Local Control of Forests Brings Economic, Environmental and Social Gains

 

 Local Control of Forests Brings Economic, Environmental and Social Gains

Governments and businesses must give local people more control over forests to maximise social, economic and environmental benefits, says a new book by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and the G3 — a global network whose members manage a quarter of the world’s forests.

The book, to be launched at IIED’s Fair ideas conference in Rio de Janeiro on 17 June, makes the business case for investing in forest communities by showing that when local people control their forests they are more likely to conserve and use them sustainably.

Millions of hectares are already owned by, or designated for use by, local communities and families.

Södra — a cooperative of 52,000 family forest owners in Sweden — has annual revenues of 18 billion Krona (US$2.7 billion). The cooperative, which was formed in 1938, produces pulp, sawn timber, furniture and biofuels and sells them largely to an international market.

In Nepal, community-owned forest makes up around a fifth of all forested land, with 17,685 local community groups managing more than 1.6 million hectares. The Amrithdhara community forest is managed by 814 households who together earn 3,000,000 Nepalese Rupees (US$36,179) every year — money which is re-invested in forest management or used to support local community development projects.

“Community forestry turned Nepal’s forests from barren wastelands into the green and productive areas that they are today”, said Ghan Shyam Pandey, coordinator of the Global Alliance of Community Forestry.

In 2009, the Global Alliance of Community Forestry joined forces with the International Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of the Tropical Forest and the International Family Forestry Alliance to create the G3 – or Three Rights Holders’ Group, a global network of family, community and Indigenous foresters.

“Together, the G3 provides a platform and a united voice for local forest-dependent people across the world who all-too-often are not included in national policy-making or international decisions” said Peter deMarsh, a family forest owner in New Brunswick, Canada, and chair of the International Family Forestry Alliance.

Despite the proven track record of locally controlled forestry and constant reports of social conflict between local communities and big companies over forests across the world, money continues to flow into the bigger international corporations rather than into support for locally-controlled forestry.

The new book urges governments and investors to approach business from a different angle in order to reap a wider range of benefits and on a long-term basis.

“Instead of being led by resources, investment models for locally controlled forestry must be led by rights, based on right-holders managing forest resources and seeking capital and partnerships“, says Duncan Macqueen, Forest Team leader at IIED. “We cannot afford to ignore practical and fair solutions such as locally controlled forestry when the stakes are so high and the benefits so clear”

Download the book: Investing in locally controlled forestry: natural protection for people and planet

CONTACTS FOR INTERVIEWS

Duncan Macqueen – Duncan.macqueen@iied.org

Peter deMarsh – grandpic@nbnet.nb.ca

Ghan Shyam Pandey – pandeygs2002@gmail.com

NOTES TO EDITORS

Forests provide livelihoods and subsistence to 1.6 billion people worldwide. Millions more people who live nowhere near forests rely on their products throughout their daily lives. Yet pressure on the world’s forests is increasing.

Since 1990, the area of old-growth forests has decreased by 300 million hectares — an area larger than Argentina. Deforestation could account for the loss of as many as 100 species a day. And it is a major source of the carbon emissions that are driving climate change.

Mike Shanahan

Press officer

International Institute for Environment and Development

80-86 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8NH, UK. Tel: +44 (0)20 3463 7399; Fax: +44 (0)20 3514 9055

www.iied.org

Twitter http://twitter.com/IIED

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Climate Change Media Partnership roster http://climatechangemedia.ning.com

Register now for Fair ideas, a free two-day event hosted by IIED in Rio on 16-17 June 2012. See the latest programme and register at www.fairideas.org 

IIED is a company limited by a guarantee and incorporated in England. Reg. No 2188452. Registered office: 80-86 Grays Inn Road, London WC1X 8NH, UK. VAT Reg. No. GB 440 4948 50. Charity No. 800066. OSCR No 039864 www.iied.org
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Plt Menkes Ali Gufron: “Wilayah Indonesia terlalu bebas untuk rokok”

 

Pelaksana tugas (plt) Menteri Kesehatan (Menkes) Ali Gufron mengaku sulit mengatur produksi, peredaran, dan penggunaan rokok sebagai bahan mengandung zat adiktif yang harus memenuhi persyaratan yang ditetapkan. Padahal, penetapan persyaratan produksi, peredaran, dan penggunaan rokok bertujuan untuk menekan dan mencegah gangguan atau kerugian kesehatan bagi diri dan/atau masyarakat sekeliling.

