12 – 16 June 2011Arusha International Conference Centre,

Tanzania

The role of charcoal in health, local environments, climate change, and

poverty alleviation initiatives

Organized by:

A Symposium & Workshop

The link between charcoal, poverty, health, and climate change

is undisputed, but how can sustainable solutions for

charcoal feature more prominently in existing policies and initiatives addressing poverty and climate

change?

Child labor is the rule rather than the exception for many charcoal producers in the Tropics

Charcoal Facts:

Charcoal is the

main energy source

for more than 90%

of sub-Saharan

Africa urban

households

Current

production and

consumption of

charcoal are mostly

unsustainable

Charcoal has

negative

environmental,

social, and health

implications to

those who produce

and consume it

Sudan, 2009

México, 2009

In the last century, charcoal production and use in the Tropics has not changed nor has it gone away.

Charcoal remain persistent and problematic, marred by policies that have failed to achieve their objectives over and over and over again.

In the last century, charcoal production and use in the Tropics has not changed nor has it gone away.

Charcoal remain persistent and problematic, marred by policies that have failed to achieve their objectives over and over and over again.

Recent initiatives to combat climate change

and alleviate poverty present new

opportunities to address the charcoal

problem holistically.

Recent initiatives to combat climate change

and alleviate poverty present new

opportunities to address the charcoal

problem holistically.

The Arusha Symposium & Workshop in June 2011 will bring a diverse array of charcoal researchers, producers, policy makers, and visionaries to begin discussing these questions and to plan International Charcoal Conference in 2012 that addresses key issues and viable solutions identified in Arusha.

The Arusha Symposium & Workshop in June 2011 will bring a diverse array of charcoal researchers, producers, policy makers, and visionaries to begin discussing these questions and to plan International Charcoal Conference in 2012 that addresses key issues and viable solutions identified in Arusha.

Highlights:

600+ participants expected in Arusha 2011

Diverse set of world renown experts on charcoal will present in the Symposium

Delegates from key Tanzanian ministries dealing with charcoal (Energy, Environment, Forests) will attend

East African charcoal producers will share their experiences and visions

Presentations on the potential for sustainable charcoal to participate in carbon markets

Opportunities for collaborations and networking

Planning for a 2012 International Conference on Charcoal

Where and When?

The Symposium and Workshop will be held as a one-day event in the context of the Joint 2011 Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) & the Africa Section of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB Africa) (12 -16 June).

The workshop will be in the form of a post-symposium meeting designed to allow presenters and invited guests to continue discussions stimulated by the presentations, identify key issues raised by the presentations, develop a working group to address key issues, and begin organizing a 2012 International Charcoal Conference

Symposium presentations will highlight the many facets of an old energy problem, but inspected

under the light of new and highly innovative assessment tools and technologies

Expected

Outputs:

Identify key issues

raised by the

presentations

Form a working

group to address

key issues

Plan a 2012

conference that

focuses on

solutions for the

charcoal sector

Publish the

Presentations in

Special Issue of an

ISI Journal

We will identify a handful of plausible solutions & best-options for public

policy, appropriate technologies and sustainable forest management