{"id":18585,"date":"2011-09-15T02:26:53","date_gmt":"2011-09-15T02:26:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/162.217.168.59\/?p=18585"},"modified":"2023-03-22T16:27:51","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T20:27:51","slug":"sfi-conference-focuses-on-the-bigger-picture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forests.org\/fr\/sfi-conference-focuses-on-the-bigger-picture\/","title":{"rendered":"SFI Conference Focuses On The Bigger Picture"},"content":{"rendered":"

BURLINGTON, VT \u2013 The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) annual conference put a spotlight\u00a0on the importance of third-party forest certification programs embracing the bigger picture to achieve\u00a0the greatest benefits for forests and communities across North America today and into the future.<\/p>\n

The conference \u2013 The Bigger Picture: Conservation. Integrity. Community \u2013 brought together\u00a0226 delegates, as well as speakers from conservation and Aboriginal communities, the National\u00a0Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI), World Resources Institute, The Nature\u00a0Conservancy, TerraChoice, Dovetail Partners, the NAHB Research Center, and many others.\u00a0Speakers also included three members of the independent SFI Board of Directors, representing\u00a0Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, Habitat for Humanity Canada and Weyerhaeuser\u00a0Company.<\/p>\n

Many of the presentations highlighted ways to bring the responsible forestry messages to a broader\u00a0audience. \u201cLarry Selzer (President and CEO of The Conservation Fund) gave a compelling keynote\u00a0address calling for responsible environmentalism and an urgent need to start seeing the social,\u00a0environmental and economic value of our working forests,\u201d said SFI President and CEO Kathy\u00a0Abusow. \u201cSFI will be looking for ways to deliver these important messages to as many people as\u00a0possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scott Robertson, an associate in the Aboriginal Law Group at Gowlings in Ottawa, moderated a panel\u00a0on links between the SFI forest standard and traditional Aboriginal values. \u201cGiven the alignment\u00a0between traditional values and SFI standard requirements, it became obvious that there are many ways\u00a0SFI can engage with Aboriginal communities,\u201d he said. Five million acres\/two million hectares of lands\u00a0held by or managed for Aboriginal peoples are certified to the SFI forest management standard \u2013 more\u00a0than any other standard in North America.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt PepsiCo, we aim to have the smallest possible environmental impact on land. Therefore, we\u00a0work with our supply chain to only buy wood fiber-based packaging from responsible sources, such\u00a0as those certified to SFI,\u201d said Mary White, director, Sustainable Package Sourcing, PepsiCo Inc.\u00a0\u201cWe are inspired by science-based sources such as the Sustainable Packaging Coalition that take an\u00a0inclusive approach to certification.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abusow said certification must embrace the bigger picture if it is to continue to advance sustainable\u00a0forest management and provide customers and consumers with responsible choices. \u201cThe range of\u00a0delegates and expert speakers at the conference is evidence SFI is succeeding,\u201d she said. \u201cBy\u00a0mobilizing and invigorating the many people and organizations who work with us, we are able to\u00a0improve knowledge and achieve results on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n

The largest SFI conference ever, the event was from Sept. 13 to 15 and attracted a broad crosssection\u00a0of interests from across the United States and Canada, including conservation groups,\u00a0academia, aboriginal and community leaders, forest professionals, government officials, auditors,\u00a0customers, biologists, landowners and representatives from companies, large and small. The 2012\u00a0SFI Conference will be held Sept. 11 to 13 in Milwaukee, WI.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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