FSC Australia Awards and Dinner

The Australian Forest Stewardship Council is holding an awards dinner at the Langham Hotel in Melbourne on November 16. This dinner is not only a way of recognizing those who follow the recommendations of the FSC but will also be celebrating the 5th anniversary of the organization in Australia. Tickets cost $140 for individual FSC members.

Like Canopy in Canada and other organizations all over the world, the FSC advocates for the "environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world's forests." Part of this involves trying to get printing companies in all parts of Australia, including the Melbourne suburb of Braeside, to only use paper and printers that are FSC certified.

The awards are presented in eight categories, including FSC Publisher/Paper User of the Year, FSC Retailer of the Year and FSC Responsible Procurement Award. In order to become FSC certified and company must pass the independent inspection by organizations such as the SmartWood Program and Scientific Certification Systems.

While it may look like our forests are infinite and easily renewable, they are not and those who cut them down do not always replant enough trees to replace those they have removed; forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. Companies that dedicate themselves to only using FSC certified and/or recycled papers and to recycling their own paper refuse are helping to sustain our forests. Most of our oxygen comes from these forests and the world environment is only worsened with each forest that is destroyed.