To support the stewardship and conservation of Canada's remaining forests, by providing decision makers and civil society with timely, accurate information on their location, state, and change. In particular, this mission includes monitoring development activities occurring within and around Canada's forests, which influence the current and future condition of these ecosystems and the people that live within them.

Global Forest Watch Canada's Purposes

The purposes of Global Forest Watch Canada are:

1. To educate civil society on forest science, forest stewardship, forest standards and laws that regulate forest use;

2. To act as a resource of information for private sector companies, governments, and individuals on forest science, forest stewardship, forest standards and laws that regulate forest use;

3. To act as a network to track the condition and development of the world's large remaining tracts of natural forests in an ancillary and incidental way in order to ensure that all educational information is current and up-to-date;

4. To conduct research on forest management practices with the goal of identifying successful forest management practices in an ancillary and incidental way in order to ensure that all educational material is current and up-to-date;

5. To assist governments and private sector companies by monitoring forest-related activities by providing education and information on forest science, forest stewardship, forest standards and laws that regulate forest use.

6. To develop an effective organization that can achieve the above five purposes.

Global Forest Watch Canada's Goals

We have developed goals for projects and products and for organizational development that will make successful delivery of projects and products possible. Each goal is associated with measurable objectives and milestones so that we can monitor our success.

Goals for Projects and Products

1. Ensure many of the major products are produced in both official Canadian languages (e.g., Canada's Forests at a Crossroads: An Assessment in the Year 2000 (Les Forêts du Canada à la Croisée des Chemins: Bilan 2000).

2. Complete the intact forest mapping project for Canada's forest

3. Highlight Aboriginal issues related to the development, management and conservation of Canada's forests.

4. Develop a Global Forest Watch Canada forest database and data distribution system.

5. Monitor development impacts on forest streams nationwide to develop monitoring capacity in all Canadian provinces and territories.

6. Explore and take advantage of opportunities to monitor and report on the following project areas (i.e., these were assessed using these criteria: capacity-building opportunities, resources required in relation to benefits received, compatible with Global Forest Watch Canada's mission and purposes, and strategic potential):

a. Monitor forest company activities by indicators
b. Develop a dataset and report on mineral and energy activity within forests
c. Monitor wood volume flows
d. Assess cumulative forest impacts
e. Assess carbon budgeting in forests
f. Provide forest monitoring tools and skills training
g. Develop and report on a set of socio-economic indicators for Canada's forests.