Chainsaws & Tree Huggers in the Land of Fairy Tales

WWF and IKEA are marrying commerce and conservation in Maramureș, Romania, and helping protect some of Europe’s last remaining old growth forests.

Relentlessly promoting responsible forest management is central to WWF’s approach, not just in Romania but across the whole Carpathian region. And with a strapline of ‘Forests For All Forever’, FSC certification has been a key tool, helping ensure forest companies meet high social and environmental standards.

When WWF began to promote voluntary uptake of FSC certification in Romania, Radu knew that without market demand for sustainability, it would not fly. IKEA’s role has been crucial. Its ambitious commitment to obtaining all timber from more sustainable sources (FSC certified or recycled) by 2020 has driven uptake of FSC globally. And in Romania, where IKEA has already met the target, it’s shaped both conservation and forestry practice in a country from which the retailer sources 5 per cent of all its timber.

“In partnership with IKEA, we’ve been able to show forest managers and suppliers the value of certification,” says Radu Vlad, Forest & Regional Project Co-ordinator for WWF’s Danube-Carpathian Programme.