The experts' roundtable on ASEAN circular economy Session 2: Agriculture, Forestry and Tehnology Adoption By Dr. Michael Brady, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor

1. THE EXPERTS’ ROUNDTABLE ON ASEAN CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Session 2: Agriculture, Forestry and Technological Adoption
Tree-based Bioeconomy Solutions
Dr. Michael Brady, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor
15 April 2021

2. Contents
1. What is a Tree-based Bioeconomy?
2. Existing or best practice initiatives of Tree-based Bioeconomy
3. Reforms and necessary mechanisms that could support a Tree-based Bioeconomy under the AEC
4. Consideration of different level of development between ASEAN member states

3. Bioeconomy encompasses the production of renewable biological
resources and the conversion of these resources and waste streams into
value added products, such as food, feed, bio-based products and
bioenergy

4. How do forests fit in?
• The circular bioeconomy relies on biodiversity, for it is at the heart of a
functioning ecosystem that can perform, adapt and evolve
• Forests are key because forests are the main source of non-food, non-feed
renewable biological resources
• Wood is the most versatile renewable material on earth and is fundamental to
making the circular bioeconomy work
• In a circular bioeconomy, wood-based products replace carbon intense, non-
renewable materials
• For example, the construction sector, dominated by concrete and steel, could
be become more sustainable through the use of wood
• In the textile industry, wood-based fibers could replace synthetic ones,
lowering the carbon footprint

5. Decarbonising economies with wood to achieve zero emissions targets
The clearest way to achieve this target is
through the use of timber. Wood is a natural
and sustainable low carbon alternative
construction material with desirable build
properties, it helps reduce CO2emissions in
several ways:
• Timber has equivalent or better building characteristics to
traditional materials
• Timber has superior insulation properties, lowering
operating emissions
• As an alternative to other construction materials it locks up
rather than emits CO2
• Timber permits off-site prefabrication, reducing building
times, deliveries and cost

6. Uses of Timber
Source: Gresham House Global Timber Outlook 2021

7. Source: Lauri Hetemäki, EFI 2021

8. Anually, every person on the planet uses 0.5 cubic meters of wood
• Future trends?
• Consumer decisions & expectations
• Society demands /industry needs
• Decisions?
• How to integrate with restoration and C farming?
• Where to source the wood needed for the
bioeconomy?
• Should we grow more or less biofuel?
• Or use wood to build post-harvest carbon sinks?
• Efficient resource use through more Integrated
value chains, e.g. post-harvest biomass
management?
Your use

9. Three key drivers
underpin demand
for timber going
forward
Source: Gresham House Global Timber Outlook 2021

10. Forecast timber consumption to 2050
Driven by urbanisation, decarbonisation and housing demand, global timber consumption is forecast to
rise by 170%over the next 30 years
Source: Gresham House Global Timber Outlook 2021

11. „SUPER-WOOD“ and „PLY-SCRAPERS“
Re-inventing wood building and processing technologies
Hardening,
stabilizing
Softening,
textiles
Building
technologies
Impermeabi-
lization
Adding
transparency
Adding new
qualities
(energy
storage)
Reflectance
(radiative
cooling)
Rubber,
bamboo
Substitution
of cement, plastic
and fossil fuels
New wood
technologies
grow sinks and
reduce emissions
Going green
…and wood, forest and bamboo products
Research
questions
• How much?
• How fast?
• How fair?
• …

12. Timber buildings
and towers -
‘plyscrapers’ -
starting to spring up
everywhere
Source: Gresham House Global Timber Outlook 2021

13. Electricity generation from biomass
There is global momentum to achieve much higher levels of renewable deployment
and decarbonise economies. This will further drive the need for biomass as a
baseload on demand energy supply

14. Reforms and necessary mechanisms are required to support a Tree-
based Bioeconomy under the Asian Economic Community/1
Reforms

