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News Annotated agenda (June 1-3, 2005) 1. Welcome and introduction The Chairman will inform the members of the Committee about the participation of observers from acceding countries in meetings of the Standing Forestry Committee.
News The seminar is organised by the Swedish Authorities under the joint auspices of the Joint Experts Network and the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE) to be held in Sunne, Värmland County, Sweden from 13 to15 June 2005 Background Countries in the European region and elsewhere have in recent years increased their attention to the cultural heritage values in our forests. This was expressed by the Vienna Declaration and Vienna Resolutions adopted at the fourth Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe and signed by forty European countries and the European Communities (Vienna, April, 2004). The principles aim to promote and raise awareness of the social and cultural dimension of sustainable forest management as well as clarifying the cultural significance of the forest.
The Spree Forest, a remote wetland south of Berlin, is a nature-lover's paradise known for its many narrow waterways. But researchers say the pristine region is in danger, blaming changes in climate and industry. The Spree River runs through the immense Spreewald Biosphere Reserve southeast of Berlin. It starts in the Lusatia region, near Poland, and is known for its traditional irrigation system consisting of 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) of small channels and waterways. Alder forests and wetlands alternate with sandy pine forests, grasslands and fields in a landscape that seems to have been little affected by the forces of modernity.
News Hadil da Rocha Vianna of Brazil, Jan McAlpine of the United States, Franz Perrez of Switzerland and Peter Csoka of the UNFF Secretariat discuss the text of the Decisions. Efforts to Reach Global Agreement Fail at UNFF-5 The fifth session of the UN Forum on Forests concluded Friday, with many involved conceding failure. The session had begun with the lofty goal of reaching a global agreement on all types of forests, but as negotiations continued throughout the first week and into the second, it became apparent that the gaps between country and regional group positions were too significant to overcome at this time, and participants had "bitten off more than they could chew."
News Speaking for farmers and small forest landowners, Natalie Hufnagel called for securing land tenure and property rights, and acknowledging the contributions of forests to livelihoods. Speaking for the EU, Octavia Modert of Luxembourg noted that decisions would have to be postponed if targets and goals could not be agreed upon. Martins Roze of Latvia called for clear definition of the state's role in achieving sustainable forest management Duason Jovic of Serbia and Montenegro stressed the importance of decentralization, democratization and participatory planning Juha Korkeaoja of Finland expressed disappointment that a legally-binding instrument (LBI) would not be achieved, and said that soft law would draw soft commitment. Elliott Morley of the United Kingdom stressed that the status quo is unacceptable
News On Thursday, delegates met all day in a high-level segment on actions for the future. Following ministerial statements from many countries, UNFF Coordinator and Head Pekka Patosaari presented a rapidly prepared draft Ministerial Declaration.
News (Nairobi) John Mbaria A day after the recent announcement by Kenya's Agricultural Minister, Kipruto arap Kirwa, that the country is facing imminent famine following a "silent" drought, heavy rains pounded many parts of the country, with some receiving an all-time high of 132mm in a single day. Days later, some sections of the country and especially the Lake Basin were to experience heavy flooding, which set on course the recurrent phenomenon in which hundreds of Kenyans, seek alternative shelter after their homes become no-go zones.
News 16-27 MAY 2005 The fifth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF-5) commences today at UN headquarters in New York. This is the final mandated session of UNFF. Delegates will review progress and consider future actions, review the effectiveness of the international arrangement on forests (IAF), consider the parameters of a mandate for developing a legal framework on all types of forests, and consider enhanced cooperation and policy and programme coordination. On 18 May, delegates will convene "Asia Day," consisting of a panel discussion on regional forest-related issues in Asia. From 25-26 May, UNFF-5 will convene a high-level ministerial segment and policy dialogue with heads of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) organizations and a Multi-stakeholder Dialogue.
News The IUFRO 3.08.00 Small-scale Forestry Group, together with the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Forest Research Institute, would like to call to your attention to an international symposium on "Small-scale Forestry in a Changing Environment", to be held in Vilnius, Lithuania, over May 30 to June 4, 2005.
News Brussels – During the forum on „Economic importance of forests in an enlarged Europe – the socio-economic prospects of forestry“ the forest-timber sector closed ranks in front of the European institutions, to emphasize the strengths and shortcomings of a European forest model.
News WASHINGTON – U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth today appointed Dr. Deanna J. Stouder as the national director of wildlife, fish, watershed and air research. The wildlife, fish, watershed and air research staff, which is a part of the agency's research and development deputy area, enhances understanding of organisms, populations, ecosystems, and ecological processes. Information provided by this research is crucial to helping the agency comply with requirements of key environmental statutes, including the National Forest Management Act, Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act.
News UBC Vancouver HONG KONG – The University of British Columbia established a dynamic regional presence when President Martha Piper opened the UBC Asia Pacific Regional Office (APRO) here today. A Canadian university first, the APRO is permanent, and mandated to serve the entire region. “The University of British Columbia is delighted to announce its new, and expanded home in the Asia Pacific region,” Dr. Piper told a Hong Kong audience as she opened the APRO today. “UBC has a longstanding commitment to Asia-related study and research. The APRO will help UBC build and enhance existing, academic, government, and private sector partnerships throughout Asia while serving its students and alumni.”
News Many initiatives on the program from 21st to 29th May in the Italian Parks As every year, the initiative of the European Federation of Parks repeats itself, to remind the day when in 1909 the first European park was established in Sweden. This date has without a doubt a great symbolic value, and for this reason it is celebrated throughout Europe.
News A 2.2m pounds project to restore a forest that was left behind after the last Ice Age is due to be launched. The 58 woodlands of Atlantic oak in Meirionnydd are home to more than 1,000 native species of flora. They were once part of the forest on the Atlantic coasts stretching from northern Scotland to Portugal. More than 4,000 acres of the woodlands will be looked after in a project aimed at restoring some of the character first created 14,000 years ago.
News By CLAIRE KONKES TASMANIA has joined a world-wide program to save endangered wild plants by storing their seeds in a global bank. The Millennium Seed Bank Project has operated from the heritage Royal Botanic Gardens in the United Kingdom since 2000. Funded by the UK national lottery, the project aims to safeguard from extinction 24,000 plant species from around the world by 2010. The program has already secured the future of virtually all the UK's native flowering plants.
News By DAN NEPHIN PITTSBURGH - Even though they don't have wings, 15 eggs were flying to Russia on Monday. The eggs - 12 from the endangered red-crown crane and three from the threatened white-naped crane - are being sent by the National Aviary in Pittsburgh as part of a reintroduction program.
News QEII (Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre) - London Research projects to make living more energy efficient currently have great interest. Much knowledge has been gathered indeed in recent years through various demonstration projects, but a final breakthrough has yet to come. This is especially true for affordable, sustainable concepts for the cheaper dwellings. To develop such concepts, a number a research institutes and market players have joined forces, united in Ecobuild Research. Through research in three Ecobuild dwellings (named A, B en C), built on the ground of the Energy research Center of the Netherlands (ECN), the consortium hopes to find the way to sustainable living comfort.
News Photo by Ferenc Gerely By Nick Hawton Sarajevo – Thousands of illegal loggers already end up in court in Bosnia In the remote mountains and forests of Bosnia, the illegal traders are busy at work. Stripping down the country's most precious resource, wood, loading it on to lorries and selling it on to the highest bidder. And it is big business. International investigators estimate that the Bosnian economy loses about $100m every year to through tax evasion and corruption in the industry.
