Feature: Ahead of COP 17: Focus on the Forests
Written by Chevon Erasmus Porter
18 July 2011
Ahead of COP 17: Focus on the Forests
2011 is the United Nations Year of the Forest. It is also the year in which South Africa plays host to the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17). Forestry has come to occupy a central place at international climate negotiations. Both of these events justify a closer look at this important yet threatened natural resource – one of those studied by SAIIA’s Governance of Africa’s Resources Programme.
Think of forest products, the first thing that comes to mind is timber – a versatile and potentially renewable natural resource long used not only in the construction and furniture industries, but also in the manufacture of paper, packaging and even baby nappies.
