Welcome to our annual report to members on FPAC’s activities and outcomes in 2022.
As I look back on the past year, I am impressed by the growing awareness of forestry in Canada and around the world as it relates to its ability to address urgent environmental, social, and economic challenges. There is much to be optimistic about, but as we stare down a likely recession in 2023, more needs to be done to enable the potential of our sector and its people.
While we have seen notable progress in the federal government’s recognition of how forestry can help power a green post-pandemic recovery, elements of the federal approach to sector decarbonization and regulation still have room for improvement.
Countries like Finland and Sweden have embraced their forest sectors’ full value chain solutions with clear, sector-specific plans to achieve climate goals and create economic benefits for their people. It’s pretty impressive what the Finns and Swedes are doing in sustainable forest management, mass timber construction, district heating projects powered by woody biomass, and in growing the broader forest bioeconomy to displace more fossil-fuel intensive products.
The United States has made its own game-changing moves including the launch of a juicy ‘carrot’ approach to lowering carbon emissions and improving the investment climate with over $430 billion in tax incentives as part of its recently passed Inflation Reduction Act. The Americans followed that up in late December with a $1.7 trillion appropriations bill which declared forest bioenergy as ‘carbon neutral’ and called on US federal agencies to ‘establish clear and simple policies’ to use forest biomass to grow its renewable energy capacity.
We need the Canadian government to move quickly with its own response to support forestry workers and communities and improve our sector’s competitiveness position in North America and around the world. Part of this response must include a sector-specific approach to accelerating innovation and decarbonization and smarter regulation. It also must consider unique decarbonization solutions for our mills in more rural and remote areas where there is limited (if any) access to lower-carbon fuels.
I’m proud of the progress we made this year, and our team is ready to hit the ground running in 2023 to address the remaining policy and regulatory barriers that are holding us back.
In addition to our heavy government relations agenda, 2022 presented FPAC with an opportunity to raise public awareness around Canadian forestry through our #ForestryForTheFuture communications initiative. I’m happy to report that support for the sector in Canada is strong and its growing. I hope you will find the update on those efforts to be of interest. We look forward to expanding the reach of this work in the weeks and months ahead.
To the elected officials, political staff, and public servants who take our calls and spend so much time with us – thank you for your engagement.
To our members, volunteers, and Indigenous, environmental, municipal, and labour partners - thank you for standing with us again this year. We enjoy working with you.
It is a privilege for our team at FPAC to be the voice of Canada’s forests sector workers and communities.
While 2022 will be remembered as the year we started to turn the corner on the COVID-19 pandemic, for FPAC and Canada’s forest sector it was a year of national and international recognition of the potential of Canadian forestry.
The climate and biodiversity solutions that the forest sector brings were put into plain sight in two important plans launched this year by the Government of Canada – the Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) and the National Adaptation Strategy (NAS).
FPAC’s thought leadership work and engagement on the ground in Ottawa has been key to Canadian forestry’s ability to ensure our contributions are understood and recognized by federal decision-makers and community partners.
While more needs to be done to address growing competitiveness concerns, FPAC has laid the groundwork for us to accelerate sector innovation and decarbonization in 2023 and beyond.
FPAC’s leadership has also been evident on the international stage, where recognition of Canada’s sustainable and climate smart approach to forest management continues to lead the way.
In May, we were proud to see FPAC President and CEO Derek Nighbor appointed by his global peers to serve as a liaison to the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF).
In September, as part of the Government of Canada’s official delegation to the COP27 global climate summit in Egypt, we shared our “Capturing Carbon” documentary with an international audience and were part of the launch of a global report outlining how governments around the world are turning to the benefits of climate smart forestry and the forest bioeconomy to advance climate action and sustainable and inclusive economic development. (You can access the Dalberg report here.)
In December, at the COP15 global biodiversity summit in Montreal, FPAC launched a new report identifying the link between Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) in Canada and the progress being made on biodiversity goals, Indigenous-led forest management, and net-zero carbon targets. Conservation Forestry – Careful Use of Canada’s Forest Resources also provides insights on Canada’s world-leading regulatory frameworks, the growing impacts of fires on forest health, and the commitment of Canadian forestry workers to supporting the birds, mammals, and fish that call Canada’s forests home.
I would like to thank the FPAC Board of Directors, members, and the FPAC team in Ottawa and across the country for your dedicated efforts again this year to improve opportunities and outcomes for forestry workers and communities across the country.
