CEPI appoints a new Chairman The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) appointed a new Chairman during its Board meeting at the European Paper Week in Brussels on 24 November 1999. Juha Antti Niemelä, President and CEO of the UPM-Kymmene Group, will officially take up his position on 1 January... The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) appointed a new Chairman during its Board meeting at the European Paper Week in Brussels on 24 November 1999. Juha Antti Niemelä, President and CEO of the UPM-Kymmene Group, will officially take up his position on 1 January 2000 for a two-year term. He replaces Luis Deslandes, CEO of Soporcel, who has chaired CEPI since 1998. Mr Niemelä, from Finland, has an extensive knowledge of the pulp and paper industry with a Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration from the Turku School of Economics and Business Administration, and has held several executive positions in Finnish paper companies. Also during European Paper Week, CEPI proposed a system to promote mutual recognition between credible forest certification schemes. This is intended to address consumer concerns about the sustainability of forest management, says CEPI. The scheme will involve an independent third-party audit against a national or regional standard that should be established with the agreement of all stakeholders, CEPI continues. Forest certification, the organisation says, can provide the opportunity to provide assurance of sound forest management practices, raise consumer awareness of sustainable forest management; secure wood supply from acceptable sources and to promote paper products against competing materials.