“Tapi tidak mudah, terlalu banyak pemangku kepentingannya seperti perusahaan rokok dan petani tembakau. Intinya, wilayah Indonesia terlalu bebas untuk rokok. Mau mengatur gambar peringatan bahaya rokok di produknya saja nggak bisa,” tukas Ali, yang juga Wakil Menteri Kesehatan (Wamenkes), saat rapat kerja (raker) Komite III Dewan Perwakilan Daerah (DPD) dengan Kemkes di Gedung DPD Kompleks Parlemen, Senayan, Jakarta,  Rabu (6/6).

Ia menyatakan, Undang-Undang Nomor 36 Tahun 2009 tentang Kesehatan sebenarnya mengatur produksi, peredaran, dan penggunaan rokok. “UU mengaturnya meskipun tidak eksplisit. Tetapi kita operasionalkan,” ucapnya. Kemkes mengatur pengamanan bahan yang mengandung zat adiktif agar tidak mengganggu dan membahayakan kesehatan dalam Rancangan Peraturan Pemerintah (RPP) tentang Zat Adiktif. Zat adiktif dimaksud meliputi tembakau dan produk yang mengandung tembakau.

Kemkes berusaha untuk menyusun draft RPP Zat Adiktif dan selanjutnya Kemkes menyerahkan draft kepada Menteri Koordinator bidang Kesejahteraan Rakyat (Menkokesra). “Kita tinggal menunggu Menkokesra menyerahkannya ke istana (presiden). Kami menghitung resiko atau kerugian ekonomi dan sosialnya, pertimbangan filosofinya.”

Beberapa senator atau anggota Komite III DPD seperti Abdi Sumaithi (asal Banten) dan Sulistiyo (asal Jawa Tengah) mempertanyakan pengaturan produksi, peredaran, dan penggunaan rokok di wilayah Indonesia. “Teori kesehatan menyatakan, merokok merusak kesehatan tetapi mengapa pemerintah seperti menteri perindustrian menyatakan ingin mempertahankan pabrik rokok?”

Ali Gufron juga menjelaskan mengapa Indonesia tidak menandatangani dan meratifikasi Konvensi Pengendalian Tembakau (FCTC) Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa (PBB) menjadi undang-undang. Sementara tiga negara terbesar penghasil tembakau, yaitu China, India, dan Brazil justru menandatangani dan meratifikasinya.

Ia mengaku, Indonesia kerap ditanyai negara-negara anggota World Health Organization (WHO) yang merativikasinya. “Kita menjawab, di Indonesia masih perusahaan rokok dan petani tembakau. Tapi mereka membalas, “Samalah, di negara-negara lain juga sama, tapi mereka mau menandatanganinya kok Indonesia nggak.”

Sebagai negara pengguna tembakau terbesar ketiga di dunia, Indonesia sebenarnya berperan aktif dalam penyusunan FCTC yang disahkan di Jenewa tahun 2004. Konvensi ditandatangani dan diratifikasi 174 negara. Beberapa poinnya ialah pengurangan dan pembatasan iklan rokok, menambah cukai produk rokok, membubuhkan gambar peringatan bahaya rokok di produk rokok, menyediakan area khusus merokok, pembatasan akses anak terhadap rokok, dan penjualan rokok yang tertutup. Indonesia sesungguhnya melaksanakan beberapa poin seperti pengurangan dan pembatasan iklan rokok dan membuat area khusus merokok.

