Carbon Markets for 2012?

Global carbon traded volume in 2011 were about 8 billion tCO2 up 19% compared to 2010, but the traded values were about euro 96 billions up only 4%. This was because carbon price was cheap; economic crisis in EU forced EU to issue more allowances (right to emit carbon) to its member states, leading to more supply but less demand. Carbon price traded yesterday was only about $3.5 per tCO2 down from $15 few months ago.

Japan, Canada, Russia decided not join second commitment of the Kyoto Protocol (2013-2020). This decision made carbon market in Japan become smaller and smaller.
Carbon markets have probably moved to New Zealand and Australia. However, because the two countries have less population, the size of the markets is still relatively small.

Implications for REDD+ projects:
REDD+ is somehow still attractive to EU buyers due probably to less investment costs, high carbon emission reduction potentials, and of course high risk, and because EU is still part of the Kyoto. Investors expect carbon price to go up about $10-12 for Kyoto’s second period starting from 2013-2020, but it is still uncertain.

Implications for REDD+ in Cambodia
REDD+’s Bilateral partnership: In addition to the already shrinking market, countries that decided to not ratify the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol will have difficulties in talking to UNFCCC parties because they are no longer a member of the Kyoto. This would mean that their proposed REDD+ guidelines or whatever guidelines under the bilateral partnership program would not be even listened to. Without approval, no one would buy REDD+ credits under any bilateral partnership scheme with non-Kyoto parties. Therefore, I think Cambodia needs to clarify the bilateral partnership program with the relevant countries.
EU Partners: Although EU markets are still uncerntain, 2nd commitment period will see increase in carbon price because EU has set a tight reduction target (20% by 2020, 50% by 2050). I think Cambodia should have some partners from EU because Cambodian government is committed to managing its forests under the REDD+ scheme
California (CA) Carbon Trading: CA adopted emission trading scheme in October 2011 and some trading begins this year. It also has increasing carbon markets, but they seemed to prefer credits from South America.
Australia Carbon Tax: from July 2012, Australia will impose a carbon tax of A$23/tCO2. So, carbon market there would increase as emitters have to offset their emissions. I think Cambodia may also want to find some carbon partners from Australia.

Well, my analysis is not always right.

Thanks for reading!

Interdisciplinary Climate Change Research Symposium 2012

DISCCRS VII Interdisciplinary Climate Change Research Symposium

Dates: October 13-20, 2012
Location: La Foret Conference and Retreat Center
Colorado Springs, CO

Application Deadline: February 29, 2012
Participation limited to 30 early-career Ph.D. scholars
Airfare and on-site expenses are supported through grants from NSF and NASA
http://disccrs.org

Eligibility: Ph.D. requirements completed between August 1, 2009 – February 29, 2012 in any natural or social science field relevant to the study of climate change, its impacts, or its societal implications. U.S. citizens and residents have preference though limited funds are available for non-U.S. participation.
See http://disccrs.org/files/DISCCRS_VI_Symposium_Scholars.pdf for information on the previous symposium scholars, and http://disccrs.org/files/DISCCRS_VI_Symposium_Report.pdf for information on the symposium experience.

Since 2003, DISCCRS has hosted symposia for early-career researchers to catalyze formation of interdisciplinary collegial networks, while fostering skills to better prepare graduates to conduct collaborative research and respond to the myriad challenges posed by climate change and its impacts. Participants will share their research; engage in discussions with peers, mentors, and funding agency representatives; and participate in communication and team training. Thirty early-career scholars will be selected through a review process with the expectation that invitees will become leaders in their chosen fields. Airfare and on-site expenses are supported through grants from NSF and NASA.

Symposium Application Instructions
http://disccrs.org/application_instructions

DISCCRS Resources
Webpage http://disccrs.org: The DISCCRS webpage includes information about symposia, a Ph.D. dissertation registry, news and links to other climate research sites, DISCCRS symposium and program reports and publications from the symposia, information.

Online Ph.D. Dissertation Registry http://disccrs.org/register: Join over 2500 climate change researchers by registering your Ph.D. dissertation and adding your abstract to our fully searchable database. Or browse the registry to identify other climate change researchers.

Career Resources http://disccrs.org/career: In addition to the Dissertation Registry, the DISCCRS website includes a wealth of valuable resources for finding a job, developing your professional skills, locating funding opportunities, crafting grant proposals and more.

