12 år sedan
Sustainable forest management in West Africa – great potential and great challenges
Global Challenge’s project Forestry for Development, F4D, is now reviewing conditions for sustainable forest management in Sierra Leone and Liberia, two West African states which have recently left bloody civil wars behind them. The countries are now trying to combine rapid growth with far-reaching environmental protection.
In Liberia, Vattenfall is converting discarded rubber trees into biofuel to reduce the use of coal in Europe and increase the supply of local electricity. In Sierra Leone, Addax is developing biofuels for the EU market and will surpass the sustainability requirements far higher than the local operators have previously faced.
– For the EU-level to reach the 20% of renewable energy by 2020, we must think non-traditionally and much more outside-of-the-box which Sierra Leone and Liberia has, says Mattias Goldmann, project manager for the F4D. It is an uphill battle, with many challenges and mistakes that are easy to criticize, but behind it all are very exciting opportunities which can also generate revenues right where they are most needed.
Climate and Development
The F4Ds visits were interspersed with study visits to facilities holding meetings with local farmers and environmental organizations, both in city conference rooms and under the largest tree in a village, where the village elder was responsible for the meeting.
– To get to sit down with these people is an important reminder of how important it is to always combine climate change with poverty, and to think far beyond Sweden’s borders, says Mattias.
More pictures from F4Ds field visit available on the Global Challenge Flickr account.
A report for the Forestry for Development will be presented at a workshop planned for late February.
