Chris, Nathan and Anusha at the FSC General Assembly 2025 in Panama
Every three years, the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) brings together its global membership for one of the most important events in responsible forestry: the FSC General Assembly.
From informative member sessions to a sweet networking dinner where we passed out Halloween candy, our American Green team had an amazing time.
For those who couldn’t join us in Panama, we’ve put together our highlights to provide a look inside this year’s FSC General Assembly.
What is the FSC General Assembly?
The FSC General Assembly (GA) serves as FSC’s highest decision-making body and provides a unique forum for members to shape the future of sustainable forest management. Environmental, social, and economic stakeholders from around the world gather to debate motions, exchange knowledge, and strengthen the framework that guides responsible sourcing and forest protection.
The GA is open not only to FSC members, but also to observers, guests, researchers, media, youth delegates, and others interested in the system. This year’s event was the second GA to expand accessibility even further by offering a live virtual broadcast, allowing participants to follow sessions and discussions from anywhere in the world.
The result is a global community with varying interests but one shared mission: protecting forests for all.
Interview with an FSC GA first-timer
Anusha (bottom right) attending one of the sessions
In addition to attending this year’s event, American Green’s Special Projects Coordinator Anusha Sridhara served as the FSC GA 2025 North America Coordinator. In this role, Anusha supported FSC behind the scenes and helped ensure that members in the North American region stayed informed, engaged, and connected across chambers.
We asked Anusha to reflect on her experience at the FSC GA and share insights as a first-time attendee.
What was your role with the General Assembly?
Throughout the GA, I worked with the FSC International team on event organization and back-end support. As the North America coordinator, I engaged with members and participants while maintaining a neutral position.
What were your overall impressions of the event?
It was inspiring to see stakeholders from across the globe come together with a single goal and purpose.
How did attending the GA impact your knowledge of FSC?
It widened my understanding of the various regional challenges that FSC faces while trying to fix things at the global level.
What were your favorite highlights or memories from your time at the GA?
The gathering of stakeholders itself was incredibly inspiring. I especially appreciated the members’ assembly sessions. They were very well organized, with plenty of time for participants to refresh their understanding of the motions, their importance, and their feasibility.
Did any session or speaker stand out as especially valuable?
I enjoyed the “FSC Needs You(th)” session. It focused on why young people must be more involved in shaping the future of the certification system.
The session included an interactive workshop that gathered participants’ input on what youth need from FSC, what they can contribute, and how education and research can better prepare them to participate meaningfully.
Would you attend again?
Absolutely—100%. It is essential to make sure that voices from across the globe are heard and understood, which influences the voting and decision-making process.
Key motions shaping the future of FSC
Chris commenting during one of the sessions
Much of the General Assembly centers around reviewing, debating, and voting on motions—formal proposals submitted by FSC members. These motions guide the priorities, processes, and standards of the system for years to come.
Below are three key motions that are close to our hearts that also played a meaningful role at this year’s GA.
Motion 05/2025: Establish a Fourth Indigenous Chamber
Status: Did not pass 🔴
This motion proposed creating a dedicated Indigenous Chamber within FSC’s governance structure. Currently, the Environmental, Social, and Economic Chambers hold equal voting power to ensure balanced representation. A separate Indigenous Chamber would have amplified the voices of Indigenous Peoples globally, recognizing their unique rights, deep relational knowledge, and longstanding stewardship of forest landscapes.
Anusha felt strongly about this motion, noting that “Motion 5 should have been supported, in order to establish an Indigenous chamber worldwide and recognize the stewardship efforts of Indigenous people.” Although it did not pass, the discussion highlighted the importance of continued efforts to elevate Indigenous leadership within FSC.
Motion 55/2021: Strengthening Transparency in CoC Group Certification
Status: Passed (2022) 🟢
Motion 55/2021 focuses on improving transparency for organizations and products certified under Chain of Custody (CoC) group certification. The motion requires FSC to maintain and expand group participant records in the FSC database, making their certification status clearer and more accessible.
Plan moving forward
- Finalize requirements through stakeholder engagement
- Detailed scoping and solution design
- Phased development and implementation
- Comprehensive change management
The expected closing date is July 2027.
Motion 28/2020: Simplifying CoC Requirements for Small Businesses
Status: Passed (2025) 🟢
Small and medium-sized enterprises often face disproportionate challenges when pursuing FSC certification. Motion 28/2020 seeks to streamline and simplify requirements, making certification more accessible for smaller companies.
Group certification already plays a major role in supporting these businesses by reducing costs, minimizing administrative burden, and providing ongoing management support.
Plan moving forward
- Revisions to the CoC normative framework to overcome value chain barriers
- An improved web-based presentation of the revised Chain of Custody standard to offer content filtering and additional guidance
The expected closing dates are Jan 2027 for the publication of the revised CoC standard and after Jan 2027 for improvements to the web-based presentation.
Our Poster Presentation: 5 Common Myths of Group Certification
CoC Group Network partners Chris Gibbons (American Green) and Ulf Sonntag (ZGD)
To help further the conversation around small business accessibility, the CoC Group Network, of which American Green is a member, was invited to present a poster during the live poster session at the GA.
Our joint poster presentation addressed common misconceptions about FSC CoC group certification—many of which prevent small companies from seeking certification at all. Drawing from years of hands-on group management experience, the poster broke down myths around credibility, cost, eligibility, and workload. The goal was to help attendees understand that group certification is both rigorous and highly effective at supporting smaller operations.
As the poster emphasized, group participants benefit from:
- more frequent oversight than most single certificate holders
- built-in support from experienced group managers
- lower overall costs
- streamlined documentation
- accessibility for companies with fewer employees or lower annual forest-product revenue
This topic remains central to Motion 28/2020, and American Green will continue advocating for solutions that open the FSC system to companies of all sizes.
What was started at FSC GA 2025 continues …
Even though the FSC General Assembly 2025 is over, the work continues. American Green’s president Chris Gibbons is currently drafting his comments on the CoC standard revision, which we’ll share on our blog.
If you’re an FSC member and would like to review Chris’ comments and use them to help you create your own, check back on our blog soon or follow us on LinkedIn.
Image credits: Hayley Ross, Chris Gibbons
See more FSC GA 2025 event photos on LinkedIn by following #FSCGA2025.
Questions about the FSC GA 2025?