Bonn-voyage to the old trademark standard
In January 2025, I found myself in Bonn, Germany. I wasn’t there on holiday or for business. I was there for our world’s forests.
Back in the fall of 2024, the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) announced it was moving forward with revising the FSC-STD-50-001: Requirements for the Use of FSC Trademarks by Certificate Holders.
To better support this, FSC decided to put together a small group of experts to review their first revisions. FSC-US invited me to apply, and I was selected to participate in the Technical Working Group (more on that below).
When asked to introduce myself at our first group meeting, I blurted out, “Hi, I’m Jess from the U.S.” And that began our deep dive into the whats and whys of revising how the FSC trademarks are used.
Why revise the FSC trademark standard now?
In a nutshell, FSC wants to make it easier for producers and consumers alike to make the best choices—for themselves, their businesses, and our forests.
The high-level goals for the revised trademark standard are to:
- Make sure the FSC trademarks are used correctly and consistently.
- Make it easier for Certificate Holders to use the FSC trademarks on their certified products.
- Make it easier for customers to recognize the FSC logo and have a consistent perception of the FSC brand.
How we got from there to YOU
First draft
FSC started discussing potential revisions to the trademark standard back in September 2023. There was a conceptual phase, kick-off meetings, stakeholder webinars, and more.
Then in March 2024, the first consultation was organized and feedback collected from 28 participants. From there, the first draft of the revised standard was created.
Technical Working Group
Fast forward to November 2024 when FSC announced the Technical Working Group. To form this group, FSC requested and received 16 applications from 14 countries. Five candidates were selected (including me) and proposed for the approval of the Director General.
Our group’s responsibilities included reviewing the draft produced from the first consultation, discussing necessary revisions to improve the effectiveness and clarity of the trademark usage requirements, and unanimously agreeing to any proposed revisions.
Second draft
And here we are! Now that the first draft of the revised standard is completed, it’s ready to be reviewed by certificate holders and other stakeholders so that you can provide valuable input before the standard is finalized.
How to participate in the second consultation
Step 1 – Attend a webinar in April or May.
The best first step is to attend a webinar. This will help get you up to speed on all the proposed revisions to the FSC trademark standard, including the whys behind them.
- FSC International is holding three public webinars, and you can access their registration links via the FSC Connect website.
- You can also join FSC-US’s webinar on May 7 @ 10am MDT / 11am CDT. Bonus: I will be there personally to answer any questions you may have. (Register for the webinar here.)
Step 2 – Provide your feedback by June 6, 2025.
The second consultation is open from April 7-June 6, 2025, and you can provide your feedback anytime on the FSC Consultation Platform.
A few pro tips:
- Check out FSC’s short video summarizing the FSC trademark standard revision.
- You don’t need to respond to all the questions in the consultation. Feel free to focus on those relevant to your expertise and interests.
- According to one of our colleagues, it took them about 1.5 hours to provide their feedback. (This included some time to review the standard again prior to getting started.)
We hope you’ll join us!
Whether it’s at FSC-US’s webinar on May 7 or providing feedback or both, we hope you’ll be able to join us in revising the FSC trademark standard to make responsible forestry clearer and easier for generations to come.
And as always, if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to the AGC team.
About the author:
Jess Gillen is AGC’s Director of Certification Services. She’s been involved with the FSC trademark for over 20 years and is considered one of the top FSC trademark specialists in the world. In addition to pursuing activities that challenge her, Jess enjoys baking, learning German, and spending time with her family. Learn more about Jess on our About Us page and in our blog feature about her career.
Photo credits: Jess Gillen
Join us on May 7 for our second consultation webinar.
Register today.