In view of the predominance of exploitative forms of forest use in the world's most sensitive forest ecosystems, and the high relevance of the very same forests for the most vulnerable parts of the populations, introducing sustainable methods of forest management is of key importance. While the development of forestry and forest industries which allow a permanent supply of raw material is a serious challenge, valuating forests also in terms of their social and environmental functions will stay top of the agenda in the coming decades.

Ensuring forest multi-functionality means that in trying to enhance economic revenues from forestry the social aspect is taken into account: e.g. economic development of the local community, community-based forest tenure systems, social and cultural integrity, community health, workers' rights. In environmental terms, issues such as soil and water conservation need to be respected, the condition of the vegetation (logging without causing drastic changes to the original stand structure and composition) and condition of wildlife (efforts to protect the wildlife and their habitats from disturbances caused by timber harvesting or other activities).

OECD has analysed annual forest sector ODA between 1973 and 1998 (2000) to be about 500 million US $ annually, which is about 1% of total ODA. Although the decline of total ODA has been stopped in recent years, ODA to the forest sector continues to decrease. While illegal logging causes estimated losses of 10 to 15 billion US $, ODA as yet represents only about one tenth of these financial losses due to illegal activities. As much as illegal logging, the mobilisation of financial resources for forest sector development, participation of the civil society in decision making and mainstreaming forestry are all strongly influenced by the quality of the partner country’s governance system.

Profitting from a broad range of professions that are represented in our team, ECO starts from a holistic perspective, putting sustainable forest management into an interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral and regional development context.

Consulting services are offered in the following fields:

• Forest policy and framework conditions
• Formulation of national forest policies
• Development of legislation and regulations
• Sustainable management of forest resources
•Inventory and forest management planning
• Rehabilitation, silvicultural management and protection
• Harvesting
• Certification of forest management and products
• Forestry research
• Social Forestry
• Joint implementation projects – CO2-sequestration
• Agroforestry
• Rangeland management
• Processing and marketing of timber and non-timber forest products
• Wood processing

Long-term management plans must reckon with demands of a variety of forest products, and with a rapid change of these demands.

Afforestation in Madagascar. Residents should be the major force behind sustainable forest management.

Your contact:
Dr. Steve Sepp: