Artparquet

Supporting a BoP industry in Ecuador

Overview

Like many countries in South America, Ecuador is challenged by the impacts of range of social and environmental issues, among them poverty and environmental degradation.  Artparquet is an Ecuadorian-German social business that seeks to alleviate poverty and help combat deforestation.

The company produces multi-layer hardwood parquet that complies with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) sustainability standards. These standards include sustainable forest management, improvement of the livelihoods of the involved indigenous people and the economical use of all the existing resources.

Approach

Artparquet has established strategic alliances with the communities of the Chachi and Awa Indios.  This integration of the indigenous people within the value chain is a means of effective poverty alleviation and guarantees a long term protection of natural rain forests by preventing illegal logging.

Artparquet’s product lines range from products grown from known wood species such as teak and eucalyptus to products grown from indigenous hardwoods like chanul and mascarey.  Artparquet provides a regular sales market for the indigenous communities and pays them 20% above market price.

The alternative revenue stream opportunity created by Artparquet for the local indigenous people to earn their living goes a long way to counteract illegal logging. Moreover, all persons involved in the forest cultivation have been equipped with social insurances and protective clothes.  Furthermore a course for safe use of machinery and tools for logging is in place to promote health and workplace safety.

 Outlook

For the past three years, Artparquet has been certified within the indigenous community of Chachi-Chapuli.  On an institutional level Artparquet is setting up a foundation to teach the indigenous community to adhere to the FSC principles, a key element of maintaining long term FSC certification.

Artparquet’s approach to working with local communities, its commitment to effective and responsible forestry practice, and its aim of achieving positive social and ecological impacts makes it a GEXSI showcase enterprise.  GEXSI advocates the Artparquet model as a worthy template for other companies.