Forests and the European Commission: Introduction into FLEGT-VPA and ‘Embodied’ Deforestation
Speaker: Argyro Zerva; European Commission; Directorate General for Environment; Multilateral Environmental Cooperation
The European Commission (EC) continues to develop various instruments that aim to reduce the European Unions (EU) international impact on forest degradation and destruction. In this webinar we want to improve our understanding of two particularly promising instruments and developments. First of all, we will receive an input on a legally binding trade agreement, called Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), which allows Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licenses to be issued. VPA-FLEGT aims to ensure the provision of legally sourced wood from timber-producing countries outside the EU. Why is this specific system believed to deliver positive results? What are the current developments? Can we already see results in countries where VPA-FLEGT is established?
Secondly, we focus on the legislative possibilities and current developments within the EU to reduce ‘embodied’ deforestation. This form of deforestation entails the impact of European market demands of products that drive deforestation abroad such as meat, soy, cacao or coffee. How can the European Community policies, legislative measures or other initiatives tackle this problem? Following our deep dive, we will ask our viewers to engage in a discussion with our expert through a moderated Q&A session.
Background information
VPA-FLEGT
- http://www.euflegt.efi.int/vpa
- Results Cameroon, Ghana and Indonesia: http://www.cifor.org/publications/pdf_files/Reports/FLEGT-VPA-Report.pdf
Embodied Deforestation
- https://ec.europa.eu/environment/forests/impact_deforestation.htm
- https://ec.europa.eu/environment/forests/pdf/feasibility_study_deforestation_kh0418199enn_main_report.pdf
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