Background
In October 2006, during the North American Forest Commission meeting in Vancouver, Canada, the three Chiefs of the Forest Service of Mexico, Canada, and the United States -- also the Commissioners -- identified that not only was climate change a priority for the three countries but that in response to the evaluation of the Commission, an integrated working group meeting was necessary to facilitate collaboration across Working Groups.
Integrated Working Group Meeting
In early March, participants from the eight working groups and the Bureau of Alternates were convened in Arlington, Virginia to learn more about each other's trilateral activities, to improve communication, and to look for ways to collaborate on cross-cutting themes.
Objectives of the Meeting
- Facilitate discussion among organizational levels of NAFC
- Identify and develop a plan for implementation of collaboration on cross-cutting issues, such as climate change.
- Share information
- Improve communication between the Bureau of Alternates and the Working Groups
Outcomes of the Meeting
With the help of the Training Resources Group, the participants identified three cross-cutting themes on which to collaborate -- Economic Resiliency, Database of Information, and Forest Sector Competitiveness. They also looked at different mechanisms for improving communications within and across the Working Groups and between the Working Groups and the Bureau of Alternates. Outcomes of the meetings can now be viewed online.
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