FAO / UN

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations acts as a global forum for debating policy and negotiating agreements. FAO is also a source of knowledge and information. In particular, it helps developing countries and countries in transition modernise and improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices and ensure good nutrition for all.

FAO carries out some work on forest law enforcement, providing support to a number of countries to strengthen their forest policy framework, building institutional capacity to foster better forest law compliance, gathering additional data on their forest resources and determining the extent and nature of illegal operations.

In cooperation with ITTO, FAO published a report in 2005 which identified best practices to improve law compliance in the forest sector, based on the experiences of countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa.

DOCUMENTS

DATE	TITLE	AUTHOR
01/04/2013	Towards the Assessment of Trees Outside Forests The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) prepared a Working Paper, titled "Towards ...	FAO
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01/04/2013	Transnational Organized Crime in East Asia and the Pacific: A Threat Assessment East Asia and the Pacific have experienced rapid economic and social changes during the past few decades ...	United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
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31/03/2013	Forests and Economic Development: A Driver for the Green Economy in the ECE Region UNECE Reports on Forests and the Green Economy The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in ...	UN
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26/03/2013	Collaborative conflict management for enhanced national forest programmes (NFPS): Training manual FAO Releases Training Manual on Managing Forest Policy Conflict The National Forest Programme ...	Antonia Engel (FAO)
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21/02/2013	Africa Environment Outlook 3: Our Environment, Our Health Unless Africa’s leaders prioritize environmental and health issues, and prevent the degradation ...	UNEP
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01/01/2013	FAO, Forests and Climate Change: Working with Countries to Mitigate and Adapt to Climate Change Through Sustainable Forest Management This publication summarises the work that FAO is undertaking, with its partners, to assist countries ...	FAO
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16/12/2012	Global forest land-use change 1990–2005 This report, prepared by the FAO and the European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC) is based on ...	FAO
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01/10/2012	Moving Forward: Selected Achievements of the FAO Forestry Programme 2010-2011 In this 2012 edition of Moving Forward, FAO Forestry is pleased to present a selection of the work it ...	FAO
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23/09/2012	State of the World's Forests 2012: Forests at the Heart of a Sustainable Future The tenth edition of FAO’s “State of the World’s Forests 2012 (SOFO 2012)” endeavors ...	FAO
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25/07/2012	Wildlife and Forest Crime Analytic Toolkit The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) is the collaborative effort by five ...	The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC)
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20/06/2012	The Rio Conventions: Action on Forests On the sidelines to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), the UN Convention ...	UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), & UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
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14/05/2012	FAO Yearbook of Forest Products 2010 The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has published the 64th issue of its Yearbook of ...	FAO
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09/12/2011	Mountain Forests in a Changing World: Realizing Values, Addressing Challenges This report has been produced in the International Year of Forests to draw attention to the many values ...	FAO
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28/09/2011	UN-REDD Programme Newsletter, September 2011 In this issue: News * Mongolia Begins its REDD+ Roadmap Process * Encouraging Signs for ...	UN-REDD Programme
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16/09/2011	FAO Yearbook of Forest Products (1947-2009) All 63 editions of the FAO Yearbook of Forest Products (1947-2009) are now available online at www.fao.org/forestry/62283/en. ...	FAO
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12/09/2011	REDDy-Set-Grow Part II: Private Sector Suggestions for International Climate Change Negotiators In this report, over 200 leading actors of the financial sector united under a partnership with the United ...	UNEP
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10/08/2011	Regional Voices, Issue 1 The UN Forum on Forests Secretariat has launched the first issue of its newsletter "Regional Voices," ...	UN Forum on Forests (UNFF)
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07/02/2011	Summary of the Ninth Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests: 24 January – 4 February 2011 This report summarises the outcomes of the ninth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF9), ...	IISD Reporting Services