Canadian forestry is fortunate to have a number of strong supporters among MPs and Senators in Ottawa.
The Honourable Jim Carr, who was elected three times to be the voice of the people of Winnipeg South Centre, served as Canada’s Natural Resources Minister from 2015-2018.
He was one of the best.
Minister Carr lost his courageous battle with cancer on December 12, 2022. Our thoughts remain with his wife Colleen, his family, and his staff and many friends. He was an incredible champion of Canadian forestry during his time in office and was always quick to reach out to FPAC to see how he could help. Forestry workers and their families were always top of mind for him.
In 2017, Minister Carr oversaw the implementation of an $867 million package in a strong and appropriate response to the most recent round of the Canada-US softwood lumber dispute.
Carr would regularly say on stages across the country “there is no path to a net-zero carbon economy without Canada’s forest sector and Canadian forest products”.
He would also talk with pride in Canada and around the world about forestry’s contributions to sustainability, climate action, biodiversity conservation, reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, and its importance to economic opportunity for families and communities in the north.
In 2019, for his many efforts, FPAC recognized Minister Carr as a Forest Community Champion at our Awards of Excellence Luncheon in Vancouver.
We are so grateful for the time we spent with Jim Carr and for the kindness and care he always showed us. We are going to miss him terribly.
Rest in Peace, Jim.
FPAC and its members worked diligently in 2022 to ensure Canadian forest products continued to flow to market while furthering the advancement of future-ready infrastructure, the reliability of freight rail service, and the development of the labour force of tomorrow.
At a time of changing climate patterns, economic fluctuations, and rapidly shifting trade rules, FPAC has been a leading voice in the push for more robust and reliable trade infrastructure to meet increasing global demand for forest products, keep Canadian workers working, and improve economic conditions in rural and northern communities. These efforts ranged from advocacy for a more efficient, reliable, and cost-effective Canadian transportation system to proactive engagement with key officials to inform legislators in Canada and abroad of the sustainable forest management that underpins Canadian forest product manufacturing.
FPAC has also supported our members in their efforts to pursue greater equity and inclusion within the forest sector workforce for women, Indigenous peoples, youth, and new Canadians. Directly employing over 205,000 people from coast-to-coast, Canada’s forest sector is a key driver of prosperity in hundreds of rural, mid-sized, and urban forest-reliant communities. Part of growing a green economy is growing an inclusive economy, one that not only values sustainability – but also diversity and opportunity, ensuring all Canadians are able to grow in forestry.
FPAC made great strides this year to help secure a more productive, efficient, and economically successful future for the forest products sector and our trade, transportation, infrastructure, and labour partners. And by focusing on these priorities, we can continue to leverage the broad economic benefits of the forest sector to support workers, communities, and Canada’s path to a net-zero carbon economy.
Facing coordinated efforts from south of the border to undermine Canadian forestry through discriminatory procurement bills in New York and California, and an Executive Order in Colorado, FPAC worked with federal and provincial government leaders, and Indigenous, labour, and municipal partners to speak to the facts about forest management in Canada and its critical role in our move to a net zero carbon economy. In addition to mobilizing a coalition of national and international partners to meet and discuss the sector’s credentials with state legislators and civil servants across the United States, FPAC engaged directly with the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to emphasize the essential nature of Canadian wood products to American infrastructure and housing objectives.
FPAC participated in Transport Minister Omar Alghabra’s National Supply Chain Summit in January. FPAC’s Vice President of International Trade, Transportation, HR, and Corporate Secretary Joel Neuheimer represented the forest sector and played an active role in the summit, focusing on short and long-term solutions to address Canada’s underperforming transportation system – from addressing rail system delays and rail car no-shows, truck driver shortages (and the root problems driving these shortages) and how we can tackle broader systemic challenges.
A leading participant in the National Supply Chain Task Force consultation process, FPAC engaged decisionmakers at local, regional, and national levels over the course of 2022 in pursuit of a more reliable and cost-effective transportation supply chain for Canadian forest product shippers. This included a letter to the Minister of Transport and a full series of recommendations issued to the federal government’s National Supply Chain Task Force in July. Moving beyond information gathering and consultation – the Act. Collaboration. Transformation. Final Report of the National Supply Chain Task Force 2022 published in October captured FPAC’s recommendations, and we welcomed the federal government’s commitment in the 2022 Fall Economic Statement to implement each one.