Electronic Newsletter: With weekly climate-change job listings, news stories, funding opportunities and more, our weekly e-newsletter is automatically provided to anyone who registers their Ph.D. You can also subscribe at: http://disccrs.org/subscribe

DISCCRS Sponsors
AAG, AERE, AGU, AMS, ASLO, ESA, ESS-ISA, STEP-APSA, TOS, USSEE

DISCCRS Funding
U.S. National Science Foundation Collaborative Grants: SES-0931402 to the University of Oregon and SES-0932916 to Whitman College
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Grant NNX10AJ53G to Whitman College

Contact: info@disccrs.org
Organizers: Ronald B. Mitchell (University of Oregon) and C. Susan Weiler (Whitman College)

Summer School 2012 Nominations

The UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) is holding its eighth annual Energy Summer School from 17th June – 22nd June 2011 at the University of Warwick in the English Midlands. There will be 100 places available for UK and international students.

The School has been specifically designed to give second year PhD students an understanding of energy systems as a whole and of pathways to low-carbon and resilient energy systems.  This directly relates to international climate change issues and policies as students will become engaged
In mock United Nations style negotiations throughout the week in order to achieve a reduction in carbon emissions through the use of energy systems.

We welcome applications from those engaged in energy-related research including technical, physical, social, economic, environmental and business aspects of energy and energy systems.

We would like to invite you to nominate students to attend. There is no charge for registered research students to attend the School; UKERC will provide accommodation and all meals and materials for activities. The School is conducted in English, and as it is highly interactive a good standard of comprehension and spoken English is essential.
Agenda

During the week-long course, which runs in parallel to UKERC’s Annual Assembly, students will:
•  Examine the evolving challenges, and the feasibility of, the transition to a low-carbon, resilient and affordable energy system out till 2030;
•  Understand the global commercial, political, innovation and technological challenges in the transition to a low-carbon system;
•  Be involved in high level debate on energy technologies and research priorities in a number of key research areas, from demand reduction to future sources of energy;
•  Be presented with a number of contrasting international perspectives on energy;
•  Have the opportunity to network with key academic, and energy research contacts;
•  Research, develop, negotiate and agree a collective vision for a low-carbon energy system and present the work to the UK Energy Research Centre
•  Develop and practice professional skills in communication and engagement.

The course is professionally facilitated to provide continual support for participants, and includes a number of networking opportunities as well as social events.

Successful applicants will be notified by e-mail from 22nd March 2012 and both nominator and nominee will at that time be asked to formally accept the place. Should the delegate subsequently withdraw and a suitable replacement not be found, the nominator will be required to pay for the cost of the unused place. The course is normally over-subscribed, and UKERC will select delegates by giving preference to those in the second year of a PhD, to provide an appropriate mix of specialist disciplines, and a balance of UK and non-UK based students.
Nominations
Nominations are now open until 1700hrs (5pm) GMT Thursday, 8th March 2011. For convenience we ask that the student completes the nomination form, but they will need to include your details as confirmation of endorsement.

The nomination form can be accessed from our website or by clicking on the link below. http://www.regonline.co.uk/Register/Checkin.aspx?EventID=1037477

Information
If you have further questions, please call us on +44 (0)207 594 1574 or email Ilaria Longo (Ilaria.longo@ukerc.ac.uk )
Further information is available from the UK Energy Research Centre website at www.ukerc.ac.uk

Payments for Ecosystem Services – Legal and Institutional Readiness

Payments for Ecosystem Services – Legal and Institutional Readiness

Ecosystems provide services that sustain life – climate regulation, water and nutrient cycling, habitat provision, and so much more. Replicating even a fraction of the services that are freely provided by well-functioning ecosystems would cost billions of dollars, if it could be done at all. Payments for ecosystem services (PES) represent one approach to enabling investments into preserving and enhancing ecosystems and associated ecosystem services.

In practice, the success of PES depends in large part on the legal and institutional framework in a particular place. As yet, however, there are few resources for understanding legal and institutional “readiness” for PES. A new booklet from the Katoomba Group, created with funding from UNDP South Africa, attempts to address this gap by outlining a framework for assessing PES legal and institutional readiness in a particular jurisdiction. It identifies threshold conditions for PES, essential aspects to be developed in parallel with PES transactions, and legal and institutional elements that can facilitate greater efficacy and efficiency.