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02/02/2011	State of the World's Forests 2011 This ninth biennial issue of State of the World’s Forests is being launched at the outset of 2011, ...	FAO
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01/02/2011	Managing Forests for Climate Change This report examines the role of forests and sustainable forest management in climate change mitigation ...	FAO
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04/10/2010	Global Forest Resources Assessment 2010 FAO’s Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA), carried out at five-year intervals, provides the ...	FAO
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01/12/2005	Best Practices for Improving Law Compliance in the Forestry Sector: FAO Forestry Paper 145 This report looks at some of the innovative approaches being used by governments to combat illegal logging. ...	FAO
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NEWS

DATE	TITLE	AUTHOR
01/06/2013	Global forum for a united front The Global Timber Forum (GTF) was clear about what it did not want to be at its launch in Rome last week. ...	Timber Trades Journal
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30/04/2013	Aceh performs worst in forestry protection: UNDP The latest study from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Indonesia found that the local administration ...	The Jakarta Post
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23/04/2013	EU FAO FLEGT Endorses Projects in Asia, Africa and Latin America The Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) programme of the European Union (EU) and the ...	Forests Policy & Practice (IISD)
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20/04/2013	UN forum endorses measures to improve sustainable forest management The United Nations Forum on Forests concluded its tenth session in Istanbul in the early hours of Saturday ...	UN News Centre
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19/04/2013	UN-backed partnership helps Kenyans protect forests, improve livelihoods A United Nations-backed project in Kenya is protecting forests and wildlife, as well as providing alternative ...	UN News Centre
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17/04/2013	Private sector emerges as key potential funder of sustainable forest management As countries around the world struggle to find the necessary funds to sustainably manage their forests, ...	UN News Centre
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10/04/2013	Healthy forests ‘crucial for economic development’ UN member states will meet in Istanbul over the coming days to discuss the role of forests in ensuring ...	Blue & Green Tomorrow
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09/04/2013	New UN-backed monitoring tool aims to help combat deforestation A new initiative unveiled today at the United Nations Forum on Forests will provide clear and timely ...	UN News Centre
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08/04/2013	UN officials stress forestry as key to economic development and sustainability The vital role of forests in global development and people’s lives as well as protecting these ...	UN News Centre
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08/04/2013	UNFF10 Opens, Recognizes the Value of Forests The tenth session of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF10) opened on 8 April 2013, in Istanbul, Turkey, with ...	Forests Policy & Practice (IISD)
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26/03/2013	A technology revolution to help curb illegal logging Our future is inextricably linked to forests. The social and economic benefits they provide are essential ...	The Nation, Thailand
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22/03/2013	Saving the World's Forests: A Technology Revolution to Curb Illegal Logging Our future is inextricably linked to forests. The social and economic benefits they provide are essential ...	World Resources Institute
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21/03/2013	Without forests, no future International Day of Forests, celebrated by the United Nations for the first time today, invites people ...	The Nation
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21/03/2013	FAO calls for ‘Zero Illegal Deforestation’ target On the first International Day of Forests, celebrated by the United Nations today, FAO Director-General ...	UN FAO
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18/03/2013	Planting a Tree to Plant Our Future International Day of Forests, celebrated ...	Huffington Post (blog)
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14/03/2013	Sustainable development goals must address threats to environment – UN officials United Nations officials today stressed that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which are being ...	UN News Centre
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22/02/2013	Deforestation, wetlands loss in Brazil and Indonesia generated 45b tons of CO2 in 20 years The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has launched a global ...	Mongabay.com
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11/12/2012	Disappointing outcome for forests in Doha, but REDD+ can still move forward Doha, Qatar - While the U.N. climate talks in Doha saw no decision on verifying carbon emissions from ...	CIFOR Forests Blog
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27/11/2012	The World Bank And UN-REDD: big names, narrow focus The World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility and Forest Investment Programme, together with ...	Ecosystem Marketplace