Following more than two years of FPAC consultation and advocacy, amendments to the Transportation Information Regulations were finalized by Transport Canada and will come into force as of April 2023. FPAC saw many of its central recommendations adopted by Transport Canada in the final regulatory proposal, and expects new data published via this regulation to offer members greater insight into the congestion/fluidity of the freight rail network and provide a strong foundation for productive discussions with federal departments and service providers around supply chain performance.
Collaborating across all levels of government to address disruptions in Canada’s labour market landscape, FPAC was pleased to see its advocacy on the expansion of the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program reflected in a 2022 Federal Budget item – Improving the Temporary Foreign Worker Program – which allocated $29.3 million to introduce a Trusted Employer Model that reduces red tape for repeat employers who meet highest standards, expanded access to the program for wood product manufacturing facilities, and injected $64.6 million to increase application processing capacity to meet the labour market needs of today.
As part of our ongoing supply chain work, FPAC advocated to help address truck driver shortage across Canada to help ease Long-Haul Truck Driver Shortage. In November, the implementation of National Occupational Classification (NOC) for immigration programs managed under the Express Entry system was announced, a change will tremendously help secure supply chains as trucking companies will now have access to an international workforce.
As a trusted Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) partner, FPAC continues to help promote opportunities available in the skilled trades – helping to raise awareness and fill the estimated 256,000 new apprenticeships that will be needed over the next five years to meet the growing demand in Canada, keep our country running, and help our communities thrive.
FPAC’s Kate Lindsay and Mahima Sharma presented their perspectives on forest values, sector sustainability, career pathways and celebrating #WomenInScience at the Ontario Strength in Biodiversity conference in February. The conference united hundreds of passionate forest sector experts, students, and professionals to explore key issues and the value of forests to our health and our communities. FPAC bolstered our presence with a virtual giveaway, our ForestPods, to help increase visibility and engagement with conference attendees.
On May 3, FPAC hosted its first-ever Breakfast in the Forest event at the Rideau Club in Ottawa to engage young policy minds and future leaders on the future of forestry in Canada. The event featured a presentation from Dr. David Coletto who discussed polling data on Canadian attitudes about forestry. This was followed by a robust Q&A session, helping to grow and cultivate sector familiarity and support.
In 2022, FPAC built on the success of its Green Dream Internship Program — an initiative that provides a stipend to support 15 forest sector interns as they develop digital content that showcases their work experiences in Canada’s forests and mills over the course of the summer. In total, FPAC received over 75 pieces of content from the group, including blogs, images, and videos collected this year. The program generated a number of media stories with a combined reach of over 1M – covered primarily in regional Canadian outlets. These materials were shared throughout the year to give prospective employees a sense of what it means to work within the forest sector.
Canada’s forests have a critical role to play in our collective fight against climate change. But how we manage them matters. During a year which brought together governments, businesses, and environmental leaders from across the globe to pursue global climate action – FPAC and its member companies took proactive steps to ensure policymakers, investors, and public audiences were aware of the many opportunities that sustainable forest management and Canadian forest products offer in the fight against climate change and its impacts.
Today, by virtue of Canada’s commitment to responsible forest management and sustainability, we stand number one in the world with 36% of the planet’s independently audited and certified forests.
This is one of the many reasons customers of wood, pulp, paper, and wood-based bioproducts from around the world are increasingly looking to Canada. In the next few years, we have an opportunity to advance even more practical opportunities to leverage the power of climate smart forestry and forest products to absorb and store vast amounts of carbon, work with communities to help address increasing wildfires, floods, and pest disturbances, and create thousands of green jobs while doing it.
Whether its reducing emissions, ensuring Canada’s forests retain their carbon capture potential, growing our green economy, or providing environmentally-friendly alternatives to the products Canadians use every day – Canada’s forest sector will be there to do its part and help shape a greener, net-zero future for Canadians.
Through Sustainable Forest Management, the forest sector implements conservation measures across Canada, from wetland conservation to long-term monitoring for bird populations. FPAC members recognize the importance of contributing to biodiversity conservation on the ground.
