1999
Founding of Forest Trends
Forest Trends is launched in 1999 with major grants from the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. Our vision is to be a small, nimble, and responsive non-profit organization with three principal roles: bringing together diverse coalitions to advance market transformations, generating and disseminating critical information to market players, and facilitating deals between key links in forest value chains.
5 STAFF
$0.8M ANNUAL BUDGET
2 PARTNERSHIPS
2000
Katoomba Group launched
In the beautiful Blue Mountains outside Sydney, Australia, Forest Trends brings together for the first time an unusual gathering of business, policy, and nonprofit experts on sustainable forest management.
Since 2000, more than twenty Katoomba Meetings have occurred all over the world. The Katoomba Group has been catalytic in the development of the World Bank’s BioCarbon Fund, Mexico’s national payments for ecosystem services fund, and Peru’s natural infrastructure water tariff — all flagship models in creative finance for nature conservation.
2000
Bridge loan to FSC
Forest Trends makes a short-term bridge loan to sustain the Forest Stewardship Council in its infancy. In 2001, the loan is repaid, and FSC survives and grows.
Since then, we’ve advised FSC on expanding its certification offerings to respond to companies’ growing interest in sourcing products that sustain ecosystem services such as carbon storage, biodiversity conservation, clean water, and local livelihoods. Today, more than 195 million hectares of forests in 84 countries are FSC-certified. More than 36,000 FSC Chain of Custody certificates have been issued to companies ensuring responsible sourcing practices throughout their complex supply chains.
2002
Forest Trade and Finance Program launched, with a focus on China and the global timber trade
Forest Trends is the first international NGO to open a dialogue with the Chinese government on China’s imports of illegally harvested logs.
In the years that follow, we continue to guide governments to create robust import regulations that prevent illegal timber from entering consumer markets.
$3.0M ANNUAL BUDGET
2004
Business and Biodiversity Offsets Program launched
Forest Trends establishes the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP), bringing together companies, governments, banks and conservation groups. Our goal is to challenge the historical assumption that the social and economic benefits of development projects must inevitably result in a loss of biodiversity.
Today, over 60 companies have committed to BBOP’s No Net Loss program, more than 100 countries require or enable offsets related to the No Net Loss program, and over 90 financial institutions have committed to No Net Loss and Net Gain of Biodiversity.
2004
First International Ecoagriculture Conference
Forest Trends and partners spin off EcoAgriculture Partners as an independent nonprofit organization, to focus on helping agricultural communities manage landscapes that support not only rural livelihoods, but also biodiversity and healthy ecosystems.
2005
Ecosystem Marketplace launched
Ecosystem Marketplace is created as the “Bloomberg of Environmental Markets” – an online platform providing free market data, analysis, and journalism on environmental markets and finance.
22 STAFF IN FIVE COUNTRIES
11 PARTNERSHIPS
2005
Forest Trends receives US Forest Service Global Stewardship Award
2006
Rights and Resources Initiative created with IUCN, CIFOR, and Ford Foundation
RRI is a global network advocating for the land and forest rights of Indigenous Peoples & local communities. Following its creation, it was spun off as an independent nonprofit organization.
As founding members of RRI, we continue to develop global initiatives to support the rights and resources of indigenous peoples and local communities.
$3.7M ANNUAL BUDGET
2006
Katoomba Incubator launched
The Incubator is launched to strategically invest in early-stage ecosystem conservation and restoration projects, connecting local communities with global experts and new business opportunities.
2007
First State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets report published
Ecosystem Marketplace, together with New Carbon Finance, publishes the first in-depth benchmark of the voluntary carbon markets. It covers prices, volumes traded, and analysis of market and demand dynamics.
2008
Creation of the Chesapeake Fund
Forest Trends, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and the World Resources Institute launch the Chesapeake Fund, a first-of-its-kind revolving fund for water quality improvements to accelerate the cleanup of the Chesapeake Bay.
2009
Surui Forest Carbon Project
The Surui Forest Carbon Project is launched in the Brazilian Amazon by the Paiter-Surui indigenous people with technical support from Forest Trends and other partners. It is the world’s first indigenous-led carbon offsets project.
40 STAFF IN EIGHT COUNTRIES
32 PARTNERSHIPS
2009
Forest Trends’ 10-year anniversary celebration
Vice President Al Gore gives the keynote address, remarking that “Forest Trends has become widely-regarded at the most comprehensive advocate and resource for anyone who wants to understand and help to further develop markets for ecosystem services.”