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12/10/2012	Research program joins forces with the United Nations to help world meet 2020 deforestation goals Hyderabad, India - A leading research program has agreed to join forces with the United Nations Convention ...	CIFOR Forests Blog
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27/09/2012	Organized crime trade worth over US$30 billion responsible for up to 90% of tropical deforestation Rome - Between 50 to 90 per cent of logging in key tropical countries of the Amazon basin, Central Africa ...	UNEP News Centre
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24/09/2012	Africa: Forests vital resource in sustainable development Rome — FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva today stressed the important role of ...	allAfrica.com
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05/09/2012	Ahead of Doha gathering, concrete progress made at Bangkok climate talks – UN official A week of informal climate talks in Bangkok has allowed Member States to make concrete progress on key ...	UN News Centre
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30/08/2012	Indigenous groups in Panama wait for UN REDD to meet promises A dispute over the implementation of REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) in ...	Mongabay.com
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26/07/2012	Ten Central African countries to take part in UN-backed forest monitoring system Ten Central African countries will take part in a United Nations-backed initiative that will help them ...	UN News Centre
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25/07/2012	ICCWC launches wildlife and forest crime toolkit Geneva – The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) today launched its Wildlife ...	CITES
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18/07/2012	Rio+20 opens new opportunities for REDD+ as a catalyst for a green economy At last month's Rio+20 Earth Summit in Brazil, world leaders agreed to support REDD+ and produced ...	UN-REDD Programme
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26/06/2012	Forests fare poorly in outcomes of Rio+20, say CIFOR scientists Rio de Janeiro - Forests have been largely ignored or ambiguously mentioned in the Rio+20 ...	CIFOR Forests Blog
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21/06/2012	Cash cows, disputes over how to define sustainable development around UN summit Rio Claro, Brazil — The cash cows on Carlos Marques’ farm used to be nothing but that: herds ...	The Washington Post, US
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20/06/2012	Indigenous peoples insist on rights-based approaches and respect for traditional knowledge and practices in Rio+20 outcomes Rio de Janeiro - As government representatives start formal negotiations in Brazil to seek agreements ...	Forest Peoples Programme
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20/06/2012	Code REDD campaign to save world's threatened forests illuminates Rio+20 Rio de Janeiro - Thousands of people from around the globe gathered at Arcos da Lapa last night to support ...	MarketWatch, The Wall Street Journal
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19/06/2012	Rio+20 seen as last chance for rainforest When Greenpeace accused Brazil’s JBS, the world’s largest beef exporter, of sourcing cattle ...	Financial Times, UK
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19/06/2012	U.N. sees natural gas a key to forests, helping poor Natural gas, including non-traditional shale gas, should play a major role in cutting greenhouse gases, ...	Reuters
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18/06/2012	Sustainable forests key to meet development goals – UN report The world's forests have a major role to play in the transition to a greener economy, but governments ...	UN News Centre
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16/05/2012	UN soil carbon survey aims to help Tanzania reduce greenhouse gas emissions The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is helping Tanzania determine how much carbon ...	UN News Centre
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01/05/2012	UN human rights office concerned over murder of Cambodian environment activist The United Nations human rights office today voiced concern over last week’s murder of an outspoken ...	UN News Centre
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22/03/2012	Greenpeace calls for zero deforestation globally by 2020 Greenpeace reiterated its call for an end to deforestation in Brazil by 2015 and globally by 2020 during ...	Mongabay.com
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21/02/2012	Combating illegal harvesting and trade in timber and charcoal: European Commission funds FAO’s USD $ 200,000 initiative for Uganda Kampala - In pursuit of combating illegal harvesting and trade in timber and charcoal, FAO has today ...	FAO
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13/02/2012	Ignoring forests won’t bring Rio+20’s ‘future we want’ In June 2012 around 40,000 participants are expected to attend one of the most important environmental ...	The Conversation, Australia
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09/02/2012	UN wraps up year of forests by highlighting their social and economic value The United Nations today wrapped up its year-long campaign to raise awareness on the importance of forests ...	UN News Centre
