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Profiles in Sustainable Forestry
The Greening of Gibson: Prestigious Guitar Manufacturer
Adopts SmartWood Standards
T
HE WORLD'S FINEST GUITAR makers have favored the rich color and
tones produced by exotic tropical
woods such as mahogany and rosewood since the 1900's. Unfortunately,
U.S. and European luxury furniture
makers have also valued the woods
for centuries. By the early nineties,
mahogany in particular had grown
increasingly scarce. Faced with that
sad reality and concerned about the
eventual lack of the wood for his
guitars, CEO of Gibson Musical
Instruments Henry Juszkiewicz
began his search for sustainable sources of wood. In 1994,
he met Richard Donovan,
Chief of Forestry for the
Rainforest Alliance, who
convinced the guitar manufacturer that his company
could benefit from using
woods that have been
certified as responsibly
grown and harvested.
The Rainforest Alliance and Gibson teamed up, and
two years later the world's first eco-friendly guitar -the Rainforest Alliance-certified Les Paul SmartWood
Standard -- premiered at the world's first
SmartSounds concert that featured musicians such
as Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash and Carly
Simon. Since then, Gibson has been proactively
working with the Rainforest Alliance to secure a certified sustainable supply of mahogany from the
Mayan forests in Guatemala. As Juskiewicz explains,
"Our goal is not just to promote certified-wood guitars as something special, but to bring the industry
to a point where the use of certified wood is standard procedure."
SMARTWOOD SETS THE STANDARD
Founded in 1987, the Rainforest Alliance pioneered
sustainable forest certification, auditing participating forest product companies to ensure their compliance with a rigorous set of environmental, social and
economic standards. Since then, certification has
grown into a leading conservation tool used around
the world, and the Rainforest Alliance's Forestry program has become a critical partner in helping companies source responsibly harvested timber. The
Rainforest Alliance's SmartWood
sustainable
forestry program has certified 28 million acres
worldwide and has more than 800 clients.
SmartWood and Gibson personnel work directly with community
foresters in Guatemala.
Certification -- whether of large forest management
companies, indigenous landholders, community
operations or public lands -- is carried out by a team
of SmartWood-trained specialists who measure compliance with Forest Stewardship Council standards.
Certified operations are reviewed on a regular basis
to ensure continued improvements and adherence
with the standards and guidelines. Companies, cooperatives and landowners that participate in our programs meet standards for protecting the environment, wildlife, workers and local communities.
Gibson guitars' prestige and high visibility have
been influential in motivating other musical
instrument manufacturers, such as Martin
Guitars, to follow suit.
TOTAL SUSTAINABILITY STRIKES A CHORD
Since the Les Paul SmartWood Standard debuted in
October 1996, Gibson has made great strides in making its electric guitar division, Gibson USA, completely certified and having Gibson's other divisions
follow suit. Today, all the domestic hardwoods USA
uses (like maple and poplar) are certified, and the
latest report of Gibson's mahogany purchase shows
an increase from 1% certified to an unprecedented
33% during 2003. However, it's an ongoing challenge
for Gibson to secure enough mahogany to keep up
with the growing demand for the company's certified
guitars. Last year, Gibson and the Rainforest Alliance
jointly formalized the company's sourcing practice
in a purchasing policy that reached beyond the
Electric Division; the company's eventual goal is to
purchase 100% certified mahogany.
The mahogany trade has been the subject of environmental and human rights campaigns in the U.S.
and in Europe. As a result, CITES (the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species) will be
applying stricter controls to the mahogany trade.
Beginning in early 2004, only mahogany from a verified sustainably managed source will be permitted
on the international market. This distinction will
increase demand for certified mahogany, and companies like Gibson are working to secure supply now.
"With the amount of mahogany and other certified
woods that we've seen in Guatemala, 100% certification may be achievable within the next two years if
the quality, supply and pricing remain available and
competitive," says Herb Jenkins, Gibson's Nashvillebased purchasing manager. However, as he also
point out, it's equally important for producers and
buyers of certified woods to develop markets that
don't meet Gibson's needs. "After all, it's not only
about establishing the Chain-of-Custody -- which
guarantees the use of certified wood all along the
supply chain -- but about using as much of the wood
as possible for the most efficient applications."
GUATEMALAN COMMUNITIES BENEFIT FROM
SUSTAINABLE SOURCING, GIBSON SECURES
SUPPLY
During the winter of 2003, a major buyer for Gibson
participated in the certified wood marketing workshop held in the community of Flores, in northern
Guatemala, and for the first time negotiated face-toface with local producers. The purpose of the
Rainforest Alliance-sponsored gathering was to promote wood products harvested from certified forest
concessions in the Petén of Guatemala and neighboring forests in Mexico and link them with interested buyers. In recent years, the governments of both
Guatemala and Mexico have granted leases to community forest groups living in the region in the hopes
that pride in ownership would encourage responsible, long-term forest management while generating
income.
"Companies who are committed to purchasing certified products would benefit from partnering with
organizations such as the Rainforest Alliance," concludes Abraham Guillen, Market Development
Manager with the Rainforest Alliance's TREES
Program. "Our deep understanding of the certified
forestry supply means we know where to find the
wood, and we have the contacts to facilitate the
purchasing process."
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www.rainforest-alliance.org
The Rainforest Alliance works to protect ecosystems and the
people and wildlife that live within them by implementing better
business practices for biodiversity conservation and sustainability.
Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Forestry
65 Millet Street, Suite 201, Richmond, VT, 05477 Tel: 802/434-5491, Fax: 802/434-3116
665 Broadway, Suite 500, New York, NY 10012-2331 Tel: 212/677-1900, Fax: 212/677-2187