'An important and timely book' from the Foreword by Stanley Johnson'A complete and absorbing history of a decade of intense international politics,offers many insights for future negotiators of sustainable solutions' Stephen Bass, International Institute for Environment and Development'Skillfully navigates the jungle of forest politics, leaving us in no doubt that the verbal commitment to save the world's forests has yet to be translated into action on the ground. The way forward must clearly lie in political commitments and international cooperation if forests are to continue to preserve life on Earth' Francis Sullivan, World Wide Fund for NatureGlobal deforestation and its attendant processes - including soil degradation, climate change and the loss of biological diversity - emerged as international political issues during the 1980s, prompting politicians to seek consensus on programmes and policies for the conservation and sustainable management of forests. Yet global initiatives have been bedevilled by tensions between the North and South and between governments, industry, local communities and indigenous peoples. Meanwhile, rates of deforestation in the tropics are increasing, and international political efforts are demonstrably failing. Forest Politics carefully traces the evolution of international cooperation on forests, from the inception of the controversial International Tropical Timber Organization and the failed Tropical Forestry Action Programme in the mid-1980s, to the creation of the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests in the mid-1990s. The book also provides a detailed analysis of the negotiating stances of the parties involved in the divisive negotiations that rook place prior to the 1992 'Earth Summit' in Rio de Janeiro and the equally factious negotiations for the International Tropical Timber Agreement of 1994. It provides a fascinating insight into the nature of such processes, illustrating the difficulties that arise when concepts such as 'global commons' come into conflict with national sovereignty. Complete with annexes of important political documents, and making extensive use of primary source material and interviews with participants. Forest Politics presents case studies of all the major forest negotiations over the last 13 years. It is an essential reference point for policy makers, environmental campaigners and students, and required reading for all those who care about the future of the world's forests. David Humphreys is Research Fellow in Global Environmental Change at the Open University. Originally published in 1996

List of Figures, Tables and BoxesAcknowledgementsForeword by Stanley JohnsonIntroduction1 Deforestation as a Global Political IssueThe Political Complexity of DeforestationB The Causes of DeforestationB The Effects of DeforestationB The Emergence of Forest Conservation as an International Political IssueB The Forest Conservation Problematic2 The Tropical Forestry Action ProgrammeThe Origins of the TFAPThe Organizational Structure of the TFAP at the International LevelB The Formulation and Evolution of a National Forestry Action ProgrammeW The 1990 Legitimacy CrisisThe TFAP Restructuring Process3 The International Tropical Timber OrganizationInternational Tropical Timber Agreement, 1983The Institutional Structure of the ITTOThe Financing of the ITTOThe History of the ITTOB The International Relations of the ITTO4 The Forest Negotiations of the UNCED ProcessProposals for a Global Forests InstrumentThe Draft Global Forests Convention of the FAOUNCED: an IntroductionExplaining North-South Disagreement During the UNCED Forest NegotiationsPrepCom 1, Nairobi, 6-31 Augilst 1990PrepCom 2, Geneva, 18 March-5 April 1991PrepCom 3, Geneva, 12 August4 September 1991Environmental Diplomacy between PrepComs 3 and 4: Abidjan and CaracasPrepCom 4, New York, 2 March-3 April 1992Second Ministerial Meeting of Developing Countries, Kuala Lumpur, April 1992UNCED, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992ConclusionsThe Negotiation of the International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1994The Preparatory ProcessFirst Part of Conference, Geneva, 13-16 April 1993Environmental Diplomacy between the First and Second Parts of the ConferenceSecond Part of Conference, Geneva, 21-25 June 1993Environmental Diplomacy between the Second and Third Parts of the ConferenceThird Part of Conference, Geneva, 4-15 October 1993Fourth Part of Conference, Geneva, 10-26 January 1994The North's Demand for a Global Forests ConventionAn Analysis of the International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1994Concluding RemarksThe Global Politics of Forest Conservation Since the UNCEDConfidence-building InitiativesThe Criteria and Indicators ProcessesThe Third Session of the CSD: Creation of the Intergovernmental Panel on ForestsThe World Commission on Forests and Sustainable DevelopmentProspects for the FutureConclusionsThe Continuing Demand from the North for a Global Forests ConventionExplaining North-South Disagreement in Global Forest PoliticsContentsThe Forest Conservation ProblematicConclusionsNotesAnnex A: Possible Main Elements of an Instrument (Convention, Agreement, Protocol, Charter) for the Conservation and Development of the World's ForestsAnnex B: Non-legally Binding Authoritative Statement of Principles for a Global Consensus on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable Development of all Types of ForestsAnnex C: International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1994Annex D: Draft text for a Convention for the Conservation and Wise Use of ForestsRecommended Further ReadingAcronymsIndex