The End of Fossil Fuel Subsidies

Providing handouts to the wealthiest corporations on earth does not make much sense, particularly when their activities are the leading driver of climate change. Ending fossil fuel subsidies is the most obvious next step in our efforts to tackle the climate crisis. In the wake of the Paris Climate Agreement forged at COP21, continuing fossil fuel subsidies is an oxymoron.

These subsidies take many forms including, tax breaks, cheap loans, price controls, purchase requirements, purchasing equipment, royalty breaks and direct spending. According to some reports there are over 800 ways that taxpayers support the fossil fuel industry.

Event - GRI Global Conference 2016

The fifth GRI Global Conference will take place on May 18 - 20, 2016 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Up to 1,500 sustainability leaders from around the globe will be present to exchange leading-edge knowledge on best practices, innovations and trends that are empowering sustainable decisions and changing the world. GRI is  the globally accepted standard for enabling business, governments and other organizations to understand and communicate their impacts on critical sustainability issues.

Fossil Fuel Subsidies and Renewable Energy Post COP21 (Infographic)

One of the most important things we can do to curb climate change is to end fossil fuel subsidies.  This would reduce the amount of fossil fuels burned and it would level the playing field for clean renewable sources of energy. Event thought 60 percent of all new investment is going into renewable energy fossil fuels still get the lions share of subsidies. The International Energy Agency (IEA) say that government subsidies for fossil fuels are 12 times greater than those for renewable energy.

Canadian Thanksgiving is at Odds with Columbus Day

Although they co-occur, in many respects Columbus Day and Canadian Thanksgiving are diametrically opposed to each other. While Canadian Thanksgiving is a harvest festival celebrating nature's bounty, Columbus Day marks the start of our systematic destruction of the natural world.

Monday October 12th is Canadian Thanksgiving a time to be grateful, it is also Columbus day in most parts of the new world. It is hard to reconcile the start of our exploitation of the new world and the expression of gratitude for the bountiful harvests nature provides. 

Best Practice in Sustainability Reporting and Sustainability Communications

Ethical Corporation has recently published its complimentary Annual Review on CR Reporting and Sustainability Communications. Ethical Corporation helps thousands of businesses all around the globe to be more responsible. They work with NGO's, think-tanks, academia, governments and consultancies. Their work not only benefits the wider world, it also makes good business sense for the organizations that they serve. Their efforts include work in CSR, compliance, risk and governance communities.

New GRI Sustainability Reporting Tools and Resources

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is a leader in sustainability reporting and they continue to provide resources to help companies to track their performance. GRI's latest contribution is another helpful installment in this rapidly growing field. This fast moving and increasingly complex realm has seen the proliferation of a number of tools and resources to help companies rise to the challenge.

Reflections on Columbus Day and Canadian Thanksgiving

Monday October 13th is Columbus day in most parts of the new world, in Canada it is Thanksgiving. Columbus day and Canadian Thanksgiving offer us an opportunity to reflect and be grateful for the bounty of life in the new world. It is also propitious that we should think about our impact on the natural world at this time of year. Since 1970, Columbus day has been celebrated on the second Monday in October. As of 1959, this day is also Thanksgiving in Canada. Columbus day marks the start of our habitation of the new world and Thanksgiving is a time where we express our gratitude for the bountiful harvests nature provides.

Peru's Massive Illegal Logging Industry

The murder of indigenous activists is drawing attention to the massive trade in illegal forest products from Peru. The vast majority of logging activities in the country are illegal. Although Peru has a large rainforest current rates of illegal logging are unsustainable.

According to a 2012 World Bank report, as much as 80 percent of Peru’s logging exports are harvested illegally. Sophisticated wood laundering schemes help to bring this wood to international markets. This involves doctored papers that make the wood appear legal.

The US is among the nations that buy this illegal timber. According to a 2012 report by the Environmental Investigation Agency, at least 40 percent of cedar exports to the US include illegally logged timber. The wood from a single old-growth mahogany tree can earn more than $11,000 on the US lumber market.

Arbor Day: A Time to Acknowledge the Vital Importance of Trees

As a celebration of trees Arbor Day is an important event, particularly in the context of ongoing forest degradation. The loss of forests are even more alarming in light of our growing awareness of the importance of trees to planetary health. Trees provide oxygen for us to breathe and they sequester carbon thereby combating climate change. We are also coming to a better understanding of the ways in which trees regulate our climate and combat drought.

Arbor Day was founded by J. Sterling Morton in 1872. As secretary of agriculture in Grover Cleveland’s second administration, Morton was a stalwart tree advocate for trees, as he explained “Other holidays repose upon the past; Arbor Day proposes for the future.”

Nature Conservancy Canada Matches Volunteers to Projects in Canada

Are you interested in volunteering your time to conserve nature in Canada? If so there is a new portal that helps interested volunteers to find conservation projects near you. The Nature Conservancy Canada (NCC) matches people with volunteer opportunities that are organized by province. These projects support the health and well being of a wide range of Canada’s natural places.

