Global Forest Watch Canada- A Brief History

In 1999, inspired by the Global Forest Watch (GFW) initiative of the World Resources Institute (WRI), Canadian leaders in conservation planning and forest research came together to discuss the challenges they faced. A common theme emerged: the lack of sufficient data for decision-making. Thus, these leaders decided to join the global forest monitoring network with the aim of becoming an independent source of timely and practical information about where forests are being developed, how, and by whom: Global Forest Watch Canada (GFWC) was born; it was registered as a society in October 2000.

In GFWC’s first publication, Canada’s Forests at a Crossroads (published with WRI/GFW in 2001), GFWC attempted to document the logging, mining, and other development occurring throughout much of Canada’s forests. The report documented that the most diverse and productive forest ecosystems had undergone widespread fragmentation by roads and other access routes and had the bulk of their area under logging tenures. The other key finding of the Crossroads report was that much of the data that would be needed for the effective management of forested areas was not consistent, publicly accessible, or (in some cases) affordable.

GFWC’s mission was: “[to] support the stewardship and conservation of Canada's remaining forests, by providing decision makers and civil society with timely, accurate information on their location, state, and change. In particular, this mission includes monitoring development activities occurring within and around Canada's forests, which influence the current and future conditions of these ecosystems as well as the people who live within them. We contribute to a shift toward greater ecological sustainability in the management of natural areas by creating a compelling visual picture and analysis of current conditions, historical changes and future trends.”

Over its existence, with the conviction that better information about Canada's forests would lead to more informed government and corporate policies, and the preservation of the country’s forests for current and future generations, GFWC forged together existing data with newly created data and analyses to answer questions and tell the story of what was happening in Canada’s forests. They strove for products that were peer-reviewed, well-documented, and methodologically transparent.

With the direction of Executive Director Peter Lee (2001-2014), under broader project titles like “Where’s the Best of What’s Left?”, GFWC used its small size to its advantage. Without layers of bureaucracy to navigate, GFWC staff were able to efficiently and effectively create and analyze GIS data with increasing refinement and often at a national scale, in the following key project areas:

• Intact Forest Landscape Mapping

• Landscape Disturbance Mapping (Change Analysis and Cumulative Access/Disturbances)

• Industrial Disturbances

• Conservation Planning and Endangered Species

• Protected areas

• Aboriginal Peoples

• Natural Capital

Much of this work was done independently, funded by various donors (such as the Ivey Foundation, Echo Foundation), and with the support of ESRI for software. In some cases, contract work for, or partner projects with, organizations like Environment Canada, the Canadian Forest Service, the Conservation Biology Institute, the David Suzuki Foundation, the Grand Council of the Crees, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, the Boreal Songbird Initiative, Greenpeace, and Ducks Unlimited Canada, allowed GFWC to explore some topics more deeply, and/or to focus in at smaller scales in key areas of interest.

In the final years of GFWC (2015-2017), Wynet Smith (who worked at WRI from 1999-2002 and helped to establish GFWC), took up the torch as Executive Director. In addition to continuing disturbance mapping, time series analyses, and intact forest landscape updates, Wynet focused on illuminating the fact that while many governments in Canada have committed to open government, and open data, these commitments have not yet resulted in comprehensive availability of open geospatial datasets on how governments allocate public lands and subsurface resources. She also initiated the development of GFWC’s first interactive maps.

GFWC staff would sometimes joke that they would work themselves out of their job of informing a greener future if they did their work effectively: governments and corporations would respond to being taken to task about ensuring open data. When the organization had to close its doors in late 2017, the situation had improved but still had a long way to go. Still, there is hope that public desire for transparency, in combination with advances in technology that make data creation and sharing more and more feasible, will continue the trend of better data for better decision-making when it comes to Canada’s invaluable forests.

The Conservation Biology Institute, long a friend of GFWC’s, has agreed to host GFWC’s suite of reports and datasets to ensure that the organization’s good work lives on and is available for others to use and build upon.

*written by Global Forest Watch Canada