VZCZCXRO3533
RR RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD
DE RUEHBR #1425/01 2071808
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261808Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9589
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 0116
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0119
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 0279
RUEHUP/AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST 0106
RUEHCP/AMEMBASSY COPENHAGEN 0140
RUEHOR/AMEMBASSY GABORONE 0112
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 0116
RUEHLC/AMEMBASSY LIBREVILLE 0118
RUEHSJ/AMEMBASSY SAN JOSE 0623
RUEHSV/AMEMBASSY SUVA 0098
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0295
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 4924
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 6363
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ 5533
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA 3525
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 2253
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 4269
RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 6221
RUEHGE/AMEMBASSY GEORGETOWN 1291
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 6974
RUEHPO/AMEMBASSY PARAMARIBO 1328
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 3744
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 6979
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO 0465
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 4826
RUEHC/DOI WASHDC
RUEAEPA/HQ EPA WASHDC
RUEHRC/USDA WASHDC
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 001425 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR OES KARR-COLQUE 
DEPT PASS USAID TO LAC/RSD, LAC/SAM, G/ENV, PPC/ENV 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV EAGR EAID TBIO ECON SOCI XR BR
SUBJECT: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY 
FOREST MANAGEMENT 
 
 
BRASILIA 00001425  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1.  Rio Branco, Acre State, Brazil was the site of a weeklong 
conference of 250 community forest entrepreneurs and policy makers 
from Africa, Asia, Central and South America, July 15-23, 2007. 
Participants debated the challenges confronted by inhabitants of 
tropical forests on three continents: lack of legal access to land 
and financial support, excessive red tape, high taxes, and markets 
that are out of reach because of distance and bureaucratic barriers. 
 These challenges were also reflected in y a study issued during the 
conference by Forest Trends.  This new study suggests that forest 
communities are responsible for the management of around 370 million 
hectares of natural forest, representing an investment in forests of 
US$2.5 billion. In so doing, they provide environmental services 
important in combating climate change and protecting water sources, 
biodiversity and the natural landscapes prized by the international 
community. The event concluded with a call from the forest 
communities for more access to forest lands and to world markets. 
END SUMMARY 
 
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EVENT LAUNCHES REPORT ON COMMUNITY FOREST ENTERPRISES 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
¶2.  The event was an opportunity to launch a new study, which 
reports that community forest enterprises (CFEs) represent an annual 
investment of US$2.5 billion in management and conservation in some 
of the planet's richest forest habitats.  This is more than 
governments in tropical regions spend directly on forest 
conservation each year.  Produced for ITTO by Forest Trends and its 
partners in a global coalition, the Rights and Resources Initiative, 
the report bases its conclusions on a review of current research and 
on 20 case-studies of successful enterprises in Africa, Latin 
America, Asia and the Pacific Islands. 
¶3.  Some 110 million people around the world are involved in forest 
enterprises harvesting wood, bamboo, rattan, fibers, nuts, resins, 
medicinal herbs, honey and other natural products, and, according to 
the study, granting land rights to these small communities working 
in sustainable forest industries is especially urgent. 
 
¶4.  The study contends that a top-down approach on the part of 
national governments and international NGOs and donor countries has 
prevented forestry enterprises from thriving.  It argues that local 
communities need to be part of the equation and not just bystanders. 
 In those countries where efforts have been made to reduce barriers 
and guarantee ownership of forested land, as is the case in Mexico 
and Guatemala, the study reported that community-based enterprises 
took off and became profitable.  In addition the study found that 
besides improving income and social cohesion in the communities, 
these organizations become important biodiversity conservation 
agents. 
 
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CONCLUSIONS 
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BRASILIA 00001425  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶5.  Leaders of community forest enterprises in Africa, Asia and the 
Americas concluded the event calling for their governments to extend 
to traditional communities the same rights and financial support 
provided to the world's largest timber companies.  "Only with 
support and access to land and markets can forest communities 
continue to conserve the world's remaining tropical forests while 
helping to fulfill the world's commitment to bring an end to 
poverty," said Alberto Chinchilla, representative of the Global 
Alliance of Forest Communities. 
 
¶6.  Participants at this first global meeting of community forest 
enterprise representatives made a series of recommendations that 
included a commitment to: a) work together to ensure that legal 
access to land and natural resources be included in the laws and/or 
constitutions of individual nations; b)lobby governments to provide 
lines of credit dedicated exclusively to community enterprises; c) 
adopt measures to combat poverty and encourage social justice and 
policies of inclusion within communities; d) call for the immediate 
suspension of high taxes imposed by governments on forest community 
enterprises; e) seek economic and administrative help to reach the 
consumer markets for sustainable products; and f) create, through 
ITTO, a special fund for financing community organizations. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶7.  Community Forest Enterprises can be an important component of 
efforts to reduce deforestation and promote sustainable forest 
management.  These enterprises can make a significant contribution 
to forest conservation because their efforts work towards valuing 
the intact forest worth more than a felled forest. 
 
SOBEL