In practice, what is feasible or attractive in terms of concrete steps towards an enabling legal and institutional framework for PES will depend upon numerous political, economic, and other factors. Nevertheless, we hope that this framework provides a useful tool in identifying gaps and options in the particular context.

Download full publication at New Forest Trends Publication

Payments for Ecosystem Services Contract Clauses

New Online Resource – Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) Contract Clauses Library

As private and public payments for ecosystem services (PES) transactions gain wider acceptance as a tool for addressing ecosystem degradation and loss, guidance around negotiating and drafting PES agreements becomes increasingly important. In general, drafting a contract consists of adapting and modifying an existing contract, rather than beginning from scratch. Few examples exist, however, of payments for ecosystem services (PES) contracts. The lack of precedents in contracting for PES makes negotiating and drafting these agreements much more costly and time-consuming. It is also likely to put sellers, who may have little commercial experience and limited resources, at a disadvantage relative to commercially-savvy PES buyers or brokers.

 

With the support of UNDP South Africa, the Katoomba Group’s Legal Initiative, which is part of Forest Trends, has put together an online Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) Contract Clauses Library to help address this gap. This web-based resource provides background information about PES contracting and the structure of a PES agreement, as well as basic information about 20 different types of clauses that are likely to be used in these contracts, and 33 example clauses. We hope that this resource will continue to grow and will help PES participants to negotiate and draft effective and equitable PES agreements.

Download full publication here

PhD Opportunities in Finland

Doctoral Program in Energy Efficiency and Systems (EES)

The Academy of Finland has granted funding for a new doctoral program for Energy Efficiency and Systems (EES) during 2012-2015.

Improving the energy and material efficiency in communities and industry is technologically feasible and economically feasible way to dramatically reduce the environmental impacts. The EES program educates researchers and experts for the needs of universities, industry and authorities.

The program is coordinated by Aalto University and it is carried out in partnership with the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, University of Helsinki, Åbo Akademi University, University of Jyväskylä, Tampere University of Technology, University of Vaasa, University of Oulu, and Lappeenranta University of Technology.

Applications are invited for

fifteen (15) salary positions for doctoral students
for a maximum of 4 (four) years starting on 1.1.2012. The applicants must have a MSc degree or equivalent on a suitable subject. Those who have already advanced in their doctoral studies can apply for 1-3 years. The major research fields of the inter-disciplinary program are

•energy technology and systems
•energy conversion and efficiency
•energy resources and environmental impacts
The deadline for applications is November 4th, 2011, at 16:00 Finnish time.

For further details see web pages at http://energia.tkk.fi/en/ees/.

REDD+ Research Position

Vacancy: REDD+ Researcher (m/f)
Closing date for applications: 18.11.2011

The German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) is one of the leading think tanks on development policy. Through excellent research, policy advice and training, the Institute contributes to finding solutions to global challenges.

There is a job vacancy in department “Environmental Policy and Management of Natural Resources” from 01 January 2012 until 31 December 2014 for a Researcher (m/f)

Salary between € 38.000,00 and € 49.000,00 depending on qualifications;

The person will carry out research on benefit-sharing and issues of social inclusion in the context of REDD+ (reducing emissions from forest degradation and deforestation) as well as on the topic of forests in the international climate negotiations in the context of the BMZ-funded project Climate Change and Development.

Qualifications and requirements:

Masters degree and strong academic record in political science, public policy, eco-nomics or human geography, preferably PhD;
Proven knowledge in the field of forests in the climate negotiations;
Relevant research or consulting experience in a development context is of advantage;
Willingness to work in teams;
Fluent spoken and written English and basic knowledge of German; proficiency in another UN language is of advantage;
Willingness and aptness to travel internationally within and outside Europe, including to countries with a tropical climate.

The German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) offers an interesting activity area at the interface of research and policy advice in a family-friendly environment, with ample opportunities to engage in international discussions, political processes and scientific discourse.

Same qualifications provided, we favour applications of physically challenged persons.

For further questions, please contact Dr. Fariborz Zelli or Mr. Hannes Hotz.

Follow this URL to apply.

REDD+ Concerns and Call for Support

Open Letter of Concern to the International Donor Community about the Diversion of Existing Forest Conservation and Development Funding to REDD+

We the undersigned NGOs and Indigenous Peoples’ Organizations (IPOs) want to express our profound concern about the way funds for forest conservation and restoration, and poverty eradication, are being misdirected toward REDD+ projects and policy processes (ostensibly to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and to enhance forest carbon stocks).

