FPAC Partnership Raises Awareness in Canada 

Explore Domtar's FPAC partnership
BY: Colleen Marble

At Domtar, we’re proud to partner with industry organizations that not only represent forest products companies but also the people, communities and natural resources on which we rely. One of our most important partners is the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC). 

For more than 100 years, FPAC (formerly the Canadian Pulp and Paper Association) has provided a voice for Canada’s wood, pulp, paper and wood-based bioproducts producers in government, trade and environmental affairs. Its member companies also help develop action plans that advance Canadian forest health while supporting workers, communities and the environment. 

“Domtar and its predecessors have been member companies for many, many years,” says Derek Nighbor, FPAC’s president and CEO. “Today, Domtar operates mills all across Canada. Each region faces unique challenges, so the geographic diversity of our relationship with Domtar and their engagement across all key function areas has been great. Together, we’ve done a lot of work on forest management policies, environmental priorities, transportation, Indigenous relations and more.” 

Along with other companies, that maintain an FPAC partnership, Domtar helps safeguard the CAD$97 billion forest products industry, which provides 200,000 direct and more than 370,000 indirect jobs across Canada.  

Blair Dickerson, Domtar’s vice president of Public Affairs Canada, says, “It’s important for us to move forward as an industry to deal with issues that are so important to all Canadians. Natural resources built this country. It’s foundational for us, as Canadians, to better understand the industries that secure, harvest and safeguard those resources. An FPAC partnership enables member companies like Domtar to promote an informed view of the forestry sector, which can help the public better understand what our industry does and how it’s committed to protecting our natural resources and the people who depend on them.” 

Over the past few years, FPAC and its member companies have identified four key areas of engagement: 

 

Forest Fire Prevention 

According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre’s National Fire Summary, in 2024 there were more than 5,686 wildland fires, which burned more than 5.3 million hectares. Those numbers are well above the 10-year national average, but much lower than the devastation recorded in 2023, when more than 17.3 million hectares of wildland were consumed by fire. 

“We’ve had a couple of really challenging years, and it’s time to be more proactive. This is a call to action for the forest sector and for decision makers to use forest management and forestry as a tool to address the worsening risk of forest fires in Canada,” says Nighbor. “In 2024, we had a lot more conversation and action on this subject, and I think we’ll make more progress in 2025 by serving on the leadership group for the new Centre of Excellence for Wildland Fire Innovation and Resilience.” 

Thanks to their FPAC partnerships, Domtar and other member companies have also taken up the charge to help reduce the risk of forest fires. “Harvesting vulnerable tracts of forests can be a key preventative measure, and we’re in a great position to do just that on the lands we manage,” Dickerson says. 

 

Indigenous Relations 

FPAC is also committed to improving Indigenous relations, and through its FPAC partnership, Domtar is playing a leadership role in that space.  

The forestry sector is one of Canada’s largest employers of Indigenous Peoples. FPAC and its members will continue working to create an inclusive sector through programs that raise awareness, encourage communication, and celebrate Indigenous entrepreneurs and Indigenous youth for their success, skills development and career aspirations in the forestry sector.  

Lana Wilhelm, Domtar’s director of Indigenous relations, received FPAC’s prestigious Women in Forestry Award of Excellence for 2024. The award recognized her deep commitment promoting Indigenous relations as well her dedication to environmental stewardship.  

Domtar has also introduced a Global Indigenous Relations and Procurement Policy that helps communities become accredited to supply fiber to Domtar — something that provides economic benefits for people in communities far from urban centers. 

“In 2024, we made tremendous progress in that space,” Nighbor says. “There’s more work to be done in reconciling with Indigenous peoples and communities, and making amend for past wrongs, and it will continue to be a top priority in 2025 and beyond.” 

 

Bioeconomic Innovation 

Another way Domtar is helping to broaden and strengthen the Canadian forest products sector through its FPAC partnership is by focusing on the future of bioeconomic innovation.

“We can almost get from a tree what you can get from a barrel of oil,” Nighbor says. “We want to accelerate that innovation and create new business opportunities and new uses for wood and wood fiber.” 

Domtar already has a seat at the table when it comes to biomaterials, and it has a long history of researching and developing innovative wood fiber-based materials that are sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based products.  

“Our customers’ needs are evolving, and we’re working to transform our products and our mills to meet those needs. That also means a lower carbon footprint, fewer emissions and more sustainable products that will provide solutions to tomorrow’s challenges,” says Dickerson. “Domtar has been and will continue to be an innovative leader in the bioeconomy.” 

 

Public Awareness 

Finally, FPAC and its members are raising awareness of the forestry sector and all that it offers the Canadian people. One of the ways it’s doing that is through the Forest for the Future podcast series, which explores the forestry sector and the role forests — and companies with FPAC partnerships like Domtar — can play in a more sustainable future.  

Kerry Patterson-Baker, vice president of communications at FPAC, acknowledges the challenges of raising awareness among everyday people. “The general public doesn’t really understand how forestry works in Canada, and it can be difficult to punch through the noise to get the message out,” she says. “During COVID, for example, we had to lobby to be designated as an essential business, and it was the shortage of toilet paper and masks that made people realize that we are essential. But we also have a really great story to tell.” 

Nighbor agrees and says it’s more important than ever to tell that story to a new generation of consumers who live in urban centers. “We’re an industry that’s good about talking about ourselves historically, but we need to find ways to connect with today’s suburban families and urban millennials who may live hundreds of miles from a managed forest or a mill.” 

Follow and engage with FPAC's Forestry for the Future campaign on X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
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