Hosny El-Lakany, Assistant Director-General, Forestry Department, FAO, Rome
The ongoing international forest policy dialogue addresses cross-boundary issues that have an impact at national and local levels. In the 1970s and 1980s, global attention was focussed on tropical deforestation, much to the consternation of forest rich developing countries that felt their sovereignty over the management of their natural resources was threatened. In ensuing years, criticism widened to include historic deforestation in industrialized countries as a result of management practices in temperate and boreal forests. That era also witnessed a shift from regarding forests exclusively as an economic source for timber to one that gave priority to environmental, social and cultural aspects. However, in the last decade or so, forests began to be viewed as complex ecosystems, providing multiple uses and benefits. As a result, forest managers must increasingly try to balance a wide range of values while taking into account the impact that policies outside the sector (or their lack) have on forests.
At UNCED (1992), countries attempted to reach agreement on the need to develop a legally binding instrument for forests. Instead, the international community opted for a comprehensive set of non-binding "Forest Principles" to complement efforts to address key forest issues in conventions that are essentially environmental in nature (CBD, CCD, FCCC, etc.). The post UNCED period is characterized by confidence building, ongoing dialogue through the IPF and IFF (1995-2000) and the forging of new partnerships among the range of interested parties. This has resulted in identifying and reaching consensus on several pertinent issues. With the establishment of the UNFF (United Nations Forum on Forests) in October 2000, renewed emphasis is being placed on the management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests and on the need to strengthen political commitment to that end. In order to support the work of the UNFF and to enhance cooperation and coordination in the forest sector, an interagency body, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), was established shortly thereafter.
Among the issues of global concern that the UNFF will address are: formulation and implementation of national forest programmes; combating deforestation and forest degradation; promoting public participation; traditional forest-related knowledge; monitoring, assessment and reporting; common understanding of forest concepts, terminology and definitions; financial resources for the SFM; the link between trade and SFM; and international cooperation in capacity building, transfer of and access to environmentally sound technology.
Forest education is evolving in response to changing national and local perceptions and attitudes towards forests. In this regard, unlike many other professions, public opinion is shaping forest management of the future, including the type of graduate forester that is needed to respond to emerging issues and new trends. However, despite major international developments in forestry, curricula has not kept pace with the changes, nor has the profile and skills for the forestry graduates been updated. Given that decisions made globally influence forest policy, planning and management at national and local levels, this situation must be reversed if the profession is to remain relevant. Forestry educators, therefore, must quickly recognize that intergovernmental negotiations leading to agreements, treaties and conventions are not the sole responsibility of politicians and diplomats.
The case is strong for introducing global considerations into forestry education systems, especially at post-graduate and continuing education levels. Many universities are, however, unable to afford specialised programmes due to financial constraints, shortage of faculty possessing such expertise and potential low demand and enrolment. To address these shortcomings and foster inter-university cooperation and collaboration, it is proposed that a Consortium for International Forestry Education (CIFE) be established. This would allow lead universities to consolidate both financial and human resources while serving the international process at the same time. Close ties with international forestry research would be essential in the proposed formula.