Our organizations are working to halt the continued loss of the world’s forests, and to address the impacts this forest loss has on the rights and needs of forest-dependent peoples and on the climate. As such, it is our considered opinion that REDD+ as a mechanism suffers from a large number of inherent risks and problems which cannot be remedied.

1) REDD+-type projects are already having severe negative impacts on the environment and on economically and politically marginalized groups in society, particularly Indigenous Peoples, small farmers, other forest dependent communities, and women.1 Most of the world’s remaining forests are found in areas that are relatively unattractive for industrial agriculture, cattle ranching or other land uses and are inhabited by Indigenous Peoples, small peasant communities and other groups. Many of these groups have insecure title over their land, yet due to their social, economic and cultural circumstances, the resources found in forests play a major role in sustaining their livelihoods. A sudden increase in the economic value of forest land due to the introduction of performance payments for forest conservation will definitely lead to an increased risk of conflict over land between these communities and more economically and politically influential groups that see an opportunity to profit from these payments. For this reason, increased conflicts over land, elite resource capture, forced displacements, involuntary resettlements and human rights violations are inherent outcomes to REDD+ as a forest conservation approach.

2) Performance-based payments for forest carbon storage address only one presumed driver of forest loss: the lack of proper economic valuation of the role of forest carbon storage in overall carbon sequestration. This approach fails to address other direct and indirect drivers of forest loss. Such drivers include lack of recognition of the land rights of Indigenous Peoples and the rights and role of customary caretakers of forest areas; overconsumption of and trade in forest products and products that directly or indirectly impact on forests; and perverse incentives such as subsidies for export crops and monoculture tree plantations. Other important drivers that are ignored by REDD+ include mineral, oil, gas or coal exploration and extraction activities, shrimp farming and large-scale infrastructure projects such as hydroelectric dams, as well as incoherent government policies in general.2

3) Performance-based payments for forest carbon will by definition lead to a situation where one value of forests dominates forest policy decision-making, thus undermining what the Executive Director of the UN Forum on Forests has called a “360 degree” approach to forests, an approach in which all functions and values of forests are taken into account in a balanced manner. This deficiency will not only lead to a marginalization of the social and cultural values of forests in forest policy-making, but also to a marginalization of biodiversity values. Already, there has been a strong tendency in forest carbon offset projects to support growing monoculture plantations of rapidly growing tree species, despite their negative impacts on biodiversity.3 This problem is exacerbated by the flawed forest definition that has been used by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process, which includes monoculture tree plantations as well as “temporarily unstocked areas”, and allows the use of Genetically Engineered (GE) trees.

4) Forest carbon cannot be equated to carbon stored in fossil fuel deposits. There will always be a high risk of non-permanence in forest carbon offset projects, yet it is broadly recognized that no satisfactory solutions for this problem have been developed.4 In fact, this problem cannot be resolved as non-permanence is an inherent feature of forest or tree plantation carbon.

5) Another inherent problem with REDD+ is that performance-based payments will require a significant investment in monitoring, verification and reporting (MRV) systems that can claim to ensure that the forest carbon benefits of a certain initiative are real and additional. Such MRV systems could take up more than half of the overall budget of REDD+ initiatives. As a group of international market specialists have noted:

“Assuming that forest carbon requires a quantification process similar to the one used today, there is no reason to expect that the market for REDD forest carbon will behave any differently. The expertise, travel requirements and operational scale required to follow IPCC-like standards almost certainly requires a multinational organization, one that is well-capitalized and capable of managing many clients at once. Will these organizations be numerous? Unlikely. Will they be domiciled in developing countries? It seems improbable. These skills and scale will cost money to deploy, and that – far more than avarice or inefficiency – explains why REDD projects are likely to spend so much on MRV… Forest carbon is likely to behave as any commodities market would, which implies that producers will derive only marginal benefits from the market as a whole. Moreover, the unique logistical challenges posed by counting carbon to IPCC-like standards imply a very limited population of providers willing to do this for projects.”5 This is an unacceptable waste of money in times when resources are scarce and funding for REDD+ is likely to come from the same sources that could also finance other sorely needed real climate change mitigation and adaptation initiatives. Moreover, these costs make it impossible for economically marginalized groups including Indigenous Peoples, forest dependent communities and women, as well as poor countries, to participate in an equitable manner in REDD+ projects.

