On the 7th of July 2005, the International Board of Trustees (IBOT) of the Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development (Iwokrama or the Centre), “RESOLVED that the Centre’s management will pursue timber operations within the Iwokrama Forest Sustainable Utilization Area to harvest not more than 20,000 cubic metres per annum in the first year through a business partnership involving local communities and the private sector;”.  This will be accomplished through the JVC which is intended to be a global model for timber harvesting, demonstrating environmental sustainability, social sensitivity, and economic viability.  ITI will adopt a phased approach to the development of their sustainable forest management model.