FPAC remains an active and engaged voice in finding solutions to address the growing risk of wildland fires in Canada. On February 10, the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers (CCFM) launched the Canadian Dialogue on Wildfire and Forest Resilience to support the development of a pan-Canadian Wildland Fire Prevention and Mitigation Strategy. FPAC’s Senior Vice-President and Chief Sustainability Officer Kate Lindsay attended the formal launch of the national discussion and was pleased to participate as a panelist, showcasing forestry as an active and engaged voice in finding solutions to address the growing risk of wildland fires in Canada.
Canadian forestry solutions featured in Policy Magazine. A joint opinion piece – Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Forestry Solutions for Canada’s Climate Targets – authored by Derek Nighbor and Kate Lindsay was published in Policy Magazine’s Climate Change & Clean Energy issue as a New Year's piece. The piece was well-received by the publication’s primary audience comprising of federal decision-makers and the Ottawa precinct at large.
Building on its momentum, FPAC was pleased to play an active role in Policy Magazine’s Working Lunch at the Rideau Club on March 2 – where FPAC’s Senior Vice-President Kate Lindsay participated in a panel discussion alongside other magazine contributors.
FPAC's President and CEO Derek Nighbor was elected to serve as liaison to the United Nations Forum on Forests in May. The appointment was made at the World Forestry Congress (WFC) in Seoul, South Korea as part of a new partnership between the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) and the International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) to help advance forestry solutions and forest policy dialogue around the world. The new partnership will make ICFPA the focal point of the forest sector globally – providing a framework for organizations to work together to discuss and implement forest-related policies and agreements that are good for people and the planet. FPAC’s Derek Nighbor was selected by his international colleagues to serve as the liaison between the 18 ICFPA member organizations around the world and the UNFF, providing a significant opportunity to bring Canadian innovation, experience, and know-how to the global policy table.
From March 29-31, FPAC promoted forestry as an essential partner in getting to net-zero carbon emissions during Globe Forum 2022 in Vancouver. In addition to hosting a session to promote mass timber’s role in getting Canada to net-zero, FPAC leadership participated in Climate Proof Canada’s roundtable discussion on national adaptation strategies, with Ministers’ Guilbeault and Wilkinson.
FPAC attended a field tour to help recognize the work of the Forest Management Wetland Stewardship Initiative (FMWSI) alongside representatives from Ducks Unlimited Canada, Weyerhaeuser, and Canfor in Grande Prairie on June 16. FPAC worked to gather footage and conduct interviews to help showcase the exchange of knowledge and resources being facilitated through the FMWSI program that are key to advancing sustainable forest management and helping achieve conservation goals in the Boreal. A series of videos highlighting the work of the program is set to be released in early 2023.
FPAC’s Senior Vice-President and Chief Sustainability Officer Kate Lindsay joined the Canadian Delegation to participate in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt in November. This provided an opportunity for FPAC to showcase our Forestry For The Future Capturing Carbon documentary to an international audience. Canada’s Ambassador for Climate Change, Catherine Stewart, joined FPAC to introduce the film alongside Mokwateh Consulting Principal JP Gladu and BC Council of Forest Industries’ (COFI) Sabrina Spencer who participated in a post-documentary Q&A session. COP27 activities also included a well-attended session with Canada’s Net-Zero Advisory Board – where Kate Lindsay was asked to appear as a panelist.
FPAC was also an active participant in the 2022 Montreal Biodiversity Conference (COP15) where Senior Vice-President and Chief Sustainability Officer Kate Lindsay participated as a panelist to discuss OECMs and IPCAs within managed forests in Canada alongside partners at SFI, Natural Resources Canada, Environment Canada, and Miawpukek First Nation. In addition, Kate joined the Transformative collaborations for a nature and climate-positive economy event being organized by Nature United. These conversations were preceded by an FPAC-hosted pre-COP15 virtual event on November 30 – titled A Conversation about Conservation – which helped jumpstart the discussion around forestry’s essential role in helping Canada meet its conservation of biodiversity goals.
In December, FPAC released a national report on biodiversity conservation - Conservation Forestry – Careful Use of Canada’s Forest Resources. The report includes updated information on the extent of conservation measures within the managed forest, as well as information on Indigenous-led forestry, the role of Protected Areas, Other Effective Conservation Measures (OECMs) and contributions to net-zero carbon.
