Every year when we release our Progress Report, I am amazed at how much the SFI program and its many partners have achieved.

Here are just a few of the highlights from this year’s report:

• 5,584 resource and logging professionals trained in 2010;
• $81.4 million invested by program participants in forest research activities in 2010;
• 948 SFI Implementation Committee members;
• 36% increase in chain-of-custody certified locations from the start of 2010 to April 2011;
• SFI commitment of $1.1 million through its Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program in 2010 and 2011 – a total value of $4.2 million once partner contributions are included;
• more than five million acres/two million hectares of lands held or managed by Aboriginal communities certified to the SFI 2010-2014 Standard;
• new SFI on-product labels to strengthen transparency.

It’s obvious why the title of our Progress Report is The Bigger Picture: Conservation. Community. Integrity.

For SFI Inc., a rigorous certification standard is a starting point – it anchors an independent program broader than any other third-party forest certification program in North America; one that supports conservation research, reaches out to communities, and is built on integrity.

SFI Inc. Board Chair Bob Luoto put it well in his message: “. . . what impresses me most about the program is the fact that literally thousands of people across North America are putting it to work . . .”

We invited certification bodies who conduct the detailed third-party audits to the SFI standard to submit comments. Mike Ferruci of NSF-ISAR Forestry Program spoke to the SFI program rigor: “My advice for companies that want to be SFI certified is to make sure everything is in order before I arrive. I have no choice – if the SFI standard requirements are not being met, and I see a major non-conformance, I won’t be issuing an SFI certificate.”

SFI stands with other certification programs as a respected, internationally recognized standard. It also stands alone. It is the only program in North America requiring that program participants support and engage in research activities, that they broaden the practice of sustainable forestry through landowner and public outreach. It stands alone as the only program with a grassroots network of SFI Implementation Committees who train loggers and participate in important community events.

Conservation. Integrity. Community. All important parts of the SFI bigger picture as we work together to ensure our forests continue to offer the many values we treasure to our children, and to their children.

Read the full report here

Read our news release here

Nadine Block, Senior Director, Government Outreach

SFI sponsored the Fourth Potomac Forum on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade in Washington last week so stakeholders from around the world could talk about what is being done – and what more should be done – to combat illegal logging.

Hosted by Forest Trends, the Forum brought together more than 100 representatives from U.S. and foreign governments, NGOs, forest products manufacturers and buyers to share experiences and learn from one other. In addition to SFI Inc., the sponsors were the World Bank, PROFOR, USAID, the U.S. Forest Service and Forest Legality Alliance. SFI Inc., along with Forest Trends and the World Bank, issued a news release at the close of the one-day forum highlighting the successful outcomes.

We heard how markets are demanding and rewarding transparency and legality, gathered insights from U.S. government representatives tasked with implementing the amended Lacy Act, and learned about the new EU Timber Regulation and developing actions in Asia. I came away with a better understanding of the complexity of the issue – even organizations investing a lot of effort struggle to track down all the information they need to guarantee the legality of products. And participants gained appreciation for the role forest certification can play. One speaker closed his presentation on the new EU Timber Regulation with a slide that said: “When in doubt, ask for FSC/PEFC/SFI”.

Forest certification doesn’t replace the need to submit appropriate import declaration information, but it does show a company has taken proactive steps to keep illegal wood or plant material out of its supply chain. SFI standard requirements stipulate that program participants must comply with all appropriate laws in North America, and when they are buying products from offshore they must avoid controversial sources of supply such as illegal logging. As part of a panel on certification, I had an opportunity to talk about steps SFI takes to address the problem and the challenge we face since just 10 percent of the world’s forests are certified.

SFI Inc. sponsored the forum through our Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program, which is fostering partnerships to improve forest management in the United States and Canada, and responsible procurement globally. The Potomac Forum is just one of the many activities the SFI program is involved in as part of its efforts to thwart illegal logging. Through our conservation grant program, we are supporting the World Resources Institute (WRI) in their creation of an open access, map-based, global information hub so users can conduct due diligence on forest trade. We recently authored an article on How Certification Addresses Illegal Logging in the UK’s Timber in Construction magazine. And on June 14 we will co-host a public webinar with WRI on illegal logging.

Many others came away with positive impressions about the Potomac Forum and the critical need to work together to address this important global issue. We invite you to watch these videos featuring Michael Jenkins from Forest Trends, Joe Lawson from MWV, and James Griffiths from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development sharing their thoughts about the event:

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.

Earlier this month, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources announced that all of Ohio’s 21 State Forests have achieved SFI certification.  Ohio Governor Ted Strickland issued an executive directive to the Division of Forestry to seek certification of the forests.  The Division of Forestry demonstrated to independent, third-party auditors that its forest management met standards related to the protection of biodiversity and water quality, public involvement and transparency, and sustainable timber harvesting- passing our rigorous standards.  To ensure its continued commitment to sustainable forest management, they will undergo annual audits as well.

We applaud the state of Ohio for taking initiative to ensure that its 200,000 acres of state forest land are well managed today for future generations.  Ohio is an addition to over 180 million acres of SFI-certified land in North America.  SFI is widely used on public lands throughout North America.  In fact,  of the 181+ million acres of forests certified to the SFI Standard, 74% are on public (state, provincial, or county) lands.

The press release from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources also noted that “the Division of Forestry has also undergone an audit for FSC ® program standards, and anticipates certification under this program within weeks.”  You can find out more about Ohio’s forest certification programs here.