JAPAN - The G7 Ministers responsible for Climate, Energy and the Environment have agreed to accelerate the transition to sustainable supply chains that decouple trade and agricultural production from deforestation and forest degradation and to promote sustainably produced wood and wood products, including through ITTO (International Tropical Timber Organization), according to a joint communiqué released on 27 May 2022 in Berlin.

The G7, or Group of Seven, is a high-level intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America.

In the communiqué, the ministers expressed “deep concern regarding the triple global crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, recognising that these challenges are inextricably interlinked and mutually reinforcing, and that they are driven largely by human activity and by unsustainable patterns of consumption and production”.

Among other things, the ministers committed to supporting a transition to supply chains that are environmentally sustainable, net-zero-aligned and climate-resilient, reduce pollution, decouple agricultural production from forest loss and land degradation, use resources sustainably, reduce product environmental impact, foster a circular economy, and are nature-positive.

According to the communiqué, one way they will do this is by promoting sustainable forest management and sustainably produced wood and wood products, including through ITTO.