FPAC’s Director of Forestry Etienne Belanger participated in the Bloc Québécois forum “Forêt et changements climatiques” held in Trois-Rivières, QC in April. Organized in partnership with Innofibre – a key player in the bioeconomy supporting innovation and diversification of biomass products by adapting pulp and paper technologies – the event was attended by the Bloc Québécois’ “Caucus Bois” – a group of MPs from nine Québec regions with major forest industry activities, as well as representatives from research, academia and industry spaces.
As National Forest Week was celebrated across the country in September, FPAC was proud to help recognize the dedicated professionals who work in Canada’s forest products sector and the academics, community leaders, Indigenous peoples, and partners who have made exceptional contributions to the forest sector and to forestry communities through our annual FPAC Awards of Excellence program.
As part of the celebrations, FPAC hosted a networking reception at the Metropolitan Brasserie in Ottawa designed to showcase forestry’s innovative potential – which was attended by 350 guests including government officials, sector partners, media, members and more.
When you buy Canadian forest products, you are helping support a low-carbon future by giving a second life to trees. And as Canada’s forest sector continues to promote clean growth and innovation at every level – from reducing emissions and generating energy at mill sites, to the development of cutting-edge bioproducts and re-use of by-products in new applications – FPAC has worked to ensure alignment between the sector and its partners in federal and provincial governments on matters of mutual interest.
In support of our member companies, we have continued to advocate for smart legislation, efficient regulations that support innovation across all segments of the business, and policies and funding programs that leverage and enhance the many economic and environmental benefits of forest products.
Emerging green industries turning wood chips, sawdust, and bark into value-added products like bioplastics and biofuels will not only create the green, family-supporting jobs the next generation of Canadians need but are poised to support our net-zero carbon future by reimagining the resources and products we use every day through a greener, cleaner lens. The forest products sector has a significant role to play in the development of bioproducts that replace less sustainable alternatives, and we are grateful to work in support of companies that uphold Canada’s status as a producer of first-class products with world-leading environmental credentials.
FPAC engaged on the federal Buy Clean and Build Clean Strategy. Throughout the year, FPAC was an active participant in the Build Clean Alliance which works to advance low-carbon procurement for buildings within federal government, alongside representatives from Cement, Steel, Aluminum, and Labour Workers. To better position and promote wood’s unique carbon-storage properties, FPAC participated in two days of government meetings with coalition members during November. In August, Canada’s Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson reached out directly to FPAC and the Canadian Wood Council (CWC) to seek input before the public launch of the Canada Green Buildings Strategy – which aims to reduce emissions by 37% from 2005 to 2030 to work towards a net-zero-emissions buildings sector by 2050. FPAC participated in a roundtable discussion with Minister Wilkinson and other stakeholders to discuss the strategy and continues to work with colleagues in advancing the forest sector’s role in reducing and storing carbon in mass timber buildings.
FPAC raised questions around the federal carbon revenue sharing plan following Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) release of the Proposed Frame for the Clean Electricity Regulation in July. FPAC worked closely with members to submit a response to ECCC and continues to advocate for a commitment from federal and provincial governments to enable the possible of our sector through smart regulation, effective carbon pricing and revenue recycling systems, and accessible innovation incentive programs. As a sector who has long been supportive of a carbon pricing system that advances climate action, strengthens Canadian competitiveness, and helps us to attract investment and create good-paying jobs, FPAC will continue to call for transparency, clear consideration of rural and northern Canadian realities, and our fair share.
FPAC presented at the Ontario Forest Industries Association (OFIA) Annual General Meeting in April to discuss opportunities for the forest sector with a focus on climate change. FPAC’s Director of Environment, Innovation and Mill Regulations Mahima Sharma provided an overview on the role of the forest products sector in helping Canada meet its climate targets and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. The presentation also covered the cumulative cost of carbon impacts of proposed environmental regulations coming down the pipeline, the need for government to launch accessible funding support programs to advance the forest-based bioeconomy, as well as the sector's involvement in Canada's National Adaptation Strategy which sets clear targets and performance measures for action that will better protect Canadians and Canadian jobs from climate-related threats like drought, pest outbreaks, wildfires, and floods.