15. Reforms and necessary mechanisms are required to support a Tree-based
Bioeconomy under the Asian Economic Community/2
GLOBAL STANDARD FOR NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS
a. What are ‘nature-based solutions’?
The concept of ‘nature-based solutions’ (NbS) was developed during the UNFCCC negotiations in 2009 and introduced in the 2013-2016
International Union for Conservation of the Nature (IUCN) Global Programme.
Nature-based Solutions are defined as ‘actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems, that address
societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits.
In 2020, the IUCN published a global standard for nature-based solutions based on 8 principles
Criterion 3: NbS result in a net gain to biodiversity and ecosystem integrity
‘Utilising NbS can provide an opportunity to enhance biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management efforts
Criterion 4: NbS are economically viable
‘The return on investment, the efficiency and effectiveness of the intervention, and equity
in the distribution of benefits and costs are key determinants of success for an NbS.’
Source: IUCN Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions 2020

16. CIFOR-ICRAF Tree-based bioeconomy solutions
CIFOR-ICRAF Transformative Partnership Platform brings together progressive entrepreneurs, community-based groups, future-driven
(impact) investors, funders, philanthropists, government agencies, NGOs and researchers around a jointly defined action research and
learning agenda
This Platform leverages CIFOR-ICRAF's long-standing expertise in forestry and agroforestry-based solutions for landscape and
livelihoods development and their global and local partner networks
Our ambitious agenda focuses on understanding and influencing global supply and demand for forest- and tree-based
bioproducts and the unsustainably produced materials they can substitute:
• tracing wood, fibre, food, feed and energy trade in diverse local to global value chains
• promoting technical, business and financial service innovations across portfolios of bioeconomy value chains
• minimizing waste and fostering re-use and recycling
• de-centralizing co-generation of heat and power from biomass
• developing and harmonizing public policy, voluntary sustainability standards (certifications, labels), and land use
planning
• generating 'green' jobs, adding local value, re-invigorating multi-sector collaboration across scales, with particular
emphasis on opportunities for women, men and youth, and other socially disadvantaged groups
https://www.cifor.org/cbe/

17. Delivering a tree-based circular bio-economy
for low emissions development
Going green
Developing new biomaterials from forests, plantations and agriculture
Choosing goals
Global societal debates and decisions on diets, products, land use, and
emissions
Weaving it together
Advising businesses and developing coordination, integration and
efficiency across value webs

18. CIFOR-ICRAF Tree-based bioeconomy solutions
A CIFOR-ICRAF Transformative Partnership Platform for healthy regions with sustainably managed natural resources and
equitable business models in the Global South
What are we doing already:
• Bamboo value chains, cultivation, training materials (Ethiopia, India, Ghana
etc.) (INBAR)
• Growing bioenergy on marginal lands (CIFOR): species, markets, private
sector
• Furniture value chains (Ethiopia, Indonesia) – efficiency, certification
(CIFOR)
• Nutrition
• Forests, food security, and nutrition in the Congo Basin / Wild Food
Statistics in Zambia / Mangroves and fish consumption in Indonesia
• Restoration: Humid and dry forests, bamboo, zai method
• Jurisdictional approaches
• Impact assessment

19. What is the relevance of Circular Bioeconomy in the Asian Economic
Community?
• Wood and forest products are the
backbone of economies in many
countries in Asia
• This could provide a favorable
entry point to usher in more bio-
based circular economy concepts
in those countries and avoid the
detours via fossil-fuel intensive
solutions of the developed world
• Also, innovations in the wood
sector are advancing at a rapid
pace, and it would be important
that developing countries take part
in this development early on

20. His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales
has established the Circular Bioeconomy
Alliance under his Sustainable Markets
Initiative to accelerate the transition to a
circular bioeconomy that is climate neutral,
inclusive and prospers in harmony with
nature.
https://efi.int/cba

21. Thank you!
foreststreesagroforestry.org | globallandscapesforum.org | resilientlandscapes.org
cifor.org | worldagroforestry.org
The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and World Agroforestry (ICRAF) envision a more equitable world where forestry
and landscapes enhance the environment and well-being for all. CIFOR-ICRAF are CGIAR Research Centers.
Contact me at m.brady@cgiar.org