Siaran pers ini dikeluarkan secara resmi oleh

Bidang Pemberitaan dan Media Visual

Sekretariat Jenderal DPD

                           

Penanggungjawab:

M Linda Wahyuningrum

Membuka Kesempatan Bagi Tokoh Baru Menjadi Pemimpin Nasional

Pemimpin/anggota Dewan Perwakilan Daerah (DPD) bertemu pengamat dan insan pers untuk mendiskusikan perkembangan kepemimpinan nasional, tujuan ideal dan situasi riil, serta bagaimana mekanisme memunculkan calon baru pemimpin nasional dan bagaimana menambah sumber rekrutmen yang membuka kesempatan atau peluang tokoh baru (regenerasi) dan partisipasi rakyat Indonesia.

“Kami memiliki keresahan yang sama, bahkan kejenuhan, atas kepemimpinan nasional menghadapi tahun 2014,” ujar Wakil Ketua Dewan Perwakilan Daerah (DPD) Laode Ida, seusai acara di lantai 8 Gedung Nusantara III Kompleks Parlemen, Senayan, Jakarta, Rabu (30/5). Sumber rekrutmen dan figur calon menjadi sorotan dalam pertemuan, termasuk etika berpolitik pemimpin nasional yang berkuasa.

“Gerakan selanjutnya yang dilakukan teman-teman adalah memunculkan ‘kapal selam’ di permukaan air. Banyak sekali figur brighten and brightness, orang-orang cemerlang yang memiliki integritas dan kredibilitas tetapi mereka mirip ‘kapal selam’. Kita memunculkan ‘kapal selam’ ini sehingga calon pemimpin nasional tidak itu-itu saja, menjenuhkan. Harus ada figur baru. Kuncinya regenerasi.”

“Hasil survei yang hanya memunculkan calon itu-itu saja karena mereka tidak terbuka menyatakan kesiapannya menjadi calon pemimpinan nasional. Ke depan, Bung Ray Rangkuti (salah satu narasumber acara) membuka kantor pendaftaran calon presiden agar orang-orang baru itu datang, menyatakan kesiapannya, sehingga orang-orang baru itu bisa terpublikasikan atau disosialisasikan.”

Senator asal Gorontalo Elnino Husein Mohi menambahkan, pertemuan menyimpulkan bahwa memunculkan tokoh baru menjadi agenda yang mendesak dan menyadarkan rakyat mengenai kemunculan tokoh baru kebutuhan nasional masa depan. “Banyak yang bisa kita lakukan untuk memunculkan calon pemimpin nasional yang baru agar kita tidak terlena atau terbuai nama-nama yang beredar sekarang.”

Untuk memunculkan tokoh baru itu maka dua langkah dilakukan, yaitu mengubah perundang-undangan tentang pemilihan umum presiden-wakil presiden dan mengubah mind set rakyat Indonesia mengenai calon baru pemimpin nasional selain nama-nama yang beredar sekarang. “Kita berusaha untuk mendukung kemunculan tokoh-tokoh baru itu selain nama-nama yang beredar sekarang sebagai calon pemimpin nasional yang baru.”

Mewakili pengamat, Direktur Eksekutif Lingkar Madani (LIMA) Indonesia Ray Rangkuti mengakui bahwa pertemuan sangat intens mendiskusikan perkembangan kepemimpinan nasional, tujuan ideal dan situasi riil. “Yang ideal, tentu saja, harapan kita bagaimana melahirkan pemimpin nasional yang antikorupsi dan mandiri, dan bagaimana menambah sumber rekrutmen. Isu-isu yang jamak kita dengar.”

Jika menyerahkan sepenuhnya kepada partai-partai politik mekanisme bagaimana memunculkan calon baru pemimpin nasional dan bagaimana menambah sumber rekrutmen berarti kita mempersempit kesempatan tokoh-tokoh baru. “Jika partai-partai politik tetap melakukan, mekanismenya mesti jelas yang memungkinkan partisipasi rakyat Indonesia, termasuk mengawasi jejak etika berpolitik mereka.”