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12/01/2012	Sign up to support the Rio Forest Declaration now As preparations continue for the Earth Summit 2012 or Rio+20 conference, being held in Rio de Janeiro ...	Build.co.uk, the UK's No.1 Construction Directory
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21/12/2011	FOREST EUROPE and UNECE/FAO launch interactive database on indicators of sustainable forest management in Europe Geneva - A web-based resource tool based on the joint FOREST EUROPE/ECE/FAO State of Europe's Forests ...	UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe)
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13/12/2011	UN mobile app lets users calculate size of carbon footprint A new United Nations mobile telephone application released today lets users calculate their carbon footprint, ...	UN News Centre
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09/12/2011	Loss of mountain forests would unleash serious socio-economic effects – UN The loss of mountain forests sparked by increasing temperatures and population growth would have serious ...	UN News Centre
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07/12/2011	Ban presses for support for UN initiative to combat deforestation Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called today for increased support from Member States for a United Nations ...	UN News Centre
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30/11/2011	New UN satellite survey of forests charts extent of global deforestation The rate of global deforestation, mainly the conversion of tropical forests to agricultural land, averaged ...	UN News Centre
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13/09/2011	Failure to protect forests will lead to huge financial losses – UN-backed report The United Nations and a coalition of financial institutions warned today that huge losses, both financial ...	UN News Centre
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02/08/2011	Forests Plus: Looking outside the box by: Jan L. McAlpine, Director, United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) Secretariat Can you picture ...	IISD Reporting Services
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22/06/2011	Logging, drug threats put rainforests on UN heritage danger list Illegal logging, poaching, and other intrusions have led rainforests in Honduras and Indonesia to be ...	UN News Centre
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20/05/2011	On biodiversity day, UN highlights social, economic and green benefits of forests Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today voiced concern over alarming deforestation and the degradation of ...	UN News Centre
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13/04/2011	Upcoming UN-backed summit to focus on sustainable management of rainforests Top officials from more than 35 nations covering the world’s three major rainforest regions will ...	UN News Centre
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06/04/2011	Forests and climate change in the Mediterranean: New partnership established to address threats to forests Rome/Avignon - A new partnership for Mediterranean forests has been established to address major threats ...	FAO Media Centre
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05/03/2011	FAO helps Vietnam with forest management The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has offered US$2.7 million over a period ...	VOV News, Vietnam
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07/02/2011	Forests vs. food? The story of the world's forests is usually a depressing one. Tropical rain forests are under pressure ...	Time
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03/02/2011	Strong action needed against Illegal Logging during the International Year of Forests As UN launches 2011 theme, green group calls on all nations to take responsibility. ...	EIA (Environmental Investigation Agency)
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02/02/2011	International Year of Forests launched: UN calls on forest sector to take innovative actions New York/Rome - Millions of forest-dependant people play a vital role in managing, conserving, and developing ...	FAO Media Centre
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24/01/2011	UN forum to consider social development linked to forests opens in New York Countries from around the globe have gathered at United Nations Headquarters in New York for the start ...	UN News Centre
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27/10/2009	FAO targets land tenure The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has begun widespread consultations over the ...	Afrique en Ligne
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21/10/2009	Leaps forward in satellite forest monitoring Efforts to tackle deforestation and develop a robust REDD mechanism have received a double boost this ...	Carbon Positive
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29/04/2009	Gambia: National Forest Programme launched The National Forest Programme (NFP), designed to halt the rapidly degrading forest environment amidst ...	allAfrica.com
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22/04/2009	Proposed meeting to discuss 'alarming' rate of deforestation draws interest as forum on forests concludes general debate United Nations Forum on Forests Eighth Session 6th Meeting (AM) Many speakers in the United Nations ...	ReliefWeb
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19/03/2009	REDD funds approved for pilot nations UN agencies have released initial funding to five pilot countries to prepare avoided deforestation action ...	Carbon Positive
