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- Purpose of this website
- How to use this website?
- Why do I enter a username?
- What is the comment box for?
- Tembec’s assessment of High Conservation Value Attributes (HCVA)
- Forest Stewardship Council Forestry Certification
A web-tour is set up like a slide show that allows the user to move easily from one slide to the next, and uses images and maps to illustrate information,as well as the option to read text. There are a growing number of web-tours on the Internet, including forest-related tours.
Here are a few examples of what else is out there:
Canadian Forest Products
Association of Canada
www.fpac.ca/english/wood/tours.htm
Forest Learn
www.forestlearn.org
Purpose of this website
There are a number
of purposes of this website:
1) to provide a useful meeting preparation tool for Tembec SFMAC members
2) to inform members of the Tembec SFMAC about high value conservation
areas (HCVAs)
3) to conduct research into the potential of websites like this one to
assist advisory committee members with meeting preparation and learning
4) to understand what is involved in the development of a website like
this one
To learn more about this research project, see Carissa’s research.
How to use this website
1) Obtain a username from Carissa. Contact Carissa by phone (204) 668-1583 or by email (info@borealbuzz.com) and she will give you a username.
2) Click on “start tour here” or select from the pictures at the bottom of the screen. A short text appears to the right telling you the topic of that slide.
You are asked to enter a username so that Carissa can ensure that the users are members of the Tembec SFMAC. It will also help Carissa track how many members of the SFMAC used the website, how long they were on the website and what links they used. The login information is completely confidential.
The comment box is a change for you to enter your thoughts about the information presented in the tour or you thoughts on the website and HCVA tour. At this time, all comments will go directly to Carissa for her research and will be confidential.
Tembec’s Assessment of High Conservation Value Areas (HCVA)
An assessment of high conservation value areas in Tembec’s Forest Management Licence area (FML1) is required for Tembec to become certified through the Forest Stewardship Council.
There are four steps Tembec must follow relating to high conservation value areas. These include:
1. Identify attributes (landscapes, sites, animals species) that are important at international, national, regional and site specific levels;
2. Assess the FML01 for the presence of the attributes;
3. Develop objectives and strategies to manage the attributes that have been identified;
4. Monitor the attributes.
Tembec must also consult with regional stakeholders regarding the attributes found and potential management strategies for those attributes.
High conservation
value forests have the following attributes:
· areas of significant biodiversity on a global, regional or national
scale
· large forest areas where naturally occurring species exist in
natural patterns of abundance and distribution
· forest areas that are in or contain species of special concern,
threatened or endangered ecosystems
· forest areas that provide basic services of nature in critical
situations
· forest areas that meet fundamental needs of local communities
As you may have noticed, the HCVA tour includes information for each of these attributes.
To learn more about Tembec, visit www.tembec.com
Forest Stewardship Council Forestry Certification
The Forest Stewardship Council is an international non-profit organization founded in 1993 to support environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests.
Representatives include environmental and social groups, the timber trade and forestry profession, indigenous people’s organizations, community forestry groups and forest product certifications organizations from around the world
FSC accredits certifiers to assess operations against FSC Principles and Criteria for Forest Stewardship. When forest operators meet the standard, they may use the FSC logo, which allows consumers to choose end-products that come from forests managed according to FSC standards.
For more information on the Forest Stewardship Council, visit www.fsccanada.org.
Carissa’s research project
This website is part of a research project Carissa is conducting on public participation in forest management. She is enrolled in a graduate program at the Natural Resources Institute, at the University of Manitoba and her advisory is Dr. John Sinclair. Her project is funded by the Sustainable Forest Management Network.
Carissa is researching whether a tool like this website helps enhance public input into forest management. The Sustainable Forest Management Advisory Committee of Tembec was selected for testing this website because research previously conducted with the group. The research indicated that advisory committees like this one are often asked to read documents in preparation for meetings that are long and sometimes complex. This website is meant to make it easier for advisory committee members to gain the information they need to fully participate at SFMAC meetings.
To learn about
the Natural Resources Institute, visit
www.umanitoba.ca/institutes/natural_resources/
To learn about
the Sustainable Forest Management Network, visit
sfm-1.biology.ualberta.ca/english/home/
How Can SFMAC members contribute to this research?
SFMAC members can
contribute to this research by doing the following:
· View the website and HCVA tour
· Complete the electronic survey at the end of the tour
· Attend the SFMAC meeting on HCVAs
· Participate in an interview after the HCVA meeting
It is completely optional for SFMAC members to participate in this research.
The survey is an opportunity for members to give their feedback on the tour.It is a very important part of Carissa’s research and will allow Carissa to make the tour better the next time. The survey is completely anonymous and should only be taken once.