Ia berharap, rakyat Indonesia turut serta menyelidiki seluk-beluk calon baru pemimpin nasional jauh-jauh hari sebelum pemilihan umum presiden-wakil presiden. “Kalau bisa, kita menyelidiki dua tahun sebelum pemilihan umum. Bahkan berkembang ide untuk mulai memunculkan pemimpin lokal atau pemimpin daerah yang berhasil untuk dipromosikan di tingkat nasional. Begitu idealnya.”

“Tapi riilnya, karena kita hanya memiliki waktu dua tahun, dan kemungkinan undang-undang tidak direvisi, maka titik temunya ialah mendesak regenerasi. Kita sangat mengharapkan regenerasi, setelahnya isu-isu antikorupsi, mandiri,” sambungnya. “Hasil pertemuan menyepakati pentingnya regenerasi pemimpin nasional, dan bersamaan dengan itu melakukan perubahan struktural dan kultural.

Perubahan struktural, misalnya, mendesak partai-partai politik untuk berkenan memberi kesempatan kepada tokoh-tokoh yang baru sebagai generasi calon baru pemimpin nasional; sedangkan perubahan kultural, misalnya, mengubah mind set rakyat atau menyadarkan mereka bahwa terdapat calon pemimpin yang baru selain nama-nama yang beredar. “Di Republik ini bertaburan calon pemimpin visioner, yang memiliki komitmen.”

Siaran pers ini dikeluarkan secara resmi oleh

Bidang Pemberitaan dan Media Visual

Sekretariat Jenderal DPD

                           

Penanggungjawab:

M Linda Wahyuningrum

Dr. Tetsuro Urabe, Professor, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, and Special Assistant to the Minister for Foreign Affairs

Election of Dr. Tetsuro Urabe, Professor, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, and Special Assistant to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, in the Election of Members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS)

June 7, 2012

1. On Thursday, June 7 (Wednesday, June 6 EST), an election of the members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) was held at the 22nd Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), convened at United Nations Headquarters in New York. Japan's candidate, Dr. Tetsuro Urabe, Professor, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, was elected as a member of the Commission.
   
2. The CLCS is an organ established under UNCLOS, consisting of 21 experts in the fields of geology, geophysics and hydrography. The function of the Commission is to consider the submissions made by coastal States concerning the outer limits of the continental shelf extended beyond 200 nautical miles from their shores, and to make recommendations from the scientific point of view in accordance with UNCLOS. The CLCS plays a paramount role in the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf by coastal States in line with international law.
   
3. CLCS member Dr. Urabe was elected in a by-election held in August 2011 following the sudden passing of former CLCS member Dr. Kensaku Tamaki in April 2011. He has been re-elected for a second term.
   
4. As a maritime State, Japan is committed to promoting the international order of the law of the sea and has contributed to the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf by coastal States by nominating a pre-eminent expert in the field for election as a member of the CLCS. Professor Urabe is one of Japan's most distinguished experts in the areas of geology and mineralogy, with abundant experience in leading international seabed research projects, and is expected to contribute substantially to the work of the CLCS as a member.

[Reference 1]

(1) The CLCS is an organ established under the UNCLOS (Article 76 and Annex II, Article 1). In cases where coastal States (States Parties to the UNCLOS) intend to establish the limits of their continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles, they must submit information on the continental shelf to the CLCS, and the CLCS makes recommendations according to scientific and technical guidelines. The limits of the shelf established by a coastal State on the basis of these recommendations are final and binding.

(2) The CLCS consists of 21 members. They serve for a term of five years. (The term of the members elected in this latest election runs from June 2012 to June 2017.) Members are experts in the field of geology, geophysics or hydrography, and serve in their personal capacities. The election was held at the 22nd Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (SPLOS), taking place from June 4 to June 11, 2012.

