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Forest Certification: More Than a Market-Based Tool, Experiences from the Asia Pacific Region

Author

Listed:
  • Allison Lewin

    (The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, VA 22203, USA)

  • Karen Mo

    (World Wildlife Fund, Washington, DC 20037, USA)

  • Henry Scheyvens

    (Institute for Global Environmental Strategies, Hayama, Kanagawa 240-0115, Japan)

  • Sara Gabai

    (Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University, Salaya, Nakhon Pathom 73170, Thailand)

Abstract

Over the last 25 years, the global area of certified forests has grown rapidly and voluntary forest certification has become recognized as an effective tool to engage international markets in improving sustainability within forest management units. However, the bulk of this growth has occurred in North America, Northern Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, with relatively limited uptake in the tropics. Since its creation, forest certification has been largely understood as a “market-based” mechanism, in contrast to government-led policies and regulations. Through the experience of the Responsible Asia Forestry and Trade (RAFT) partnership in the Asia Pacific region, we find that the framing of forest certification as voluntary and market-based, and as a mechanism to overcome governance failure, has created an artificial dichotomy. In this dichotomy, voluntary certification and regulatory measures to promote sustainable forest management are conceived of and pursued largely independently. We argue that it is more constructive to view them as complementary approaches that share a common goal of increasing sustainability across the forestry sector. In practice, forest certification interacts with conventional governance institutions and mechanisms. Understanding these interactions and their implications, as well as additional possibilities for interaction, will help in realizing the full potential of forest certification.

Suggested Citation

  • Allison Lewin & Karen Mo & Henry Scheyvens & Sara Gabai, 2019. "Forest Certification: More Than a Market-Based Tool, Experiences from the Asia Pacific Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-11, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:9:p:2600-:d:228606
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Brandt, Patric & Ernst, Anna & Gralla, Fabienne & Luederitz, Christopher & Lang, Daniel J. & Newig, Jens & Reinert, Florian & Abson, David J. & von Wehrden, Henrik, 2013. "A review of transdisciplinary research in sustainability science," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 1-15.
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    1. Timothy Cadman & Tek Maraseni & Upama Ashish Koju & Anita Shrestha & Sikha Karki, 2023. "Forest Governance in Nepal concerning Sustainable Community Forest Management and Red Panda Conservation," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-23, February.
    2. So, Hau Wing & Lafortezza, Raffaele, 2022. "Reviewing the impacts of eco-labelling of forest products on different dimensions of sustainability in Europe," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    3. Eve Bohnett & Sanju Lamichhane & Yanjing Tracy Liu & Scott Yabiku & Digambar Singh Dahal & Siraj Mammo & Kossi Fandjinou & Bilal Ahmad & Li An, 2023. "The Implications of Community Forest Income on Social and Environmental Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-23, April.

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