6) All these problems will be exacerbated if, as is virtually certain, REDD+ is financed through carbon offset markets. This is the funding option supported by many influential countries and other major stakeholders including the World Bank; even those REDD+ initiatives currently being supported through philanthropy and public monies are generally designed to help jump-start forest carbon markets.6 In addition to undermining forest conservation, such markets can only make climate change worse, due to irresolvable problems relating to permanence, additionality and leakage, while continuing pollution in the North and creating toxic hotspots in vulnerable community areas already disproportionately impacted by toxic exposures and environmental injustices.

7) REDD+ is inherently about commodifying and privatizing air, forests, trees and land. This approach runs counter to the cultural and traditional value systems of many Indigenous Peoples and other forest-dependent communities.7 There is a severe risk the market-oriented approach inherent to REDD+ will undermine value systems that are an essential element of successful community-driven conservation of forest areas, and Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge and conservation practices.

In numerous places in the world, REDD+ projects and policies are being implemented in violation of the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). In Ecuador, the government continues to develop a REDD+ program despite the fact that the most representative organization of Indigenous Peoples, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador, (CONAIE), has explicitly rejected REDD+ policies in the country.8 As Kenya’s Mau Forest is made “ready” for a UNEP-funded REDD+ project, members of the Ogiek People continue to suffer evictions, and Ogiek activists are attacked for protesting land grabs.9 In Indonesia, the Mantir Adat (traditional authorities) of Kadamangan Mantangai, district of Kapuas in the province of Central Kalimantan, “reject REDD projects because it is a threat to the rights and the livelihoods of the Dayak community in the REDD project area”, and have called for the cancellation of a project that has “violated our rights and threatened the basis of survival for the Dayak community.”10

Many companies and organizations which have historically caused pollution and deforestation are promoting REDD+ as a profitable opportunity to “offset” their ongoing pillaging of the planet, including the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, Dow, Rio Tinto, Shell, Statoil, BP Amoco, American Electric Power- AEP, BHB Billiton and the International Tropical Timber Organization. In Brazil, Chevron-Texaco, infamous for causing significant forest loss in the Ecuadorian Amazon and threatening Indigenous Peoples in voluntary isolation, which might lead to genocide, backs a REDD+ project in the Atlantic Forest which uses uniformed armed guards called Força Verde who shoot at people and jail them if they go into the forest.11 In Bolivia, BP, whose oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was the biggest environmental disaster in the history of the United States, participates in the biggest REDD+-type project in the world, which helps it to greenwash its destruction of biodiversity and communities’ livelihoods.12 As noted in the New York Times, “…programs to pay for forest preservation could merely serve as a cash cow for the very people who are destroying them.”13

In Papua New Guinea, Colombia, Peru and elsewhere, “carbon cowboys” are running amok, conning communities into signing away their land rights with fake contracts.14 In the words of one Indigenous leader, REDD+ may be “the biggest land grab of all time” REDD+ is inherently about commodifying and privatizing air, forests, trees and land and corrupts everything that Indigenous Peoples hold sacred, including their traditional knowledge systems.15 Where REDD+ projects target the territories of Indigenous Peoples living in voluntary isolation, as in the Peruvian Amazon or the Paraguayan Chaco, they might even threaten the very survival of these Peoples.16

These risks and problems have been recognized by a large number of UN organizations and other international institutions, as well as by the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change themselves.17 The so-called “safeguards” adopted by a majority of Parties to the UNFCCC show that they are already concerned about the potential negative environmental and social impacts of REDD+. However, these REDD+ “safeguards” will not save forests from being converted into plantations, or Indigenous Peoples’ rights from being violated in REDD+ projects. Nor can they prevent the damage that REDD+ carbon offsets would do to genuine efforts to address climate change. Voluntary, weak and relegated to an annex, they are unsupported by any consensus to make them legally binding, let alone establish a compliance and redress mechanism. In the past, such voluntary safeguards schemes have usually proven to be ineffective, many even serving as greenwash for corporate malpractice.

