Supply Chain Solutions for People and Forests

Delegates from the 'Closing the Gap' forum on human rights, deforestation and supply chains are visiting Paris to call on governments and companies to put in place strong rights protections for communities and their forests.

Tomorrow, 27th June 2018, they will join a Multi-Stakeholder Meeting of the Amsterdam Declarations Partnership to share a set of precise recommendations -developed at the forum- aimed at promoting and accelerating a positive and effective change in the global supply chains of commodities with a high risk of generating conflicts and serious harmful impacts on our peoples, lands, forests and territories.

Over half of global tropical deforestation is caused by four commodities: soy, palm oil, beef, and pulp & paper, resulting in 15% of total global greenhouse gas emissions – more than all the cars, trucks and buses in the world combined. About half the land cleared for commercial agri-commodity expansion occurs illegally, without community consultation, consent, or adequate social and environmental impact assessments; and on average, the EU pays about €6 billion per year for products grown on these illegally cleared lands. 

To find just solutions to this crisis, 14 indigenous leaders, human rights defenders and activists from 11 countries (Peru, Colombia, Paraguay, Argentina, Guyana, Suriname, Liberia, Cameroon, DRC, Malaysia and Indonesia) in partnership with NGO allies Forest Peoples Programme and Both ENDS, held a forum between the 12 and the 14 of February, 2018 and formulated these recommendations for different actors, sectors, and initiatives involved in formulating policies on sustainable trade and supporting efforts to combat deforestation. 

Read more at https://rightsanddeforestation.org