrated by communities around the world.


Tropical timber has many uses in cities today– street furniture, footbridges, marine pilings, and boardwalks. Tropical wood is durable, resistant to decay, carbon storing, and renewable. A sustainable built environment is one built with wood that comes from sustainable sources which respect the values of a forest ecosystem. In all cases, but especially in the case of tropical wood, it is crucial to source conservation timber!


Read more about our Partner Forest Communities here.



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