For that reason, many institutions have emphasized that all land tenure conflicts have to be resolved and that rights of Indigenous Peoples, local communities and women have to be secured, before REDD+ projects and policies are implemented.18 However, this is not a realistic proposition. We strongly support any policy efforts to address land tenure conflicts and human rights violations, especially as far as the rights of Indigenous Peoples are concerned. But land tenure problems and human rights violations in forest areas are far too complicated to be fully resolved in a foreseeable timeframe, and REDD+ will not help. On the contrary, as stated above, the promise of potential performance-based payments would make it more instead of less difficult to resolve these issues, and would tend to weaken instead of strengthen communities’ struggles for their rights.

Considering this long list of broadly acknowledged and inherent risks and negative impacts of REDD+, it is remarkable that an estimated $7.7 billion US has already been committed to it by donor countries.19 Still more remarkable is the fact that foundations formerly renowned for supporting human rights and justice work are adding millions of dollars to projects and initiatives that promote REDD+.20 Meanwhile, there is a financial stranglehold on the often small and independent civil society and Indigenous Peoples organizations that denounce the growing list of human rights violations and environmental destruction caused by REDD+-type projects.

Unintentionally or not, this extreme, unjust funding disparity constitutes a form of de facto financial censorship, and this means that the right to Free, Prior, Informed Consent of the custodians of the majority of the world’s forests, Indigenous Peoples, is being compromised. If there is almost no funding to support detection, documentation and rejection of the negative social and environmental impacts of REDD+ projects, to say nothing of reasoned criticism of its underlying premises, it will be impossible to expose and disseminate all of the crucial information that remote communities need in order to make decisions about REDD+, and any consent they grant will not be thoroughly and fully “informed”. It must be noted that REDD+ and its relationship to the world of carbon markets and offset regimes is a very complex area that many NGOs involved in climate policy do not fully understand. In this respect it should be taken into account that Indigenous Peoples’ fundamental right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent is a pillar of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This right is also recognized in the REDD+ safeguards adopted by the majority of Parties to the Climate Convention, and by UN REDD and other donors. Funding the painting of a rosy REDD+ picture in which communities get paid to take care of forests and share in the costs-benefits of REDD+ programs without showing the darker realities in the background is at best negligent and at worst implicates funders in a severe violation of one of the most important rights of Indigenous Peoples. This letter is intended both as a wakeup call to funders and an invitation to bridge this funding gap.

In this respect it is also important to ensure that community capacity-building and awareness-raising projects provide fair and unbiased information about the quite desolate state of the climate negotiations, and the unwillingness of large Northern polluters to agree to legally binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions or financial support for needed climate measures. In the eyes of many social movements, REDD+ is a paltry fig leaf in this respect. The $100 billion US that was mentioned as possible climate finance in Copenhagen has not been concretized yet, and it is increasingly clear that some of the most important donor countries expect the bulk of this funding to come from carbon markets.21 Already, carbon markets have proven to be a highly volatile and inequitable source of funding, and the current lack of political momentum for a legally binding successor to the Kyoto Protocol will only create more market uncertainty. It is important this information is shared with communities and Indigenous Peoples when they are informed about the “opportunities” of REDD+.

Although protecting forests is a critical piece of the climate mitigation puzzle, a market-oriented and corporate-driven system of performance-based payments comes with inherent risks that are both overwhelming and unavoidable. The irony is that at the same time REDD+ is being so aggressively promoted, there are numerous examples of Indigenous Peoples’ territories and areas where forests have been conserved or restored successfully by communities without performance-based payments based on individual land titles and questionable carbon rights. Examples from countries like India, Gambia, Nepal, Brazil and Rwanda have demonstrated that recognizing community governance over forests and Indigenous Peoples’ rights over their territories provides more effective and ethically sound incentives for forest conservation and restoration, while the Ecuadorian proposal to keep fossil fuels in the ground shows the way toward a more realistic approach to mitigating climate change. In addition to such direct approaches to the fossil fuel problem, it is essential to assure the necessary space for the empowerment of communities that have successfully conserved their forests, and to address the direct and underlying drivers of deforestation such as over-consumption and over-production for and by industrialized societies.

In conclusion, we believe that REDD+ is a fundamentally flawed symptom of a deeper problem, not a step forward. It is a distraction that the planet – our Mother Earth – does not have time for. We should build on the many existing examples of successful forest conservation and restoration rather than investing billions of dollars in an untested, uncertain and questionable REDD+ scheme that is likely to undermine the environmental and social goals of the climate regime rather than support them.

Addressing climate change and forest loss require measures that contribute to thorough economic, ecological and social transformation. To present all sides of the REDD+ story as part of a larger effort to build the diverse and powerful global alliances that can support the transformation that our planet and peoples need, will require the full support of the charity, gift-giving and philanthropy community.

