Three Key Proforest Principles

As we start this New Year we outline the three key principles which underpin all of our work to ensure positive social and environmental outcomes for people, nature and climate: 

1. The need to contribute to the transformation of agriculture and forestry sectors to more sustainable practices
2. The need to support a just transition
3. The need to ensure the best use of resources, which are always finite

In the case of climate this translates into three drivers:

FLAG (Forest, Land & Agriculture) Sector transformation
GHG accounting can incentivise switching supply chains as an easy fix to lower emissions. The lack of additionality and risk of leakage can hamper sectoral transformation. Action is needed within and beyond supply chains.

Just transition
A just transition relates to the continued inclusion of small and disadvantaged producers in transformative processes, even if they are high risk, not their exclusion from supply chains because they are challenging to account for. ​

Efficient use of resources
An adequate balance needs to be struck between resourcing data, plus measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) and the resourcing of actual interventions in the long term. There is a risk that strict carbon accounting rules disincentivise interventions and strategies with a proven positive impact on the ground.​

You can see initial slides on these principles here.