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05/03/2007	Towards a better knowledge of forest ecosystems Rome, Italy - Stressing that improved forest policies and sustainable forest management necessarily entail ...	UN FAO (Italy)
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15/10/2006	UNECE/FAO hold policy forum on public procurement The UNECE and FAO held a policy forum on 'Public procurement policies (PPP) for wood and paper products ...	ITTO Tropical Timber Market Report (Japan)
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10/10/2006	Governments fight illegal logging and promote sustainability through their purchasing UNECE/FAO policy forum discussed how to avoid illegally and unsustainably sourced wood and paper products ...	UNECE (Switzerland)
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04/10/2005	Forest and timber sector expresses concern for economic viability, illegal logging, and the public image of wood: Markets for forest products continue at record levels Geneva - The UNECE Timber Committee analyzed the current forest products market situation in 2005 and ...	UNECE
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04/10/2005	UNECE/FAO policy forum reviews roles of governments in timber certification Geneva - The UNECE Timber Committee, together with the FAO European Forestry Commission, held an in-session, ...	UNECE
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EVENTS

DATE	TITLE
Tuesday 17th September 2013	Forests Africa: Opportunities for a Green Economy ...
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Wednesday 22nd May 2013	Forest Products and Technologies for the Future The Russian Federal Forestry Agency and the ECE-FAO Forestry and Timber Section are pleased to announce ...
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Monday 13th May 2013	International Conference on Forests for Food Security and Nutrition Worldwide, nearly a billion people go hungry every day. With the world population projected to exceed ...
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Monday 8th April 2013	United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) 10th Meeting The 10th meeting of the UNFF will be held in Turkey in April 2013. In addition to procedural issues, ...
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Thursday 21st March 2013	International Day of Forests The International Day of Forests will be observed for the first time on 21 March 2013. Considering that ...
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Monday 26th November 2012	UNFCCC (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change) 18th Conference of the Parties The 18th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC and the 8th session of the Conference ...
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Tuesday 16th October 2012	70th session of UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe) Timber Committee This year’s Timber Committee session is about sustainable products and their contribution to a ...
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Monday 24th September 2012	Committee on Forestry (COFO) 2012 - Forests: a green pathway for human development World leaders at Rio+20 agreed that forests have a significant role to play in addressing many sustainable ...
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Wednesday 20th June 2012	United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development - Rio+20 The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development will take place in Brazil on 20-22 June 2012 ...
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Saturday 16th June 2012	Rio+20 Sustainable Development Dialogue on Forests: The Sustainable Development Dialogues are being held in the context of the United Nations Conference ...
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Monday 4th October 2010	Twentieth Session of the Committee on Forestry (COFO) Forests are key to sustainable development. Although this is a widely held view, there are serious knowledge ...
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LINKS

TITLE	DESCRIPTION	REPORT
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)	The lead UN agency on agriculture, fisheries and forests. Link to FAO page on forest law enforcement. Sustainable forest management is one of FAO's focus areas. Click here for an FAO briefing on their work in this area.	Broken link
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UN Food and Agriculture Organisation INFOSYLVA	The FAO InfoSylva Mailing List is sent out every two weeks. It is mainly comprised of news from the FAO Forestry Department, including press releases, publications, events, vacancies, new Web sites and relevant non-FAO news. To subscribe: email mailserv@mailserv.fao.org; the subject should be left blank, and the message text should read: subscribe INFOSYLVA-L	Broken link
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UN International Year of Forests	The United Nations General Assembly declared 2011 as the International Year of Forests to raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. The International Year of Forests, 2011 (Forests 2011) Website is a global platform to celebrate people’s action to sustainably manage the world’s forests. On the site, you will find information regarding events being organised throughout the International Year as well as interactive web tools and resources to promote dialogue on forests.	Broken link
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