Projects cover things like animal surveys, building homes for wild birds, making trails, and wildlife counts.

To go to the site click here.

Video - Sustainable Forest: How Grey County Forests Try to Manage Conservation and Economic Activity

Grey County forests help us conserve important natural habitats while also providing significant economic impact and serving as hubs for recreational activity. Working with OSC Media House, Grey County is creating a series of videos to share the magic of "Our Forest." The "Our Forest" videos will tell the story of our forests by sharing the history of our landscape, demonstrating how we manage our forests and sharing the knowledge of the people who act as stewards of our remarkable natural assets.

Video - Forests = Life

Forests are essential for the survival of people everywhere. They nurture us, inspire us and shelter us. They are also at the heart of sustainable development. In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly declared 21 March as the International Day of Forests to "celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests and of trees outside forests".

A Visual Representation of Global Forest Change

The University of Maryland has assembled a global forest map from a time series analysis of 654,178 Landsat images. These images span the years 2000 to 2012.

This map offers a convincing visual representation of recent deforestation.
 
To view the interactive map click here.

The Business of Forests: Primer, Tool, Guide and Best Practices

Here are two resources for responsible forest management. The first is a primer, comprehensive guide and resource kit from the Rainforest Alliance on sustainable forest management. The second  focuses on best practices from the nonprofit group, the Center for Sustainable Development (CSD). This group specializes in providing sound, evidence-based information, tools and training for humanitarian development professionals worldwide.

The Business of Responsible Forest Stewardship

Businesses have an essential role to play in forest conservation. A number of companies are developing policies for sustainable forest management. For the last few years companies like Lego, Mattel and Hasbro have been engaged in responsible forest stewardship focusing on efforts to stop using unsustainable paper products from Indonesian rainforests.

A sustainable forest industry is in the collective best interest as wood and related industries are big business accounting for nearly 1 percent of global gross domestic product. The non-monetary benefits from forests, such as water, energy, shelter and medicine, are estimated to be two to three times as great.

As revealed in the 2013 fourth annual Forest Footprint Disclosure (FFD) Report, companies like Colgate-Palmolive, Groupe Danone, Gucci and Heinz are now disclosing their forest footprints.

The FFD report acknowledged improvements in reporting from a number of other companies including Boots UK, Next, Kingspan Group and Whitbread Group. According to the FFD there has been a 15 percent increase in the number of companies that voluntarily disclose their forest footprints between 2012 and 2013.

Woodland Crops: Sustainable Harvests from Forests

Forests are most commonly identified as a source of wood and associated products but very few realize that they are also home to a host of woodland crops. Aboriginal people have known about the vast array of uses for forests dating back to antiquity. The growing importance of sustainability may well prove to be a catalyst advancing the growth of woodland farming. Collecting the forest's bounty (wildcrafting) is different than woodland farming which involves larger production volumes.

The wonderful thing about woodland crops is that rather than cut down trees they need the dappled light provided by the forest canopy to grow. Getting involved with woodland farming generally involves thinning out the forests and opening up the understory. While almost any shade-tolerant plant or fungus will grow in a wooded setting, it is always best to work with species of flora that are indigenous to the area you are farming. 

Managing Deforestation Through Policy and Monitoring

When combined with the right policies, new monitoring capabilities may significantly enhance our capacity to manage forests. As an homage to the International Day of Forests on March 21, here is a review of forest management policy recommendations and new global monitoring solutions. 

After a United Nations General Assembly resolution in 2012, the International Day of Forests was observed for the first time in 2013. The day is meant to acknowledge forests, trees and climate change. On this day, people raise awareness about the value of arboreal ecosystems and they explore the different ways that we can protect them. The day is specifically designed to incorporate forests into future climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.

International Day of Forests 2014

"As we deliberate on the post-2015 development agenda, let us acknowledge the vital role of forests and pledge to work together to protect and sustainably manage these vital ecosystems."

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Message for the 2014 International Day of Forests

This global celebration of forests provides a platform to raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests and of trees outside forests.

Forests for Sustainable Development: UNHQ Special Event on the International Day of Forests

On March 21, from 10am to 1pm, The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Chamber will host an event that will be chaired by Mr Thomas Gass, Assistant Secretary-General, Department of Economic and Social Affairs. It will feature a keynote speech by Ms Susana Malcorra, Under-Secretary-General, Chef de Cabinet, Executive Office of the Secretary-General.

The theme of the event is Celebrating Forests for Sustainable Development, and will include a Panel discussion on “Women as agents of change for forests and sustainable development” with inspiring speakers from forest heroes to film makers, as well as award-winning short films. The event will conclude with a general discussion.

Global Deforestation/Reforestation and Climate Change

Forests provide priceless ecological, economic, social and health benefits yet they are currently being decimated at a rate of 13 million hectares annually. This is about more than habitat loss for animals, plants and insects or even the livelihoods of one quarter of the world's population. Deforestation is also a leading cause of climate change. Forests account for 12 to 20 percent of the global greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.