Since 2005, China has taken more bold moves in building institutional foundation for a more secure community and household tenure system improving forest governance. Facing with great challenges ahead and considering what form of grievance redress mechanisms need to be put in place to ensure that the forest institutions deliver the outcomes, EEPC, co-sponsored by Rights and Resources Initiative and State Forest Administration, PR. China, has organized the Conference on Forest Tenure and Regulatory Reforms: Experiences, Lessons and Future Steps in Asia on September 24-25, 2010.
At the same time in the international spectrum positive movements have been also taken place in some countries, as well as some recalcitrance in other countries, this conference is aiming to facilitating further innovations in the interests of promoting community and forest well-being. Considering how the larger tides of economic and political developments (such as the financial crisis, the REDD+ agenda, resource commodity trade) have influenced the transformation of forest tenure and rights. This conference also aims to provide a venue for open discussion of not only the gains of different dimensions of tenure and regulatory reform, but also on what stands in the way of further improvements where there has been progress as well as how reforms can be advanced in other countries in order to enhance forest governance.
With a total of 140 participants coming from forestry related policy makers, provincial leaders, farmers, NGOs, conservation practitioners, and industries in China, the following concrete objectives are discussed:
1) Examine China's forest tenure with a view to identifying good practices, successful experiences, and the lessons to be learned
2) Examine regulatory frameworks governing China’s land ownership and markets and the framework governing forestland use and timber harvesting
3) Analysis of the larger political and economic forces affecting the forest tenure and rights regimes governing the use and management of Asian forest landscapes
4) Examine the status of forest tenure reform as well as implementation in a range of key Asian countries
5) Review how these have been accompanied by necessary changes in the forest regulatory framework
6) Discuss in what ways current trends in the REDD+ agenda impact further improvements in forest tenure and regulation
7) Build collaborative and long-term relationships between key actors on these issues in Asian countries
8) Identify a regional agenda to advance reform across the region
See also www.rightsandresources.org for more information about this conference. Conference agenda, presentations, related publications and participants information are available.