FSC Forest Stewardship Council (The Forest Stewardship Council), in October 1993, 130 representatives from 26 countries attended the FSC establishment meeting in Toronto, Canada, and elected the board of directors. The FSC secretariat was formed in Oaxaca, Mexico in 1994. In 2002, the FSC world base was established in Bonn, Germany. The secretariat moved to the world base in 2003. FSC is a non-governmental, membership-based global organization. Its decision-making power is balanced among the three discussion groups representing environmental, social and economic interests.

　　 In 1994, FSC drafted a globally consistent "FSC Guidelines and Specifications" (a total of 10 guidelines and 56 specifications), which was revised twice in 1999 and 2000. These guidelines and specifications provide the overall structure or general specifications for certified forest operations and are applicable to tropical, temperate and frigid forests.

　　FSC certification is divided into forest operation (FM) and chain of custody (CoC) certification. After FSC certification, it can trace the entire process of wood products from the forest to the consumer, and then control the legality of the wood and ensure its outstanding origin, as well as the integrity of the forest ecosystem. FSC voluntary certification is carried out by an independent third-party organization, which ensures the transparency and credibility of the certification. In 2006, FSC formed the World Accreditation Service Company (ASI), which acts as a regulatory certification organization. As of 2010, a total of 23 organizations worldwide have been authorized to implement FSC certification.