Framework for Development of Technical Standard

Formation of the Technical Working Group(TWG) CCFF-India shall form a Technical Working Group(TWG) to undertake the process of development of draft standard. The TWG shall comprise of 7 members with experience and background in: Forestry ; Social Sciences ; Industry representatives ;Forest Certification The TWG shall form 7 sub groups, comprising of 2 temporary staff employed for the project duration with the following background. – Temporary staff 1: Social/ development background – Temporary staff 2: Forestry background.

Members of the Technical Working Group RepresentationName MoEF: REDD +To be Nominated MoEF : Forest Laws and ActsTo be Nominated QCIMr. Manish Pandey Industry /Plantations outside the forests Representative Mr. Suneel Pandey Certification BodyMr. Sachin Raj IIFM, BhopalTo be Nominated CoordinatorMs. Anushree Shukla

Brief Profiles of the members of the TWG MoEF REDD+(To be nominated): A person from MoEF, involved in the REDD+ process in India. REDD+ is an important aspect of sustainable forest management and incentivising the community for their contribution in meeting this goal. A person from the REDD+ wing shall bring knowledge and practices important for sustainable forest management, which shall later help in determining the baseline for REDD+ projects in India. MoEF Forest Laws and Acts (To be nominated) : A person from MoEF who has been given the responsibility from the GOI to look into the maters of forest certification in India

Brief Profiles of the members of the TWG QCI : Mr. Manish Pandey as Joint Director,QCI,has been involved in the process of forest certification in his present and previous capacities. He brings with him the interface of an accreditation body along with his experience. Industry Representative : Mr. Suneel Pandey as Vice President, ITC, has served the Indian Forest Service for a very long time. Also he has held very senior position bamboo mission and in India’s topmost paper companies and has been one of the pioneers in farm forestry, in forest certification of raw material,for supply to the paper industry. He brings with him his vast knowledge,and experience.

Brief Profiles of the members of the TWG Certification Body : Mr. Sachin Raj as Director, SCS India Pvt Ltd brings with him his experience as a certification body. He has been involved in certification of private as well as government owned plantations and forests respectively in South Asia. IIFM Bhopal : A representative from IIFM, Bhopal who has been involved in the development of C & I in the Bhopal India Process. IIFM is the pioneer for setting up C & I for Forest Management. Coordinator : Ms. Anushree Shukla shall coordinate the whole project. She has her PGDFM from Indian Institute of Forest Management(IIFM), Bhopal. She has been involved in forest certification for a very long time in India and Malaysia. She has been involved in forest certification of natural forests and farm forestry initiatives as well as Chain of Custody.

Functions of the Technical Working Group The TWG shall perform the following functions: – Conduct Stakeholder Mapping – Sub-group team development – Coordinate with State Forest Department – Develop & Provide guidelines to sub-groups at each stage of the project – Collate the outcomes of the assessment report submitted by the sub groups – Document Draft Standard V.1 – Present the Draft Standard V.1 to CCFF

Functions of the Sub-Groups The Sub-groups shall perform the following functions: – Follow the guidelines issued by the TWG – Conduct region specific desk review of documents – Conduct consultation with Forest Department Heads – Conduct consultation with stakeholders, plantation owners outside the forests, & communities in and around forests – Provide reports on time to the TWG – Perform any other duty as instructed by the TWG

Methodology The TWG shall issue operational guidelines to the sub-groups at various stages of the project. The sub-groups shall conduct an Assessment of Forest Management Practices in different forest types in India, classified as follows: – Temperate Forests – Dry-Deciduous Forests – Moist Deciduous Mixed Forests – Mangrove forests – Tropical Moist Deciduous forests – Evergreen Forests – Plantations outside the forests, such as pulpwood, bamboo and handicrafts The sub groups shall gather information and report to the TWG. The TWG shall collate the data and develop the Draft Standard V.1.

Assessment of Forest Management Practices The sub-groups along with representatives of the TWG shall operationalise the study for each forest type in the following manner: Stage 1: Region specific desk review of documents (Duration: 2 weeks) Stage 2 : Consultation with Forest Department Heads (Duration : 2 weeks) Stage 3: Consultation with stakeholders, plantation owners & communities in and around forests (Duration : 4 weeks) Stage 4: Preparation of Draft Standard V.1 (Duration : 4 weeks)

Stage 1: Region specific desk review of documents The TWG shall issue guidelines to the sub-groups. The sub group shall conduct a desk review of the documents and gather information based on the guidelines issued by the TWG and by taking inputs from the following : – FSC Forest Management Standard – PEFC Forest Management Standard – Bhopal India Process C& I – Other National Forest Standard for similar Forest Type – Research documents available for similar studies The sub groups prepare a report and submit it to the TWG.

Stage 2 : Consultation with Forest Department Heads The TWG shall issue guidelines to the sub group for doing consultations with the Heads of forest department for their comments and suggestions. The sub groups shall broadly consult the following : – Working Plan Department – Policy /HOFF Department – Wildlife Department – Corporation The subgroup shall prepare a report of the consultation process and outcomes and submit it to the TWG

Stage 3: Consultation with stakeholders, plantation owners & communities in and around forests The TWG shall issue guidelines for preparing questionnaires for consultation with communities & stakeholders in and around forests, as well as plantation owners of pulpwood, bamboo and handicrafts The sub groups shall prepare an analysis report of the outcomes of the survey and report it to the TWG

Stage 4: Preparation of Draft Standard V.1 The TWG shall collate the outcomes of the previous 3 stages. The TWG shall discuss and research on the outcomes and do gap analysis The TWG shall develop the criteria and indicators which seem relevant and important based on the gap analysis. The TWG shall develop the Draft Standard V.1 This Draft StandardV.1 shall be presented to the CCFF for their comments The Draft Standard V.1 shall go for peer review before public consultation

Public Consultation The Technical Working Committee shall prepare the Draft Standard and publish it on the CCFF-India website. Public Consultation shall be done by giving consultation notice in the newspaper and giving appropriate link of the website and contact for sending the reviews and feedback The technical standard shall be open for public consultation. Upon receiving the feedback from public, the technical working group shall present the same to CCFF-India. Through consensus, the relevant feedback shall be incorporated in the technical standard. The standard shall be pilot tested in sample forest areas.

Timelines ParticularTimelines Selection of Group1 week Stakeholder mapping1 weeks Sub Group Team Development3 weeks Assessment : Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 2 weeks 4 weeks Development of Draft Standard V.14 weeks Note :The selection of the TWG shall be regarded as Day 1

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