Global forest products industry meets in Australia

The International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) – global forum of the forest products industry – will hold its annual meeting in Sydney, Australia, July 4-5. Jane Molony, executive director of the Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA) and vice president of ICFPA, will reunite with her industry peers from across the world to discuss key industry issues, such as bioeconomy, certification, recycling and innovation.

This year the ICFPA members will be joined by representatives of Australian government and forest based companies: Anne Ruston, Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources; David Brand, CEO of New Forest; Dennis Nielson, CEO of DANA; and Paul Klymenko, CEO of Planet Ark.

“This meeting will be an excellent opportunity to discuss ways forward of the global forest products industry. From the forests through to the end products this industry can provide environmentally friendly, renewable solutions to global needs, creating opportunities for innovation and to new talents, and contributing to a brighter future”, says ICFPA President and Brazilian Tree Industry (Ibá) President, Elizabeth de Carvalhaes.

The ICFPA meeting will be followed by the 57th Advisory Committee on Sustainable Forest-based industries (ACSFI) Meeting, with the presence of the Director of Forestry Policy and Resources Division of FAO, Eva Muller. The ACSFI is a FAO statutory body composed of executives from the private industry worldwide. It meets yearly with the main objective of providing guidance on the activities and work programme of the FAO Forestry Department on issues relevant to the forest products and industries.

David Rhodes, chair of the ACSFI welcomes the interaction of the two groups.  “This allows us to align the efforts of the FAO global forestry programme with the activities of the private forest sector.  There is an increasing appreciation of the ways that forestry contributes positively to livelihoods of people everywhere and the need to protect such resources. This will be part of our joint focus in Sydney”.

The ICFPA represents 23 national and regional forest and paper associations around the world. For more information about the sustainability of the global forest and paper industry, visit icfpa.org or follow us on LinkedIn.