From 8 – 9 June 2017 a workshop on “Identification of CITES timber species” is scheduled, jointly hosted by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN; German CITES Scientific Authority) and the German Thünen Institute of Wood Research (TI).
Background: Improving identification of CITES timber species is a vital part of quality control and enforcement. Therefore, practicable and quick control methods to support timber identification are needed. For this reason, an innovative digital tool for macroscopic wood identification and information retrieval (CITESwoodID) has been developed by the Thünen Institute of Wood Research on behalf of the German CITES Scientific Authority.
The Objectives of the workshop are:
- to impart knowledge on macroscopic structural features for identification and discrimination of timber species, in particular the newly listed rosewood and bubinga species;
- to become familiar with the user interface and operation mode of the programme CITESwoodID updated in 2017;
- to enable users to identify CITES timber species by means of macroscopic characters,
- to introduce new established DNA-based methods as additional tools to identify CITES protected timber species.
Target group
- The workshop is relevant to CITES enforcement and customs staff, CITES Scientific and Management Authorities, especially those who are responsible for training and capacity building measures.
- No special knowledge of wood and its structure is required for participation in the workshop.
For more information and to register for the event please email Natalie Hofbauer.