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Forests Policy & Practice
Third Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Legally Binding Agreement on Forests in Europe
(INC-Forests3)

Highlights for 30 January, 2013

On Wednesday, 30 January, the Third Session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Legally Binding Agreement (LBA) on Forests in Europe (INC-Forests3) heard a report on the results of the Expert Meeting on Terms and Definitions, a country-led initiative held in Madrid in November 2012. Delegates agreed to use the outcome of the workshop as a basis for negotiations, together with the existing definitions in the draft text, and revisited the definitions paragraph-by-paragraph in plenary.

Plenary then heard a report from a contact group dealing with provisions on maintenance, conservation and appropriate enhancement of biological diversity in forest ecosystems and protective functions in forest management. The INC accepted amendments on: increasing forest biodiversity at all levels through effective and efficient integration in sustainable forest management (SFM); water and soil protection contributing to prevention of natural hazards; and supporting forest functions by identifying and compiling relevant information for awareness raising, decision making and strengthening sectoral cooperation.

In the afternoon, two working groups met in parallel. Working Group 1, co-chaired by Katerina Ventrubova (Czech Republic) and Piotr Paschalis-Jakubowicz (Poland), posed questions to the European Forest Institute (EFI), UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) about practical implications of hosting or co-hosting the LBA secretariat, as well as the implications of Germany's offer to host the secretariat in Bonn. A few delegations expressed their preference for a LBA under the UN umbrella. The four organizations were asked to provide rough estimates of the costs of them hosting and providing secretariat services for the LBA.

Working Group 2, co-chaired by Ingwald Gschwandtl (Austria) and Tamer Otrakçier (Turkey), focused on the four text proposals regarding compliance. Ukraine withdrew its proposal, allowing Working Group 2 to negotiate based on a merged proposal containing elements from the Russian Federation, Norway and the EU.

After the two working groups reported back to plenary, an informal contact group was tasked to meet in the evening to continue work on compliance.
Conference Banner
The conference banner on the front of the venue
Daily web coverage (click on the following links to see our daily web pages)
28 Jan - 29 Jan - 30 Jan - 31 Jan - 1 Feb
Dais shot

The dais during plenary (L-R): Ewald Rametsteiner, Secretariat, INC Chair Jan Heino, Finland, INC Secretary Malgorzata Buszko-Briggs

Arne Ivar Sletnes
Arne Ivar Sletnes, Norway
Liubov Poliakova
Liubov Poliakova, Ukraine
Ana Suarez
Ana Suarez, Spain
Jon Geir Petursson
Jon Geir Petursson, Iceland
Alexandra Orekhovich
Alexandra Orekhovich, Russian Federation
Christoph Düerr
Christoph Düerr, Switzerland
Ivonne Higuero
Ivonne Higuero, UNEP
Lajla Tunaal White
Lajla Tunaal White, Norway
Alexander Panfilov
Alexander Panfilov, Russian Federation
Kenan Kiliç
Kenan Kiliç, Turkey
Sibylle Vermont
Sibylle Vermont, Switzerland
Aljoscha Requardt
Aljoscha Requardt, Confederation of European Forest Owners
Dais during report of Working Groups

Plenary dais during report of the Working Groups (L-R): WG1 Co-Chairs Katerina Ventrubova, Czech Republic, and Piotr Paschalis-Jakubowicz, Poland, INC Chair Jan Heino, Finland, INC Secretary Malgorzata Buszko-Briggs, and WG2 Co-Chairs Ingwald Gschwandtl, Austria, and Tamer Otrakçier, Turkey

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Working Groups
WG1 Dais Shot

Working Group 1 dais (L-R): Malgorzata Buszko-Briggs, Secretariat, Co-Chair Katerina Ventrubova, Czech Republic, and Co-Chair Piotr Paschalis-Jakubowicz, Poland

WG1 Room Shot
A view of the room during Working Group 1 on the possibility of bringing the LBA under the UN umbrella
WG2 Room Shot
A view of the room during Working Group 2 on compliance
WG2 Dais Shot

Working Group 2 Dais (L-R): Edurne Lacalle Galdeano, Secretariat, Doni Blagojevic, Secretariat, Co-Chair Ingwald Gschwandtl, Austria, and Co-Chair Tamer Otrakçier, Turkey

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Around the INC
Delegates before plenary
Delegates conferred before plenary.
Dais huddle
The Secretariat, Chair and INC Secretary conferred during plenary.
Coffee chat
Delegates chatted over coffee.
Cookie table
Tables of cookies lengthened travel times between working groups.
Hadrian's Gate
Hadrian's Gate, a short walk from the venue, dates to 130-135 AD.
Chat after plenary
Participants chatted after plenary.
Related Links
Meeting resources
*Meeting website and documents
*Annotated provisional agenda
*Draft negotiating text
*Oslo Mandate
*INC-Forests1 website
*INC-Forests2 website

Other resources
*FOREST EUROPE
*UN Forum on Forests (UNFF)
*UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Forestry Department

IISD RS resources
*IISD RS summary report of INC-Forests2, 3-7 September 2012, Bonn, Germany (HTML - PDF)
*IISD RS coverage of the FOREST EUROPE Ministerial Conference Oslo 2011, 29 14-16 June 2011, Oslo, Norway
*IISD RS coverage of the Ninth Session of the UNFF (UNFF9), 24 January - 4 February 2011, UN Headquarters, New York, United States of America
*IISD RS coverage of the Twentieth Session of the Committee on Forestry of the FAO, 4-8 October 2010, FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy
*IISD RS archive of forestry meetings and backgrounder
*Global forest policy backgrounder
*Forests-L - A news and announcement list on forest policy issues
*Forests Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of International Activities Adressing Forests Policy
*Chemicals and Wastes Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of International Activities Adressing Chemicals and Wastes Policy
*Land Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of Activities Adressing International Sustainable Land
*Biodiversity Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of UN and Intergovernmental Activities Addressing International Biodiversity Policy
*SIDS Policy and Practice - A Knowledgebase on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States
*Water Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of Activities Addressing Sustainable Water and Sanitation
*Sustainable Energy Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of Sustainable Energy Activities
*Sustainable Development Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of International Activities Preparing for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development
*Climate Change Policy & Practice - A Knowledgebase of UN and Intergovernmental Activities Addressing Global Climate Change Policy
*Linkages Update - Bi-weekly international environment and sustainable development news
*African Regional Coverage
*Latin America and Caribbean Regional Coverage
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