[Reference 2] Dr. Tetsuro Urabe's Professional Background

Dr. Tetsuro Urabe is one of Japan's leading geologists and mineralogists, and is currently a Professor of the Graduate School of Science of The University of Tokyo. He began his academic career in 1976 as an Assistant Professor of the Geological Institute of The University of Tokyo, and served at the Geological Survey of Japan from 1985 to 2000 in various important positions including those of Senior Research Geologist, Deputy Director of the Research Planning Office, Chief of the Experimental Mineralogy Section and Chief Geologist. Dr. Urabe assumed his present position at The University of Tokyo in 2000, and became the Vice Executive Director of the Ocean Alliance, an interdisciplinary research institute of the University for comprehensive ocean studies, the same year. He has been a member of the Advisory Committee to the Cabinet for the Extension of the Continental Shelf since 2003.

Education: M.S. in Geology, the University of Tokyo, 1973; and Ph.D. in Geology, the University of Tokyo, 1976.

Special Assistant to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan since August 11, 2011.

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Memorandum on Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro, Japan-Montenegro Foreign Ministers' Meeting

Signing Ceremony for Memorandum on Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro, Japan-Montenegro Foreign Ministers' Meeting, and Working Dinner (Overview)

June 4, 2012
Japanese

On Monday, June 4, Mr. Koichiro Gemba, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, attended the signing ceremony for a Memorandum on Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro with H.E. Mr. Milan Rocen, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro, who was on his visit to Japan upon invitation by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, from 5:50 pm for approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes, at Iikura Guest House. Subsequently, Foreign Minister Gemba held a meeting and a working dinner to exchange opinions with Minister Rocen on bilateral relations, cooperation in the international arena, and international situations. An overview of the ceremony and meeting is as follows:

1. Overview of the Signing Ceremony for Memorandum on Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro
   
   (1) In order to further strengthen bilateral relations, both parties will hold periodical director-general level policy dialogues principally once a year.
   
   (2) Security issues and United Nations reform were explicitly described as specific fields of cooperation.
   
2. Overview of Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and Working Dinner
   
   (1) Minister Gemba welcomed the first-ever visit to Japan by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro, expressed his gratitude for the support from Montenegro in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake, and stated that while he wanted Minister Rocen to see the steady reconstruction in the affected areas, he (Minister Gemba) would like to achieve reconstruction along with the victims. Moreover, Minister Gemba mentioned the opening of the Honorary Consulate of Montenegro in Tokyo on Monday, June 4, and expressed his expectation that bilateral relations would be further strengthened in a wide range of fields.
   
   (2) Minister Rocen expressed his gratitude for the invitation to Japan and stated that the whole world had witnessed the reconstruction of the affected areas. Minister Rocen also stated that though it was a symbolic amount, Montenegro had provided support for the reconstruction and that he (Minister Rocen) would like to visit the affected area on Tuesday, June 5 to see the reconstruction for himself. Moreover, Minister Rocen stated that he would like to invite children of the affected areas to Montenegro. Further, Minister Rocen stated that although Japan is a major power, Japan has established good relations with a small country like Montenegro just as Japan had done with major powers, and that this was proof that Japan is truly a major power.
   
   (3) Minister Gemba congratulated Montenegro's participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and expressed his expectation toward preparation of the investment environment in Montenegro. In addition, Minister Gemba stated that Japan would like to consider cooperation in fields such as environment preservation, based mainly on technical cooperation utilizing "technology", which is Japan's strength, while taking the specific needs of Montenegro into consideration.
   
   (4) Minister Rocen expressed his gratitude for the economic cooperation from Japan after the independence of the country and also expressed his expectation toward expansion of economic relations with Japan. Moreover, Minister Rocen explained about Montenegro's efforts for entry into the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In response, Minister Gemba appreciated Montenegro's potential mentioning the fact that Montenegro had advanced toward entry into the EU and NATO as a front runner.
   
   (5) In addition, both ministers shared the view that they would cooperate in the international arena, including regarding United Nations Security Council reform, and exchanged opinions on the international situations of interest to both parties.

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Memorandum on Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro[PDF]

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Related Information (Visit to Japan of H.E. Mr. Milan Rocen, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro (Press Release) (May 30, 2012))
Related Information (Recovery from Great East Japan Earthquake)
Related Information (Japan-Montenegro Relations)