FPAC’s Mahima Sharma was part of the Canadian delegation that visited Austria during the International Wood Construction Conference in Innsbruck. This included visits to various Austrian value-added wood products construction operations to learn, exchange ideas, and enhance partnerships between both countries. The delegation had the opportunity to see highly automated and digitized advanced cross-laminated timber, glued-laminated timber, and modular home construction operations. Canadian Ambassador Troy Lulashnyk hosted the delegation for a reception at his residence.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) continued to move at a slow rate on the modernization of the Pulp and Paper Effluent Regulations, due to not being in active consultation mode. Despite this, the PPER Coalition remained active, holding several meetings with ECCC to advance discussions on key aspects of the proposal pertaining to the Environmental Effects Monitoring (EEM) Program. In November, the entire coalition met with ECCC to discuss next steps on the path forward on PPER Modernization, and the need for more dialogue. FPAC and the PPER Coalition will be working to prepare several key submissions in early 2023 for ECCC’s consideration prior to restarting the formal consultation process.
FPAC launched the Chisholm Awards for Innovation in Forestry on the United Nations International Day of Forests (March 31) to recognize youth leadership and innovation in the forest sector. The inaugural national competition was designed for Canadian students and young researchers who are passionate about climate positive forestry and to provide them with an opportunity to showcase their consequential research to help Canada meet its net-zero goals. In advance of World Environment Day, FPAC was pleased to announce Anupama Saharan and Kudzanai Nyamayaro as winners of the program.
FPAC and its members recognize that Canada’s forests are uniquely important to Indigenous communities, and that they are a vital component of the cultural, spiritual, economic, and social relationships that Indigenous peoples have with the land. As a sector that employs approximately 11,600 Indigenous workers, we are one of the largest Indigenous employers in the country and work closely with nearly 1,400 Indigenous-owned forestry businesses including sawmills, silviculture businesses, and biomass energy facilities.
We are committed to facilitating greater Indigenous participation and supporting the creation of long-lasting relationships with Indigenous peoples – to build a thriving Canadian forest sector that provides significant opportunities to Indigenous-owned businesses and communities. Many First Nations and Métis communities hold generations of knowledge about the land and forests, giving them a deep understanding of how the forest evolves and how they can be managed in a way that is both environmentally and economically sustainable.
In 2022, we continued our efforts to increase the pace of economic reconciliation by developing and facilitating substantive opportunities and a seat at the economic table for Indigenous businesses and communities, widening the scope for Indigenous participation in the forest sector, and by providing education for management and staff on the history of Indigenous peoples – including the history and legacy of residential schools.
We commit to encouraging and exploring new partnerships and supply chain opportunities with Indigenous governments and businesses to help achieve economic parity and co-decision making. Already, joint ventures, contracting, cooperative agreements, and collaborative initiatives between Indigenous territories, communities, businesses and organizations and the forest sector are creating skilled and well-paying jobs. Expanding these opportunities range from more ownership of traditional infrastructure like sawmills to creating space in the innovative production and distribution of biofuels to access to pools of capital for investment in Indigenous projects and businesses.
In January, Indigenous Resource Network (IRN), a non-partisan platform for Indigenous workers and business owners involved in resource development, commissioned a poll by Environics Research to gauge Indigenous support for forestry and other resource development activities. FPAC partnered with the IRN to make this research possible and was pleased to host Robert Merasty and Heather Exner-Pirot from the IRN to present the poll results to FPAC members. The results show there is growing and strong Indigenous support for forestry.
In February, FPAC and Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) hosted a joint workshop for members to showcase CCAB offerings, programs and about the experience of CCAB members from the forest sector. The session featured opening remarks from Dr. Bob Phillips and provided FPAC members with insight on CCAB membership, Progressive Aboriginal Relations (PAR) and a Q&A timeslot for participants.
FPAC is a long-term partner the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) – an organization which delivers programs that facilitate the growth of Indigenous business, build relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous business, and ensure life-long learning for Indigenous entrepreneurs, and other Canadian business leaders. Notably, FPAC and CCAB have jointly been offering the Indigenous Business Leadership Award for almost 10 years. Also, FPAC was among the first to join CCAB’s Supply Change initiative and become an Aboriginal Procurement Champion.
In May, FPAC hosted a spotlight session at the 10th Annual Soaring: Indigenous Youth Empowerment Gathering organized by Indspire - a national Indigenous registered charity that invests in the education of Indigenous peoples. The event was attended by over 1,000 Indigenous students and their educators and it was a great occasion for FPAC to present career opportunities in the forest sector to Indigenous youth.
