Technical Workshop on the Refinement of the Montreal Process Indicators Criteria 4, 5 Atlanta, Ga. April 5,

Why are indicators important? Shape social understanding of forest and the forces that influence them Places natural resource management on par with economic indicators that leaders and the public will understand A framework to coordinate natural resource inventory, assessment, planning and coordination Provides citizens interested in forests with a tool to encourage society toaddress the needs of forests

Why should you be interested in indicators? To better communicate with your publics—neutral ground Help repair a hopelessly fragmented administrative landscape Build a bridge between ecosystem management, sustainable development, certification, environmental services etc, Help the forest sector take the initiative.

What indicators are not For producing international reports International indicators. They are national indicators developed internationally

What is an indicator? Latin indicare -- disclose, point out, announce or estimate. Provide a clue to something that might otherwise be undetectable They quantify and simplify A communication tool Not intended to provide the full picture Indicators will evolve pci.org

Attributes of good national indicators Are relevant to key issues, policies, or goals, or societal values. They are neutral description of what is. Are easy to understand and meaningful to a variety of audiences. Are drawn from reliable data sources and founded in technical and scientific theory. pci.org

Attributes of good national Indicators ( Cont’d) Data are available from existing sources or possible to collect. Have meaning at a national, State or regional level Data are representative of environmental conditions, pressures on the environment or society’s responses. Are linkable to economic models, forecasting and information systems. pci.org

Strategy Groups and countries are sensitive about changes All agree that the indicators can be improved The United States will be able to sell a limited number of suggestions Focus on the most important indictors Look at the indicators as sets -- emphasis, adequacy Be very clear, provide rationale pci.org