New York – The Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) Communicators Network Joint Initiative today launched a new initiative to encourage greater use of products made from sustainably grown wood as a key strategy for combating climate change.
The Grow the Solution initiative, announced during the 19th Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests in New York, will seek to raise awareness about the many ways sustainable wood contributes to climate-neutrality and resilience.
“Sustainable wood can replace materials with a higher carbon footprint, and this initiative will seek to communicate to the general public that there are ways that forests can be protected from damage and illegal activity but at the same time can be used, sustainably, to produce wood,” said Zhimin Wu, Chair of the CPF – an inter-agency partnership of 16 international organizations, institutions and secretariats with substantial programmes on forests – and Director of the Forestry Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Amplifying the message
The Grow the Solution initiative will use multimedia channels, global events and training workshops to convey this message, raising awareness globally, with the general public, policymakers, private sector and civil society. Ultimately, it will seek to ensure consumers and businesses are informed enough to make decisions in favour of sustainable wood over less sustainable materials.
Sustainable wood is a highly versatile, renewable material that stores carbon for its lifetime and offers a viable alternative to materials such as concrete, steel, plastics and synthetic fibres that often take a heavy toll on nature and the environment.
Using wood from sustainably managed forests in construction, for example, can reduce a building's carbon emissions by up to 60 percent.
Research, science and innovation are also pushing the boundaries of what we can do with wood and increasing the number of materials it can replace.
“Sustainably managed forests have a vital role to play in mitigating and adapting to climate change, protecting biodiversity and contributing to food security, among their many contributions towards the Sustainable Development Goals of the Agenda 2030,” said Wu.
“Boosting the sustainable production and trade of forest products can help eradicate poverty, promote sustainable livelihoods and economic prosperity, and support green recovery.”
Political support
In May 2022, the XV World Forestry Congress - the world’s largest gathering on forests – recognized the need to turn to wood to help solve global challenges. In its outcome, the Seoul Forest Declaration, the Congress called for the full potential of legal, sustainably produced wood to be used to transform the building sector, provide renewable energy and innovative new materials, and move towards a circular bio-economy and climate neutrality.
In March 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly resolved to negotiate an internationally legal binding instrument by 2024 to end plastic pollution - a move where wood as an alternative material can help fill the gap. Progress was made on drafting a global treaty at talks in Ottawa, Canada, last month.
The Grow the Solution initiative is promoted under the aegis of two Joint Initiatives of the CPF: the CPF Communicators Network and Sustainable Wood for a Sustainable World, and with the support of the Regional Forest Communicators Networks.
