Why this exists
ForestryBrief is read by people who make decisions about forests and capital. They can only use it if they know who pays for what. This charter says how ForestryBrief earns money, and what that money does not buy.
What ForestryBrief is
Two free newsletters: European Forestry Pulse and ForestryBrief Professional. Products: the Forestry Communication Playbook Series and Tools, and the ForestryBrief Dashboard. Paid services under ForestryBriefing: intelligence, communication advice, and live briefings. One person runs all of it. So the rules below are choices I make, not walls between departments.
The rules
1. Editorial is not for sale. Nobody can pay for coverage, placement, framing, or silence. Stories are chosen on the evidence. Nothing else.
2. Paid work is disclosed. When I write about a past or present client, the piece says so. Past means the last twelve months. If a disclosure cannot keep the piece honest, I do not write it.
3. Free content holds nothing back. The newsletters give away the what and the why, with the data. Paid work delivers the how, applied to a client's own situation. I do not water down the free side to sell the paid side.
4. One role per relationship. I do not hold an independent review or oversight role for something I also promote. A reviewer who also runs the launch is not a reviewer. When both roles are on offer, I take one and say which.
5. Every number has a source. Facts trace to a named primary source. If I cannot verify a claim, I leave it out. Corrections run in the next issue, not in a footnote.
6. Client information stays with the client. What clients share with me does not become editorial. It does not travel to other clients. When I write about a client, I use public information only. Material a client has published counts as public for this rule. So does anything they clear in writing for citation. I cite it like any other source. The disclosure in rule 2 still applies.
7. Fees are fixed and agreed in advance. No success fees. No fee tied to a fundraise, a transaction, or a price move. I take no equity from an organisation ForestryBrief covers or reviews. If something I own becomes a story, I say so or step aside.
8. Sponsorship and referrals are labelled. If a publication carries a sponsor, the sponsored content says so where it appears. If I earn anything from recommending a product, the recommendation says so. Sponsors get no say in editorial.
How to hold me to it
Questions and complaints go to [email protected]. I answer them. If I got something wrong, the correction runs in the next issue. This charter applies to every ForestryBrief publication and every paid engagement. I review it once a year and publish any change.
Clients pay for my time and judgement. They do not buy the reader's trust. That is not mine to sell.
Download:
Version history
1.1 · 23 September 2026. Rule 6 clarified. Material a client has published, or cleared in writing for citation, is treated as public. The rule was written to protect confidences. It was not meant to stop me citing what is already on the record.
1.0 · September 2026. First published.