Highlights and images for 10 October 2017

Las2017 - Joint Session of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Committee on Forests and the Forest Industry and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) European Forestry Commission

Summary

The second day of Las2017 in Warsaw started with Market Discussions, a shared COFFI/EFC agenda item. Iain Macdonald, TallWood Design Institute, gave a keynote presentation about tall buildings made from wood. He elaborated on advantages of using wood for structural building, describing cost, safety and durability aspects, and highlighted how legislative frameworks can pave the way for wood building. Keynote speaker Lotta Hahn, architect and concept developer, addressed “Linking global trends to the future of furniture.” She said wood can help meet the growing demand for more affordable, adaptable, smarter furniture from fewer materials. She said companies can fill the gap for more sustainable furniture solutions, and should work with organizations on sustainable forestry.

Delegates then heard presentations on forest product trends in the different sub-regions. Andrzej Samborski, Wood Supply and Biomass Manager at International Paper, addressed the Polish market for wood products. Sten Nilsson, Forest Sector Insights, addressed long-term changes in worldwide wood consumption and production, and structural implications for the industries involved. Nikolai Ivanov, Russian Union of Timber Manufacturers and Exporters, addressed the “Russian Federation Forest Market: 2015-2018 Review, 2017 Outlook.” Russell Taylor, FEA-Canada, gave a presentation on “North America: trends & outlook in sawn softwood and wood-based panels.”

In the afternoon, delegates heard a keynote presentation by Werner Kurz, Natural Resources Canada, on the role of the forest sector in climate change mitigation. Kurz drew attention to climate change effects that are already visible, and that contribute to further greenhouse gas emissions, including forest fires, peatland burning and permafrost thawing. Addressing the role of carbon sinks, he noted the need for “new, groundbreaking strategies” to convert carbon dioxide into valuable products, and called for a systems perspective that includes forest ecosystems as well as forest products.

Las2017 then turned to the COFFI agenda, addressing matters arising from the sixty-seventh session of the UNECE, matters arising from the seventy-fourth session of the COFFI, and draft rules of procedure and a draft programme of work for the COFFI. After some procedural discussions, delegates agreed to discuss the draft rules of procedure at the next COFFI meeting, and to resume discussion on the draft programme of work at another time during the week.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary report from Las2017. The summary report is now availavle in HTML and PDF.

Photos by IISD/ENB+ | Sean Wu
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