FSC General Assembly 2008

Without doubt it has been one of the most successful assemblies in terms of bringing the members to a consensus about the future of FSC.

From the first days with clear demands and confrontations among the chambers, the atmosphere changed completely during the week; based on serious commitment shown by all parties to find compromises and solutions, controversial motions were amended, and finally the vast majority of motions got almost unanimous support during the votings.

This was also the first major FSC event for André de Freitas in his new capacity as the FSC Executive Director. He took the General Assembly by storm and has strong support from all sides within the organisation. Some members nicknamed him “FSC Obama”, symbolizing a person who generates new hope for development and positive changes.

Protecting the FSC brand

How can we ensure that FSC delivers its goals? This was the most important issue raised at the 2008 General Assembly. A number of motions aimed to enhance the credibility of the FSC brand. FSC-accredited certification bodies clearly need to become better at ensuring that certified operations observe all FSC requirements.

The general picture is that the current certification rules are deemed appropriate, but their enforcement needs to be strengthened by FSC-accredited certification bodies and Accreditation Services International (ASI, the FSC accreditation organisation). Enhanced control and additional resources are clearly needed within this area.

New business areas

FSC will also look into new business areas based on decisions made by the General Assembly.

Climate change is an important new area where FSC shall consider options for involvement. It is quite of obvious that this area needs attention especially with the increased focus on the role of forests carbon sequestration. 

Another new area includes social issues within the Chain of Custody. It is clear that FSC should be able to exclude companies involved in child labour, forced labour etc. from FSC certification.

Limited progress for smallholders and tropical forests

This general assembly did not get much closer to a solution for improving access to certification for small forest holdings, community forests, tropical forests, and the smallest manufacturing companies.

A number of motions were approved, but these covered mainly minor adjustments of the existing system and none of these have potential to address the basic issues. 

However, in spite of this weakness conditions for certifying these groups may improve during the next few years. Several activities addressing the underlying problems are ongoing; and some of the solutions which seem to be under way can be implemented without the approval of the FSC General Assembly.

From motions to changes

The members of FSC have now spoken. They provided the FSC management with a clear mandate to improve the system and directions for the further development. It is now up to the FSC Board of Directors and top management to ensure that these changes are implemented. Stakeholders are anxiously waiting to see results on the ground, and it would seem particularly important for ASI and FSC to follow up fast on motions related to certification body performance.

Based on NEPCon’s first-hand experience of discussions during the 5th General Assembly, and the way stakeholders came to share views on key issues, we do believe that action will follow and we look to the future with confidence.