In September, FPAC hosted our inaugural Indigenous Speaker Series – interviewing former First Nations Chiefs who have played important roles in developing relationships between their communities and various natural resources industries. Working to help businesses understand priorities and concerns of Indigenous communities they are looking to collaborate with, the speaker series provided an opportunity for FPAC to get insight on community perspectives about what worked and what didn’t turn out as expected when managing Indigenous and business negotiations. Topics covered included treaty rights, forestry or mining projects, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and more.
FPAC continues to collaborate with and support the Outland Youth Employment Program (OYEP) – a national network that supplies land-based training programs for Indigenous youth in high schools. In recent years, the program has expanded across Canada and has grown to include partnerships with related industries. Building an inclusive and collaborative workplace for the next generation of forestry workers is at the heart of FPAC’s vision. The industry relies on strong relationships in the communities where we operate, and the continued growth of OYEP and additional investment from partners in the natural resources sector is a measure of success for the industry’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce.
In October, FPAC provided comments to Nòkwewashk [No-kway-washk] – the new name of NRCan’s Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation and Major Projects Management Sector – regarding the National Benefits-Sharing Framework Scoping Paper. FPAC Indigenous Committee met with officials from Nòkwewashk at multiple occasion during the year and continues to working constructively towards economic reconciliation and the increased participation of Indigenous peoples in Canada’s forest sector.
FPAC launched the Forestry For The Future initiative in 2021 – a multi-year strategic communications program designed to drive awareness among Canadians of the critical role forestry will play in growing a greener economy and supporting a more sustainable future.
The effort was guided, supported, and shaped by forestry stakeholders and partners from across the country including Natural Resources Canada, forest sector workers, and Indigenous, labour, and other community leaders.
In 2022, Forestry For The Future continued to successfully showcase Canada’s forest products sector as a key ally and partner in the quest for a greener, more inclusive economy. It has also relayed a compelling economic and sustainability story, one that is backed by data, science, accreditation, and practice.
The program continues to double down on reaching Canadians through the mediums and platforms where they get their information and developing a broad range of digital creative that showcases forestry’s sustainability efforts and tells our carbon story while highlighting the sector's commitment to continuous improvement through innovation, practices, partnerships, and workforce development efforts.
Digital Media Program – At the heart of the Forestry For The Future Campaign is a digital media program, the catalyst and core driver of forestry’s story with the public. With targeted ads reaching audiences across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Google’s Ad Network (including Youtube), the highly-adaptable program has proven a critical foundational vehicle to drive the kind of targeted volume needed to advance forestry’s story across Canada. In 2022, Forestry For The Future further embraced an “expect the unexpected" approach by deploying more creative and unconventional visuals to reach over 2 million Canadians online.
Out of Home Advertising – In 2022 Forestry For The Future brought the campaign directly into the city, with wrapped bus shelters and posters and transit shelters in many urban centres across the country including Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Calgary, and Halifax. The design was to simplify the idea of mass-timber construction and connect audiences to the impact and innovative role forestry can play in achieving climate change targets in our communities. To execute against that objective, we fused existing infrastructure — bus shelters — with a creative concept that saw them “wrapped” with wood frames with the message “If this bus shelter was made of wood, it could remove 1 metric tonne of CO2 from our atmosphere — Why aren’t more things made of wood?”
Podcast Series and Animations – In 2022 Forestry For The Future leveraged the foundations built in Year One as a launching pad to expand on the potential of forestry to address climate change and environmental challenges. Recognizing the need for a more expansive, yet audience-aligned medium to effectively tell that story, a major piece of Year Two was Forestry For The Future’s own podcast: Canadian Forestry Can Save The World. Bringing together voices from across the forestry community to tell the more nuanced and in-depth stories about the sector. The trailer launched in November to build anticipation for the 12-episode series, with weekly episodes continuing to roll out in early 2023. In 2022 we also used short, social media optimized videos to share the more complex elements of forestry’s story, with an animated video visualizing carbon capture as a standout asset.
Paid Media – In 2022 we also expanded the impact of the paid digital efforts by securing sponsored/paid editorial and earned/paid podcast opportunities with outlets/organizations that have mandates for more in-depth or focused coverage and specifically reach our core public audiences (particularly suburban families, urban millennials, Gen Z). These efforts included a showcase in the Toronto Star of forestry’s partnerships with Indigenous communities and commit to building a diverse community as one of Canada’s largest employers as well as a sponsored article in The Kit highlighting wood and wood-fibre products as sustainable alternatives.
