NEW: Long-term Impact Assessment of Our Work on Forest Carbon
Learn more about the impact of our international efforts to address climate change through forest carbon modelling by reading our Long-term Impact Assessment of the CEC’s Work on Forest Carbon (2013–2017).
Beginning in 2013, the CEC worked with North American experts to better understand the role of our forests in capturing greenhouse gas emissions and removing them from the atmosphere. In 2020, we conducted a long-term impact assessment of these efforts. The results demonstrated the importance of international scientific collaboration and in understanding the role forests play in mitigating climate change.
For example, this work produced knowledge about forest ecosystems, disturbances, and potential mitigation options that can be used to improve forest management practices to both reduce emissions and increase carbon sinks. Through collaboration, experts from Canada, Mexico and the United States agreed that they had advanced scientific knowledge beyond what they could have achieved as individual countries.
Looking ahead, Canada, Mexico, and the United States have identified the conservation and sustainable management of forests, including addressing deforestation and forest degradation, as an area of cooperation under the 2020 Environmental Cooperation Agreement and the CEC’s 2021-2025 Strategic Plan, thus allowing for continued North American collaboration in this area.
Happy #InternationalDayofForests
About the CEC
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) was established in 1994 by the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States through the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation, a parallel environmental agreement to NAFTA. As of 2020, the CEC is recognized and maintained by the Environmental Cooperation Agreement, in parallel with the new Free Trade Agreement of North America. The CEC brings together a wide range of stakeholders, including the general public, Indigenous people, youth, nongovernmental organizations, academia, and the business sector, to seek solutions to protect North America’s shared environment while supporting sustainable development for the benefit of present and future generations
The CEC is governed and funded equally by the Government of Canada through Environment and Climate Change Canada, the Government of the United States of Mexico through the Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, and the Government of the United States of America through the Environmental Protection Agency.