2010
Forest Trends partners with Acre, Brazil on a first for climate finance
We work closely with the State of Acre in Brazil to create the first jurisdictional REDD+ system in the world, the System for Incentives for Environmental Services (SISA). We also help craft the SISA Indigenous sub-program, which has generated more than $3 million in funding for the conservation of 2.4 million hectares of forests on indigenous peoples’ lands.
This effort is part of the reason why 88% of the forest cover in Acre remains intact.
2011
Water Initiative launches with local partners in six countries
Forest Trends builds a new coalition for scaling investments in nature-based solutions for water security. With a major grant from the Swiss Development Corporation, we incubate pilot projects in Peru, Bolivia, Mexico, China, Ghana, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Ethiopia.
2012
BBOP publishes first global Standard on Biodiversity Offsets
Developed in consultation over 90 public, private, and NGO collaborators, the BBOP Standard defines a set of principles for biodiversity mitigation that set a high standard for best practice, but are flexible enough to apply in contexts around the world.
Three months later, the European Parliament called for No Net Loss regulation using the BBOP Standard. The BBOP has since been recognized as international best practice in the International Finance Corporation (IFC)’s Performance Standards and Guidance Notes (now adopted by the 94 Equator banks), the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Safeguards, and by governments and companies around the world.
$9.0M ANNUAL BUDGET
2013
Incubator for Ecosystem Services launched with Peru’s Ministry of Environment
2013
Accelerating Inclusion and Mitigating Emissions Project
This five-year, $13 million program funded by USAID increased the participation of indigenous peoples and other traditional stewards of tropical forests in policies, markets, and finance linked to efforts to combat climate change.
2014
Forest Trends receives the MacArthur Foundation Award for Creative and Effective Institutions
2014
Forest Trends shows the link between commercial agriculture and illegal deforestation
Our Consumer Goods and Deforestation report is the first-ever comprehensive assessment of the extent of illegal deforestation worldwide, showing that half of all recent tropical deforestation is the result of illegal clearing for commercial agriculture. The study also finds that around half of this illegal destruction is driven by overseas demand for agricultural commodities including palm oil, beef, soy, and wood products.
2015
Partnership with IKEA Foundation
Forest Trends partners with the IKEA Foundation to create opportunities for indigenous youth and women of the Surui and Yawanawá tribes, improving livelihoods and supporting communities in defending their cultures and rights through the sustainable management of their forests.
2015
Supply Change Initiative launched
Our new transparency platform tracks 400+ companies representing $96.8 billion in “big four” commodity export values who have pledged to address deforestation in their supply chains.
Today, CEOs and senior management around the world depend on our data as a key input for risk management and tracking sustainability progress relative to their peers. Supply Change has provided guidance and data to major companies, lenders, and industry associations including the Consumer Goods Forum, the New York Declaration on Forests Global Platform, the International Finance Corporation, and TFA2020.
2015
Peru’s national water regulator announces $125M investment in green infrastructure
Peru makes history when its legislators include a short but groundbreaking paragraph in a new law to modernize the country’s sanitation sector. The new provision – directly influenced by Forest Trends’ recent work in Peru – says that water utilities should invest in healthy ecosystems, not just engineered infrastructure.
Photo credit: Ana Castañeda.
2016
Forest Trends analysts track $8.2B in private investments in conservation
Our Ecosystem Marketplace initiative publishes the State of Private Investment in Conservation, benchmarking the burgeoning field of environmental impact investments.
2016
Cumari “Rainforest to Table” sustainable gastronomy network for the Amazon launched
We saw Latin America gaining acclaim for its world-class culinary scene based on regional ingredients, and we thought: this can be an engine for protecting the Amazon’s incredible diversity.
2017
Illegal timber exports from Laos plummet after our assessment
Our data on trade flows in illegal timber influences a ban on unprocessed wood exports from Laos, resulting in a steep drop in illegal trade.
2017
Stewards of the Forest film premieres at the Rockefeller Foundation
Stewards of the Forest film premieres during Climate Week at the Rockefeller Foundation, highlighting our work supporting indigenous peoples in crafting Life Plans for their communities.
