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Commonwealth NGOs
related to forestry | | |
 Tropical Re-Leaf Foundation
HQ address: P.O. Box 4424
St. Ann's,
Port of Spain
Trinidad and Tobago
Email: eashand@fiberline.tt
Website: http://members.tripod.com/~EMPAL_2/trf.html
Region: Americas
Type of Organisation: NGO,
Interest in Forestry: central
Description:
The principal object of the Foundation is to promote, foster and manage and implement the growing of
trees in all tropical countries, and specifically in Latin America and the Caribbean. This object
arose from the need to rehabilitate all tropical forests in view of the rapid rate of deforestation
that had captured the attention of world leaders at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The
Foundation was represented at this Summit by its current President, Mr. Eden Shand, an experienced tropical
forester, who participated in the Summit negotiations on the Statement of Forest
Principles.
As a result of the Foundation’s exposure to the international community, it became the focal point in
Trinidad and Tobago of the prestigious Earth Council, headed by the former Secretary General of
the Earth Summit. The Foundation was contracted by this international NGO to promote in Trinidad and
Tobago its Earth Charter Campaign and its National Council for Sustainable Development
initiative. As a result of the advocacy work of the Foundation these two initiatives have now found
favour in Trinidad and Tobago. The Earth Charter has now been formally adopted by the
Environment sub-committee of the Multisectoral Group preparing the Vision 2020 Strategic Development
Plan. The formation of a National Council for Sustainable Development is now part of the
official National Environmental Policy. The sustainable development work of the Foundation has been
recognised by the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) who contracted the Foundation
to prepare the National Assessment Report for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg
in 2002.
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