RI to host workshop on forestry conservation

RI to host workshop on forestry conservation

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will host a debate next month on
forest conservation programs in Asia, bringing together business
executives and environmental activists as well as community
leaders and government officials.

The March 2-8 meeting, billed as a public hearing, will be
hosted by the Indonesian Biodiversity Foundation in cooperation
with the World Commission on Forests and Sustainable Development.

Foundation chairman Emil Salim said yesterday that the hearing
will look at the conflicts between various stakeholder groups and
development of the region's forest resources.

Emil, a former environmental minister, said the hearing will
provide a forum for transparent discussion of politically
sensitive issues that are constraining efforts to develop and
conserve the region's forests.

The primary objectives of the hearing will be to work towards
consensus between various stakeholder groups on target areas for
policy and institutional reform, he said. "It is also to examine
socioeconomic and environmental trade-offs between various policy
options."

The results of the meeting and similar hearings held in other
parts of the world will be incorporated into Global Forests, a
book expected to be published in 1997, he said.

Some 25 commission members, including co-chairmen Emil Salim
of Indonesia and Ola Ullsten of Sweden, 45 panel members and 100
participants are expected to take part. (imn)