Partnership agreement between ATIBT and the Tropical Timber team from CIRAD

The Tropical Timber Team of CIRAD which belongs to the Biomass, Wood, Energy, Bioproducts Unit (BioWooEB) is engaged in research and valuation actions on the improvement, development of processing, and use of wood hot regions. These interventions concern simultaneously the raw material wood, the processing and implementation processes, and the marketing of wood and wood products.

As ATIBT promotes the development of a sustainable, ethical and legal tropical timber industry as a natural and renewable resource, it appeared necessary to formalize the relationship between the two establishments.

A collaboration framework was thus defined to strengthen the coordination of actions and rationalize the interventions of ATIBT in its technical activities downstream of the sector.
Collaborations between the two establishments are not new : is it necessary to recall that the relations between ATIBT and the Tropical Timber Team of CIRAD, formerly of CTFT, are historical in nature.
The two teams have occupied the same premises for several decades at 45 bis avenue de la Belle Gabrielle in Nogent sur Marne. CIRAD is a member of ATIBT and sits on its Board of Directors.

Within the framework of the recently signed agreement, several areas of cooperation have been defined as follows :

Joint participation in current or future projects, and in training sessions.
Direct support from CIRAD's Tropical Timber team to ATIBT members to answer specific technical questions in all areas of tropical timber knowledge, implementation and use.
Participation in the work of AFNOR standardization committees concerning tropical timber.
Contribution to the animation of the Materials and Standardization Committee of the ATIBT, and occasional interaction with the other committees, mainly the Marketing committee, the Forest Industry committee and the Training committee.
Participation in the Lesser Known Timber Species (LKTS) working group currently managed by FSC.
Publication of articles and technical documents in the ATIBT newsletter, and summary contributions in the ATIBT annual report.

In the area of training, ATIBT and CIRAD both conduct activities relating to tropical timber (ADEFAC project underway for ATIBT, PAFFB project to come). Better synergy between the two establishments could be envisaged via the ATIBT Training Commission on the one hand, and by facilitating the ATIBT to put the players in the sector in touch with the training initiatives of CIRAD.

Lames de platelage Crédit photo : M. Vernay - CIRAD