Why saving our forests should be a global priority

The author asserts that forests are critical for climate change mitigation and biodiversity, but current efforts to stop deforestation are failing. While some progress in traceability and certification has been made by brands like Unilever and Nestlé, individual supply chain approaches cannot solve systemic issues like land rights and governance. The author advocates for public-private partnerships and landscape-scale initiatives, citing the Cocoa & Forests Initiative and SoS Cerrado as models for transformative change. The text emphasizes the need for emerging economies, particularly China, and green finance mechanisms like REDD+ to accelerate the transition to sustainable land management.

• Deforestation is a major driver of global greenhouse gas emissions, with an estimated 18 million acres of forest lost annually, primarily due to commodity agriculture. This loss accounts for more than 20% of the planet's carbon emissions.
• Individual corporate supply chain strategies have limitations and have not been sufficient to stop deforestation. For instance, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification covers only 19% of global palm oil supplies, and market forces have failed to resolve issues regarding the rule of law, transparent land rights, and governance.
• Transformative change requires collective action at a jurisdictional or landscape scale. Examples include the Cocoa & Forests Initiative, involving 31 companies and the governments of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, and SoS Cerrado, which targets the Cerrado biome in Brazil through a coalition of retailers including Walmart and McDonald's.
• Global progress depends on the involvement of emerging economies and the implementation of green finance. China is highlighted as a key player due to its import volumes, accounting for 62% of global soy imports and one-third of pulp imports.

APA

World Economic Forum (2019). Why saving our forests should be a global priority. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/saving-forests-global-imperative-tropical-deforestation/

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Why saving our forests should be a global priority. 2019. https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/saving-forests-global-imperative-tropical-deforestation/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=World Economic Forum |title=Why saving our forests should be a global priority |date=21 March 2019 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/saving-forests-global-imperative-tropical-deforestation/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{worldeconomicforum2019why, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Why saving our forests should be a global priority}}, publisher = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2019}, month = mar, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/nature-and-biodiversity/saving-forests-global-imperative-tropical-deforestation/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }