EU trade agreements “might finally tame the destroyers of the world’s forests”

Released on the same day as FERN's high-level conference at the European Parliament "Guardians of the Forest?" (www.fern.org/forestguardians) this press release accompanies the report, ‘Forest Stands’, (www.fern.org/foreststands) by award winning journalist Fred Pearce. It shows that trade agreements founded in concerns for justice and poverty could become a ‘revolution in the rainforest’. The report looks at the EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) programme and specifically the Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) between the EU and timber producing countries. It calls VPAs a ‘template for ensuring civil society engagement and changing the balance of power’.