19 June 2012: The State of the World’s Forests 2012 (SOFO 2012), published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), argues that forests should be placed at the heart of a green economy. The report was launched at a side event organized by FAO, and its partners, Brazilian Pulp and Paper Association (Bracelpa) and the International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA), held during the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).

The report states that sustainable use of forestry resources can contribute to reducing poverty and hunger, mitigating climate change through carbon capture, and creating alternative and more sustainable and renewable sources of energy. SOFO 2012 argues that energy derived from wood can be climate-neutral and socially equitable when using the appropriate technologies and forest management techniques.

The report also calls for policies and programmes that give entrepreneurs incentives to sustainably use forest resources, such as removing perverse incentives that result in deforestation and promote the use of non-renewable raw materials that compete with wood. the report was launched on the sidelines of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20). [Publication: The State of the World’s Forests 2012: Executive Summary] [FAO Press Release] [UN Press Release]