International Policy Award for Visionary Forest Policies: Sixteen Countries Nominated by Experts
Press Release
New York / Montreal / Hamburg, 21 March 2011 – The list of nominees for this year’s Future Policy Award has been published. 19 forest policies from 16 countries have been nominated for this international award. 2011 has been declared the International Year of Forests by the United Nations, with the central theme “Forests for People”, to raise consciousness of the multiple values of forests and promote greater awareness of success stories and challenges which many of the world’s forests and the people who depend on them face.
The Future Policy Award is granted by The World Future Council, an international policy research organization that provides decision makers with effective policy solutions. Up to three winning policies will be announced on 21 September 2011 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Winners will represent the most inspiring, innovative and influential forest policies which contribute to the management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests for the benefit of current and future generations.
The announcement will be followed by an awards ceremony in New York on the evening of 21 September, co-hosted by the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) Secretariat, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), the World Future Council and the Wildlife Conservation Society. These partners are looking forward to the participation of government representatives, high level officials of international organizations and non-governmental organizations, as well as media and civil society. Nominations include policies from Bhutan, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Finland, Gambia, Guatemala, Kenya, Nepal, Norway, India, Indonesia, Rwanda, Turkey, the United States of America and Vietnam.
International organisations including the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) members such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD) the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as well as others including the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) have submitted the nominations. The jury is composed of experts on sustainability and forests from all five continents and include Jan McAlpine, Director, United Nations Forum on Forests, Professor Marie Claire Cordonier Segger, Director, Center for International Sustainable Development Law, Jakob von Uexkull, Chair, World Future Council and Right Livelihood Award, Tewolde Berhan Egziabher, Director General, Environmental Protection Authority, Ethiopia and Pauline Tangiora, Maori elder from the Rongomaiwahine tribe.
Jan McAlpine, Director of the United Nations Forum on Forests Secretariat said “Human dependence on forest resources for the most basic needs of food, medicine, clean water and shelter are values that call for a local, regional and international political commitment to sustainably managing our forests. Throughout the International Year of Forests 2011, we will celebrate the functions that forests provide to people and the vital role they play in realising meaningful sustainable development. It is therefore very timely that innovative forest policy solutions are being honoured through this year’s Future Policy Award.”
Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, said: “This recognition and celebration of biodiversity leaders who are promoting the international forest agenda, on the occasion of the International Year of Forests and the start of the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity is a major contribution to promoting the new strategic plan for biodiversity for 2011 to 2020, and in particular the forest related Aichi Target including the synergies among the three Rio conventions, UNFCCC, UNCCD and UNCBD.”
Alexandra Wandel, Executive Member of the Management Board of the World Future Council, said, “With the Future Policy Award we want to cast a spotlight on policies that lead by example. The aim of the World Future Council is to raise global awareness for visionary policies and speed up policy action.”
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The World Future Council brings the interests of future generations to the centre of policy-making. Its up to 50 eminent members from around the globe have already successfully promoted change. The Council addresses challenges to our common future and provides decision makers with effective policy solutions. The World Future Council is registered as a charitable foundation in Hamburg, Germany. For information on the Future Policy Award: www.worldfuturecouncil.org/future_policy_award.html The United Nations General Assembly declared 2011 as the International Year of Forests to raise awareness of management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. The theme of the Year is “Forests for People” celebrating the central role of people in sustainable forest management. The Secretariat of the United Nations Forum on Forests of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, based in NY, serves as the focal point for the implementation of the International Year of Forests. The Secretariat works in cooperation with governments, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests and international, regional and sub-regional organizations and processes, as well as relevant major groups. For more information visit www.un.org/forests For additional information, please contactMita Sen at sen@un.org or Sylvia Chen at chen14@un.org. The United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) is an intergovernmental policy forum which promotes the “management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests and strengthens long-term political commitment to this end”. The Forum was established in 2000 by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC) and is composed of all Member States of the United Nations. In 2007, UNFF adopted the landmark UN Non-Legally Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests (Forest Instrument). The instrument provides a comprehensive framework for national action and international cooperation to reduce deforestation, prevent forest degradation, promote sustainable livelihoods and reduce poverty for all forest-dependent peoples. The Secretariat of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) is located in at United Nations Headquarters in New York. For more information visit www.un.org/esa/forests/ For additional information, please contact Catalina Santamaria at santamaria@un.org. Opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and entering into force in December 1993, the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international treaty for the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable use of the components of biodiversity and the equitable sharing of the benefits derived from the use of genetic resources. With 193 Parties onboard, the Convention has near universal participation among countries. The Convention seeks to address all threats to biodiversity and ecosystem services, including threats from climate change, through scientific assessments, the development of tools, incentives and processes, the transfer of technologies and good practices and the full and active involvement of relevant stakeholders. This includes indigenous and local communities, youth, NGOs, women and the business community. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety is a subsidiary agreement to the Convention. It seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology. To date, 159 countries plus the European Union have ratified the Cartagena Protocol. The Secretariat of the Convention and its Cartagena Protocol is located in Montreal, Canada. For more information visit www.cbd.int For additional information, please contact: David Ainsworth on +1 514 287 7025 or at david.ainsworth@cbd.int; orThe World Future Council
The International Year of Forests
The United Nations Forum on Forests
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
Johan Hedlund on +1 514 287 6670 or at johan.hedlund@cbd.int.