2018
USAID and Government of Canada commit $27.5M for natural infrastructure in Peru
USAID and the Government of Canada back the five-year Natural Infrastructure for Water Security project for Peru, scaling up nature-based solutions for water security and climate adaptation. Forest Trends leads the consortium, together with CONDESAN, the Peruvian Environmental Law Society (SPDA), EcoDecisión, and experts from Imperial College London.
Photo credit: Mauricio Nuñez Oporto.
2018
World’s first accelerator for nature-based startups
Our Ecosystem Marketplace is a partner in the world’s first acceleration program for nature-based startups, tapping 250+ applications, 49 different countries, 8 innovative startups, and $250k seed investment.
2018
Governors’ Forest and Climate Task Force endorses Principles of Collaboration with indigenous peoples
With our partners, we helped create a formal platform for indigenous participation in the Governors’ Climate and Forests Task Force and shaped California’s Tropical Forest Standard, which sets the stage to integrate tropical forests into the state’s cap-and-trade program.
Photo credit: Joe McHugh
We continue to champion indigenous and community leaders, to ensure they’re at the table for high-level climate policy discussions.
2019
Environmental peace-building in Myanmar
We publish new analyses showing how loopholes in Myanmar’s forest sector are likely driving illegal logging and costing the government millions in revenue, and how failure to address natural resources threatens to derail Myanmar’s fragile peace process. Forest Trends’ work in Myanmar is pioneering the new field of “environmental peacebuilding,” helping countries prevent illegal deforestation during post-conflict transitions.
2020
Partnership with Arbor Day Foundation launched
Forest Trends partners with the Arbor Day Foundation to work directly with indigenous communities in the Brazilian Amazon to plant one million trees in nine indigenous territories using agroforestry techniques.
This is part of a continuous effort to strengthen indigenous livelihoods.
2020
Responding to the COVID-19 indigenous crisis
We adjust our work in the Amazon to respond to the needs of our indigenous partners during the COVID-19 pandemic, distributing food and supplies, disseminating key information, including a COVID-19 prevention leaflet in Portuguese and Spanish, and increasing access to emergency relief funds.
2020
Green Gigaton Challenge launched
Launched at London Climate Action Week 2020, the Green Gigaton Challenge is a global effort to catalyze high integrity jurisdictional REDD+ credits to transact one gigaton of high-quality emissions reductions from forests by 2025 and annually thereafter.
2021
Inauguration of the Carampoma restoration project
On World Water Day 2021, a ceremony organized by SEDAPAL broke ground on a pioneering ecosystem services project to restore the Milloc micro-basin, in the Community of Santiago de Carampoma, Peru.
The investment totals around 3 million soles (~ 850,000 USD), of which 1/3 will go towards generating local jobs, benefiting the people who live around these fragile ecosystems.
2021
New insights into the extent of illegal agro-conversion
We release a new study as follow up to our 2014 report, Consumer Goods and Deforestation, on the extent of illegal agro-conversion across the tropics from 2013 to 2019. We find that illegal deforestation is running rampant: almost 2/3 of tropical forest loss comes from commercial agriculture, and at least 69% of this loss was illegal.
2021
Voluntary carbon markets to break $1B for the first time
Ecosystem Marketplace’s State of Voluntary Carbon Markets report shows that only eight months into the year, voluntary carbon markets posted a near-60% increase in value from 2020, driven by corporate net-zero ambition and growing interest in carbon markets to achieve the Paris Agreement’s global climate goals.
2021
People’s Forest Partnership launched
The People’s Forest Partnership is launched at COP26 in Glasgow with Forest Trends as acting secretariat. The PFP is designed by and for indigenous and local peoples and seeks to mobilize $20 billion per year by 2030 in direct investment in community-driven forest conservation and restoration projects that are equitable, accessible, and culturally appropriate.
2022
Territorial Governance Facility launched
The Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLC) Territorial Governance Facility launches with a Co-design Workshop in Panama City, Panama with indigenous leaders.
The Facility will provide culturally appropriate support with technical and financial follow up to IPLCs from the Amazon and Mesoamerica looking to strengthen territorial governance and engage in climate and conservation finance projects.
2022
Milestone in Moyobamba
We celebrate World Environment Day 2022 in Moyobamba, Peru with local leaders, planting native trees as part of a reforestation initiative to protect local water supplies.
Moyobamba is where our work in Peru started in the early 2000s, and it is the program that has inspired similar initiatives in 43 other Peruvian watersheds to date.