This is a pioneering project in Europe in the promotion of socio-environmental initiatives to increase the competitiveness and commercial and industrial development of the forestry sector in Andalusia, Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha.

This is a pioneering project in Europe in the promotion of socio-environmental initiatives to increase the competitiveness and commercial and industrial development of the forestry sector in Andalusia, Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha.

The initiative seeks to train and prepare SMEs in the forestry sector in these regions to differentiate themselves in the market and position themselves as socially and environmentally responsible companies, while promoting good social and environmental practices for companies, employees and the forests of these communities.

The project aims to improve the competitiveness and insertion in the Spanish and European market of small forest owners and SMEs and micro-SMEs in the processing of wood in Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and Andalusia through a double mechanism:

To improve their internal functioning and production efficiency by providing advice on the reduction of CO2 emissions and adaptation to European regulations on illegal timber.

Improve their chances of accessing the market with their products, thanks to the certification of these entities under the Fair Wood system.

Fair Wood is an innovative certification that includes social and environmental criteria in a Step-by-Step System, so that small producers can access this certification from the first year. This will allow them to sell their products in new market niches, while protecting forest resources by promoting sustainable management under FSC criteria. Therefore, the objective is twofold: to generate new marketing alternatives for small owners and processors in the forestry sector and to protect the forests from which they extract their forest resources.

The target audience of the project are employees of companies (mostly SMEs and micro-SMEs) in the forestry sector, both smallholder forest owners and wood processing companies at different stages of the production chain. Among the recipients are also the self-employed and other people interested in the subject of the project.

The expected results of the project are:

• Training of 430 recipients, although the project will reach 4,075 workers.
• Accreditation of 12 companies in the forestry sector under the new Fair Wood certification system.