J. Sterling Morton would have been a great partner in the SFI program.

Morton loved nature and as editor of a Nebraska newspaper, he encouraged his readers and civic organizations to plant trees. But he went beyond this. In 1872, as secretary of Nebraska Territory, he proposed Arbor Day as a tree-planting holiday in the United States.

Today, as we celebrate the 139^th Arbor Day, just think about the impact Morton has had. Today, the Arbor Day Foundation plants and distributes 10 million trees each year, recognizes more than 3,300 communities through the Tree City USA program, and provides resources for childcare centers, elementary schools, preschools and parks to connect children with nature.

It’s this kind of broad outreach that really can make a difference. It’s something we understand at the SFI program, which is why we go beyond our forest certification standard. Our bigger picture embraces conservation, integrity and community. No other third-party forest certification program in North America can match this broad perspective.

We started with a rigorous third-party forest certification standard, then built on it so we could accomplish even more in the forest, in communities and in the marketplace. We make sure forest landowners have access to the knowledge and training they need to manage forestlands responsibly.

Our unique Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program is yielding benefits by building knowledge, strengthening global supply chains and showing landowners how they can manage forests to enhance wildlife habitat. We give back through our 37 community-based SFI Implementation Committees and our partnerships with Habitat for Humanity affiliates.

The SFI program may have earned international respect but our roots will always be deep in North American communities – addressing their needs and gaining insight from their knowledge.

Thanks to our many partners who help us collectively achieve so much. And thanks to J. Sterling Morton for starting the enthusiasm and vision that is still with us today.

Nadine Block, Senior Director, Government Outreach

SFI is proud to be a sponsor of an important upcoming event that tackles a major global problem: the Fourth Potomac Forum on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade, hosted by Forest Trends on May 4 in Washington DC. Co-sponsors include the World Bank, USAID, and the Forest Legality Alliance. The objective of the Potomac Forum is to develop a better understanding of the different initiatives currently being undertaken by governments, industry, and NGOs related to the global trade of legally sourced wood products. Speakers will address experiences with the Lacey Act, views on the recently passed EU Timber Regulation, and other important topics. SFI will participate as a speaker on a panel exploring how certification standards are working with the new regulations.

SFI’s support for the Potomac Forum comes through our Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program which fosters partnerships between organizations interested in improving forest management in the United States and Canada, and responsible procurement globally.

SFI’s support for the Potomac Forum ties directly to the SFI 2010-2014 Standard requirements related to avoidance of controversial sources, including Performance Measure 12.1: “Program participants shall ensure that their fiber sourcing programs support the principles of sustainable forestry, including efforts to thwart illegal logging” and Performance Measure 13.1: “Program participants shall avoid controversial sources and encourage socially sound practices.”

The Potomac Forum, which SFI is sponsoring for the third time, is one of several activities that SFI is engaged in to take action on illegal logging and to raise awareness about the role of certification standards in supporting the multitude of market and policy demands for non-controversial, or legal, wood products. An SFI grant is also supporting the World Resources Institute (WRI) in the creation of the Forest Legality Alliance Risk Tool, an open access, map-based, global information hub so users can conduct due diligence on forest trade. SFI is a member of the Forest Legality Alliance and will be hosting a webinar on illegal logging with WRI in June. Wherever you fall along the forest supply chain, we hope you will participate in one of these activities and learn more about the important initiatives being undertaken to address a major global problem.

Nadine Block, Senior Director of Government Outreach

Today the White House hosted the annual Easter Egg Roll and, for the third consecutive year, selected packaging from SFI chain of custody certified paperboard for the 2011 souvenir egg.  The White House unveiled the official souvenir design and logo in late March.  The egg itself has been manufactured from FSC-certified wood. The National Park Foundation sells the souvenir egg to benefit the White House Easter Egg Roll.

With nearly three quarters of all certified forests in North America meeting or recognized by our standard, we at SFI are pleased the White House is supporting responsibly managed forests with the Easter Egg Roll.  SFI’s comprehensive standard backs a strong commitment to responsible forest management and continuous improvement on SFI-certified lands across North America.  I also think it speaks volumes that the White House and National Park Foundation are recognizing two valid certification programs — the FSC and SFI.  They are not the first organizations to acknowledge the value of both standards. They join a long list of organizations, companies and associations around the world — including the United Nations, the Society of American Foresters and the National Association of State Foresters — who also appreciate the value of multiple forest certification programs.

We are thrilled, yet again, to play a role in this wonderful American tradition, and we hope the White House and other government entities increasingly use certified products, as it sends a signal when government leaders promote responsible forestry by sourcing certified products.

Posted by Allison Welde, SFI Director of Conservation Partnerships and Communications

As Earth Day (April 22) approaches, this is a great time to celebrate the fantastic contribution landowners of all sizes make to keep North America’s forests healthy and productive. It’s also a good time to celebrate the partnerships fostered through the SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program which, among other things, are helping family forest landowners adopt and implement practices to improve wildlife habitat on their lands.

Greg Yarrow explains the importance of promoting mast-producing plants to support wildlife

I saw an example of this first-hand last week when I joined a field tour in Clemson University’s experimental forest. Wildlife ecology professors Greg Yarrow and Knight Cox, along with colleagues and students, are leading a grant project to test practices and techniques private forest landowners can use to enhance wildlife habitat. Here’s an example – if you make a road clearing a little wider there’s more sunlight on it, ground cover can grow on the road, and it provides food for birds and animals.

It’s a simple solution for landowners who would love to manage their land but are concerned it would be too expensive, demanding, or harmful to wildlife. I talked Brian Murphy from Quality Deer Management Association, one of the partners in the Clemson project, who said hunters can apply some of the Clemson techniques to create habitat on their land not only for specific game species but for other species like songbirds – and they can improve timber growth and earn some revenue as well.

What’s best about the Clemson project is that it gets the information into the hands of landowners and helps them understand how to use the techniques. I was pleased to see media reports about the field tour, and I know Clemson plans more events and webinars, in addition to information posted on its Wildlife Habitat Improvement Practices website.

The Clemson project is one of the first conservation grant projects SFI Inc. announced last spring. Earlier this month, we announced the first of our 2011 grants – to Ducks Unlimited Canada.

Earth Day gives us all a chance to stop and think about our relationship with the Earth and its communities. I’m proud that through great projects like the Clemson grant, the SFI community is about to incorporate Earth Day values into the other 364 days of the year.

Last week I was invited by Joel Makower, Executive Editor of greenbiz.com to contribute a guest article to the popular news site. The blog, titled “What do to when ForestEthics comes knocking?”, speaks of how market campaigns actually undermine not just SFI, but all of the valued forest certification programs. The article has been well received and has been picked up by Reuters and a growing list of international outlets.   We invite you to read, comment and share within your social networks.

Read the full story here