The Fostering Overseas Rule of Law and Environmentally Sound Trade (FOREST) Act

What is The FOREST Act?

The FOREST Act would ban imports derived from deforested sources. This bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Schatz (D-HI) and Braun (R, IN) would improve transparency, reduce financial incentives for deforestation, and hold entities that engage in deforestation accountable.

Read the bill | Read the letter from the USCCB

Learn more about the FOREST Act from this training video from the Citizen’s Climate Lobby:

  • Deforestation is a major contributor to climate change, adding 4.8 gigatons of greenhouse gasses annually. If deforestation were a country, it would rank 3rd in carbon emissions.

    Our forests are also the “lungs” of the planet, providing access to clean air and reducing carbon in the atmosphere. Forests - especially rainforests like the Amazon - also play a critical role in protect our planet’s biodiversity.

  • The FOREST Act would prohibit access to U.S. markets for commodities that originate from illegally deforested land, including commodities like beef, soy, palm oil, and wood products.

    This bill improves transparency in reporting, provides technical assistance to countries to reduce illegal deforestation, and reduces financial incentives for illegal deforestation.

  • Contact your legislators to ask for their support of the FOREST Act.

  • Pope Francis’s encyclical Laudato Sí speaks very clearly about the links between deforestation and climate change, as well as how deforestation limits access to resources used by indigenous communities and communities on the economic margins. To advance the Common Good, we as Catholics are called to take action to reduce illegal deforestation.