65th Session of the Advisory Committee on Sustainable Forest-based Industries
21 July 2024
The 65th Session of the Advisory Committee on Sustainable Forest-based Industries (ACSFI) convened at FAO's headquarters in Rome, Italy to provide guidance on FAO’s activities and programme of work related to forestry with the aim to further enhance the private sector's contributions to sustainable forest management and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The session started following a joint meeting of the ACSFI with the International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA), focussing on emerging trends related to the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and forest products supply and demand dynamics.
In his opening remarks of the session, Mr. Zhimin Wu, Director of FAO’s Forestry Division, expressed his gratitude to ACSFI members for their valuable contributions and guidance throughout the past year. He highlighted the ACSFI's significant role in providing inputs to the development of the FAO Forestry Roadmap: From Vision to Action 2024-2031, its contributions to the State of the World’s Forests (SOFO) 2024 report, and the Committee's active engagement at the 27th Session of the Committee on Forestry (COFO27). He emphasized the importance of collaboration between the public and private sectors to advance policy support, foster innovation, and develop market-driven solutions for promoting a robust forest-based bioeconomy.
The session featured a transition to a new leadership for the Committee, with Mr. José Carlos da Fonseca Junior and Ms. Silvia Melegari appointed respectively as ACSFI Chair and Vice-Chair. The outgoing Chair, Mr. Ross Hampton, received recognition for his strong leadership during his term.
An update on the Committee’s achievements from the last Annual Session was provided, recognizing the continuous engagement and participation of members in the relevant FAO Regional Forestry Commissions, as well as the recently delivered regional Dialogue on Engaging the private forest sector in ecosystem restoration in Indonesian Borneo, in collaboration with The Forest Dialogue (TFD) and the University of Mulawarman (UnMul).
Following the presentation of proposed key milestones to position the ACSFI as a leading advocate for forest-based bioeconomy approaches in the context of discussions at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, members engaged in discussions how to further strengthen the recognition of forests’ contribution to climate strategies and planning, highlighting topics such as wood in construction, recycling, and forest product value chains that support sustainable living and livelihoods.
Following these discussions, the ACSFI's workplan for 2024-2025 was discussed and endorsed.
The session concluded with a scoping exercise, where the members expressed their interest in expanding the ACSFI’s efforts to tackle upstream challenges faced by forest-based industries, such as energy efficiency and recycling, while also advocating for a stronger emphasis on biodiversity beyond ecosystem restoration.