This side event, moderated by Jeff Sayer, James Cook University, convened to discuss the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO)/IUCN Guidelines for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in tropical timber forests. Participants also heard reports on the ITTO/IUCN/CBD Conference on Biodiversity Conservation in Transboundary Tropical Forests, held in Quito, Ecuador, in July 2010.

IBW Putra, Alas Kusuma, Indonesia, outlined a census of orangutans done with WWF on a plantation in west Kalimantan, Indonesia, between January and July 2010. He said outcomes of the census showed that there were 619-772 orangutans present on the forestry concession, with 12 directly observed. He noted that staff, of which 84% were local, were trained on surveying and nest analysis, but lamented that locals still undertake hunting, including of orangutans.

Canecio Munoz, Sinar Mas, Indonesia, highlighted Sinar Mas’ implementation of the ITTO/IUCN guidelines. He noted that 40% of their forestry concession within the Giam Siak Kecil-Bukit Batu Biosphere had been donated to conservation. He said wildlife corridors had been created and effort taken to retain natural refuges within the biosphere. He noted that cooperation with local communities, civil society, governments and NGOs is key in maintaining their concessions’ biodiversity.

Noting that 1.25% of global forests are industrial plantations, Gerald Steindlegger, WWF, said there is an increased call for sustainable land-use models that incorporate all types of forests and land uses. He noted work undertaken by WWF to identify better practices for plantation design and management and to promote frameworks that create significant environmental, social and economic results.

Steindlegger stated that plantations have negative impacts on biodiversity when they replace natural habitats, but that when planted on former agricultural land or highly degraded land, they can have neutral or positive impacts.

Marceil Yeater, CITES, outlined a collaborative project with ITTO that assists range states in Latin America, Africa and Asia in the sustainable harvest and use of CITES-listed tropical timber species. She noted that ITTO also assists CITES in providing guidance when proposals are made for the listing of a species.

Hwan Ok Ma, ITTO, noted that the Conference on Biodiversity Conservation in Transboundary Tropical Forests was organized to review socioeconomic, environmental and political impacts of transboundary conservation initiatives, identify best strategies and opportunities for increasing funding as well as to raise the profile of transboundary conservation areas (TBCAs).

On the outcomes of the conference, Tarsicio Granizo, Ministry of National Heritage, Ecuador, highlighted the mobilization of more financial resources for TBCAs and the importance of involving local communities for managing TBCAs. He also stressed the importance of: certification of goods and services from TBCAs; certificates of origin; and South-South collaboration.

In closing, Takeshi Goto, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Japan, encouraged the successful use and implementation of the ITTO/IUCN Guidelines.

This event convened to outline the activities of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) and discuss the interlinkages between the IGC and CBD's work on access and benefit sharing, traditional knowledge and genetic resources.

Begoña Venero, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), noted that WIPO had embarked on fact-finding missions from 1998-1999 to investigate concepts of traditional knowledge under the then intellectual property (IP) systems. She highlighted that, at the time, the IP systems could not respond to all elements of traditional knowledge but that they were ultimately evolutionary enough to provide effective protection of traditional knowledge.

In response to this, she highlighted that the WIPO General Assembly created the IGC in 2000 to discuss access to genetic resources, benefit-sharing and protection of traditional knowledge. She noted that the IGC is currently undertaking text-based negotiations to reach an agreement in 2011 on international legal instruments to ensure the effective protection of traditional knowledge, traditional cultural expressions and genetic resources.

Stressing the need for agreement on issues of terminology and policy objectives in negotiations, Martin Girsberger, Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property, noted that while the CBD may be competent in dealing with access and benefit sharing issues, it does not have the competencies to deal with issues related to IP, which should be left to WIPO. He noted that a coherent system of approaches is needed to achieve mutually supportive instruments.

In the ensuing discussion, participants highlighted the lack of coherence between CBD and WIPO, with one noting that WIPO has held more discussions on traditional knowledge, genetic resources and IP issues than the CBD has. Another participant noted that WIPO’s “traditional culture” of applying terms such as “innovation” and “commercial applicability” to patent applications is difficult to apply to genetic resources and traditional knowledge as these are “age-old issues,” but that they still need protection of some form.

Begoña Venero, WIPO

Martin Girsberger, Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property