Video credit: James Morgan
Few Words About Us
Sustainability through innovation: We monitor environmental resources and pioneer green tools to make sustainability economically viable for businesses. Resource Extraction Monitoring (REM) is a non-profit organisation founded in 2003. We work with governments, civil society, donors and private sector to document illegalities but also to understand underlying governance problems and identify innovative solutions. Our approach is primarily field based to truly understand the nature of complex environmental problems.
Seeking solutions?

2018 - 2023
Monitoring and Traceability for Cocoa - Forests - Charcoal
An NGO with a difference
What makes REM unique is that we specialise in independent government-mandated monitoring. Put simply, we investigate illegal activity in collaboration with government while maintaining our independence. With a mandate we are able to access information and places off-limits to most NGOs and thus carry out more in-depth investigations.
Our top priority is producing accurate, explicit and applicable information and systems to help solve environmental governance problems.
REM is not a lobbying organisation and has no political agenda, but we are proactive in our work. Transparency is not our final objective, it is only the start. After documenting illegalities, we follow cases through administrative and judicial systems. Where enforcement is weak, we work with government to identify and implement tailored solutions. Strengthening local civil society capacity is central to our approach to build effective long-term monitoring, particularly in countries with high biodiversity and low governance capacity.
Field monitoring
Solutions applied

Global Impact
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INFRACTIONS EVIDENCEDForests news
Forests: latest from EU-FLEGT
- Micro, petites et moyennes entreprises : des partenaires indispensables pour améliorer la gouvernance forestière et enrayer la déforestation et la dégradation des forêts
- Las mipymes, un socio importante para mejorar la gobernanza forestal y reducir la deforestación y la degradación forestal
- Legality in the forest sector: New insights into obstacles and incentives for MSME formalisation
Our Results
Over 2000 forest infractions for 8 countries entered in Open Transparency Portal Database
REM entered over 2000 forest infractions documented by REM and monitors in WRI’s Open Transparency Portal.
National monitors trained in 11 countries
REM trained over 15 years the 3 organisations currently leading IFM in the Congo basin, and over 20 IFMs in…
152 forest investigation reports
REM wrote 152 forest reports providing evidence following joint investigations in all major forest titles in the Congo Basin with…
Over 100 environmental enforcement officials trained in 3 countries
REM provided on-the-job investigation and legal training to forest law enforcement officials over 15 years.
Evidence provided for €7.8 million of taxes unpaid
In a single year, REM documented €7.8 million of taxes (felling and area including debts) not paid in the Republic…
Evidence provided for € 2.2 million worth of illegal timber
In the Republic of Congo, some of the severe infractions REM documented included illegal logging valued at € 2.2 million