European
Tropical Forest Research Network |
SUMMARY
The paper "Certification of Forest Products for Small Businesses:
Improving Access - Issues And Options" was introduced by Hannah Scrase. The
main findings of the paper were presented by Matthew Wenban-Smith and are presented
in 3.2 (Summary of Problems and Project Titles).
The workshop participants then discussed some of the general
problems of certification, as described in section 4. Section 5 deals with specific
discussion and clarification of each project title, with particular respect
to whether any key issues were missing and how research proposals could be taken
forward.
The research areas identified in the paper were generally supported
by the participants. However, Title 6 ("Assisting small businesses to benefit
from certification") was not seen as a researchable problem. An additional area
of research was identified, and this formed Title 7, ("Beyond certification
– re-assessing the certification tool". Finally, the research areas were ranked
according to priority for research: this is described in section 6.
In conclusion, the priorities for research were considered
to be:
- The development of certification systems specific to small
forest areas
- Marketing advice for small businesses in the forest products
trade.
However, it was recognised that any certification system would
be inappropriate to forests below a certain size or level of organisation, and
research is urgently required as to the implications of, and alternatives to,
certification for these kinds of operations.
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CONCLUSIONS
The main outputs of the workshop are the developments of each
Title, as presented in Part 4 of the report. However, participants were also asked
to prioritise the titles to help identify areas in which research might be considered
especially important and/or urgent. It was noted that, with the exception of Title
6, ALL the titles were considered important areas for further work.
It was not considered possible to prioritise the titles objectively. However,
participants marked the titles they considered especially important, and the following
general conclusions were made:
Titles 1 ("Developing and testing a certification programme for small forests")
and 3 ("Small business guide to market opportunities for certified products")
were considered the highest priorities out of the six original titles. The aims
of research in these areas are well understood, and some work is already under
way. It was recognised that a significant effort would be required in communicating
the results of such research.
Title 7 ("Beyond Certification") was proposed as a new title during
the workshop. Whilst the title doesn't refer to certification but rather to alternatives
to certification, paradoxically this title was recognised as being essential to
the success of certification. There will always be situations in which certification
is technically or financially inappropriate. Without a proper understanding of
the impacts of, and alternatives to certification in these situations certification
will always be open to criticism as a generic tool, even where it could be of
use. It was suggested that 'research' could initially consist of discussion groups/workshops
to better understand the issues, rather than field research at this stage.
Titles 2, 4 and 5 were all recognised as being of importance. There was no effort
made to prioritise between these titles, although it was noted that Title 5 ("Development
of practical field manuals") is really contingent upon previous progress
in other areas. Title 2 (Models for cost effective chain of custody certification)
was considered to be less of a priority.
Title 6 ("Assisting small businesses to benefit from certification")
was not considered an appropriate subject for research as such.
The workshop discussed how participants could progress with the work on the titles
proposed. It was proposed that as a result of the workshop participants had identified
and made contact with potential collaborators. Additional collaborators could
be sought through publication of the proceedings of the conference, and should
be encouraged to contact the participants in order to develop specific project
proposals to be submitted for funding.
ETFRN offered the possibility of setting up electronic discussion groups to take
particular proposals forward, and possibility as a first step in development of
Title 7. ETFRN also has a budget to convene workshops on issues of particular
interest, and would be happy to consider certification issues as subjects of further
workshops if there is felt to be sufficient demand.
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