Sustainable Forest Management and Stakeholders Participation in Portuguese FSC's Certified Companies

Stakeholders’ participation in forest management has been studied through different lenses and in different ways since the sixties. However, dedicated analyses to this topic are still missing. In this sense, this paper aims to provide a stakeholders’ participation overview of Portuguese companies certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), one of the most recognized forest certifications worldwide. Documentary research was carried out on public summaries available online, corresponding to 37% of the FSC certified land and five of the ten most important areas in Portugal. Content analyses were performed based on a coding framework resulting from a synthesis of the two integrative literature reviews performed and endorsed by four experts consulted. This framework contributes to theory, helping to structure knowledge in a comparable and replicable way. Results show that it is not possible to assert that forest certification promotes stakeholders’ participation as a process. Even though, the word “stakeholders” is one of the most frequently used. The concept also is cherished by FSC's principles and criteria. This situation follows the trend of decoupling between narratives and action which poses theoretical difficulties. Companies claim to have high regard for their stakeholders, but few explain it through actions. Stakeholder participation is usually not systemic, with a small influence in decision-making. This finding should help certified companies improve their process to achieve meaningful stakeholder participation, also enhancing their potential for sustainable solutions.