Boreal Forest Conservation Framework

Summary of the Framework

The Boreal Forest Conservation Framework reflects the collective wisdom of the Boreal Leadership Council and is based on the best currently available information. The Canadian Boreal Initiative (CBI) works with Boreal Leadership Council members to expand Framework endorsements in a variety of sectors; generate on-the-ground examples of the Framework principles in action; and create opportunities for governments to become engaged and active participants. CBI also commissions science-based research to refine the necessary levels of protection and other activities required to implement this vision.

Context

Canada 's Boreal Forest contains one-quarter of the world's remaining original forests. The largest intact forest ecosystem left on Earth, Canada's Boreal is home to a rich array of wildlife including migratory songbirds, waterfowl, bears, wolves and some of the world's largest woodland caribou herds. The Boreal's natural wealth sustains many of Canada's First Nations communities, who have lived in harmony with the Boreal for thousands of years. It also supports thousands of jobs and contributes billions to the Canadian economy.

Vision

The Boreal Forest Conservation Framework is based on a shared vision to sustain the ecological and cultural integrity of the Canadian Boreal in perpetuity.

Goal

The Framework's goal is to conserve the cultural, sustainable economic and natural values of Canada's Boreal by employing the principles of conservation biology to:

• protect at least half of the region in a network of large interconnected protected areas, and
• support sustainable communities, world-leading ecosystem-based resource management practices and state-of-the-art stewardship practices in the remaining landscape.

The Framework represents a national vision and goal for the region as a whole, rather than a formula to be applied on a unit-by-unit basis in a particular part of the Boreal. In promoting a conservation approach for the entire Boreal, the Framework recognizes that conservation challenges and opportunities will vary.

Principles

The principles of the Boreal Forest Conservation Framework include:

• Maintain ecological processes which account for the overall health of the Boreal Forest across the full spectrum of human uses;
• Ensure sustainable economic benefits to Northern communities and the viability of commercial interests;
• Respect the lands, rights and ways of life of Aboriginal peoples and First Nations;
• Achieve optimal, additional, environmental and social benefit from the least raw material supply, cost, and workforce adjustment impact;
• Utilize scientific knowledge, traditional knowledge, and local perspectives to achieve the conservation of natural and cultural values.

Commitments

The partners of the Boreal Forest Conservation Framework are committed to supporting the Framework through a range of both individual and collaborative actions. These actions include but are not limited to support for and participation in:

• scientific and traditional ecological knowledge research
• land use planning
• protected areas designations
• innovative policy development supporting Framework principles
• economic incentives for sustainability in the Boreal region