Mapping convergence of sustainable forest management systems: Comparing three protocols and two certification schemes for ascertaining the trends in global forest governance

The Environment in Global Sustainability Governance

“…ITTO's mandate was renewed by ITTAs in 1994 and 2006, the latter with the explicit aim to 'promote the expansion and diversification of international trade in tropical timber from sustainably managed and legally harvested forests' (International Tropical Timber Agreement, 2006: 3). Some authors understand the ITTO to be strongly supportive of SFM, for example through the Guidelines for the Sustainable Management of Tropical Natural Forests, including corresponding criteria and indicators (Linser et al, 2018), and through its support for SFM initiatives such as the African Timber Organization (Kadam et al, 2021). Others perceive ITTO to be dominated by trade interests emphasizing 'sustainable timber production' instead of SFM (Gulbrandsen and Humphreys, 2006).…”

“…In contrast to state-centred traditional international governance, the authority of certification is diffuse and is located in the marketplace (Bernstein and Cashore, 2004). Early efforts towards forest certification started in the late 1980s, accompanying movements against threats to tropical rainforests (Kadam et al, 2021). Justified and boosted by not agreeing on a legally binding global forest convention in Rio, the FSC was formed in 1993 in Canada, and continues to be led by the WWF.…”