We’re up for the task.

Are you?

Signed:

The No REDD Platform

No REDD Platform

Carbon Trade Watch, International
COECOCEIBA, Amigos de la Tierra, Costa Rica
Global Forest Coalition, International
Global Justice Ecology Project, International
Indigenous Environmental Network, International
Oilwatch, SouthAmerica
National Forum of Forests People and Forest Workers (NFFPFW), India
NESPON, India

Timberwatch, South Africa

The Corner House, UK

World Rainforest Movement, International

Organizations

Rising Tide, Mexico

Colectivo Revuelta Verde, Mexico

FASE, Brazil

Xarxa de l’Observatori del Deute en la Globalització (ODG), Spain

Institute for Social Ecology, US

Ecomunidades, Red Ecologista Autónoma de la Cuenca de México

Centro Ecológico, Brazil

Peoples Movement on Climate Change, Philippines

IBON Foundation

Ecological Society of the Philippines

Mangrove Action Project, US

Foodfirst Information and Action Network (FIAN), Netherlands

Center for Encounter and Active Non-Violence, Australia

Indonesian Peasant Alliance

Tasmanian Public and Environmental Health Network

Fundación ALDHEA (Alternativas Latinoamericanas para el Desarrollo Humano y Estudios Antropológicos), Ecuador

Rural Volunteers Centre, Assam, India

River Basin Friends, NE, India

AFRICANDO, Spain

Ecologistas en Accion, Spain

RAPAM Pesticide Action Network, Mexico

Unión Universal Desarrollo Solidario, Spain

Ecological Society of the Philippines

Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission (JPICC) of the Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines (AMTRSP)

Noor ul Islam, Pakistan

CENSAT Agua Viva – Amigos de la Tierra Colombia

Oilwatch Southeast Asia

Weaker Section Welfare Association

(WESWA Trust), India

Ogoni Indigenous Ministers’ Forum, Nigeria

La Unidad Ecológica Salvadoreña (UNES), El Salvador

Oilwatch International

Oilwatch Mesoamerica

Movement Generation: Justice and Ecology Project, USA

La’o Hamutuk, Timor-Leste Institute for Development Monitoring and Analysis

Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment, Philippines

Grupo de Estudios Ambientales, AC, Spain

Centro para la Autonomía y Desarrollo de PueblosIndígenas, Nicaragua

Red de Coordinación en Biodiversidad, Costa Rica

Thai Working Group for Climate Justice (TCJ), Thailand

Project for Ecological AwarenessBuilding (EAB), Thailand

Palang Thai, Thailand

Integrante de la Dirección del Movimiento Cívico Popular, Mexico

Koalisi Perempuan, Indonesia

Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, USA

Just Transition Alliance, USA

Grassroots International, USA

Southwest Workers Union, USA

Individuals

Cesar Padilla, Ecuador

Josiane Olff-Nathan, France

Delio David Farfán Cruz, Perú

Karen Rothschild, Union paysanne, Canada

Gillian Blair, Otways Conservation Council, Australia

Aruna Rodrigues, Sunray Harvesters, India

Russell Langfield, Australia

Federica Napolitano, Italy

Samuel Leòn Martìnez, Mexico

Maria Vida Cordero, Philippines

Monika Szigeti, Australia

P. S. R. Kanakabaram, India

John Kaganga, Uganda

Elizabeth C. Carranza, Task Force Sierra Madre, Philippines

Mathura P Shrestha, MD, Professor of Public Health, Nepal

Jo Dirix, Belgium

Peter Jones, US

David Leigh, Tasmania

Anabelle E. Plantilla, Philippines

Frederick Laping, Philippines

Gilbert Rodrigo
Aliza Yuliana/Solidaritas Perempuan, Indonesia

Sinduja, India

Doreen Ruta

Pilar Sanmartín, Spain

Rafael Barragán Martín, Spain

Marena Brinkhurst, Canada

Alice Graham, Australia

Jerermy Davis, Australia

Kev Rothery, Australia

Warren Hastings, Australia

Karin Le, Australia

Eveline Dannenburg, Tasmania, Australia

Alan Matfin, Australia

Terrill Riley-Gibson, Australia

Alan Porter, Australia

Hartmut Wege, France

Amira Armenta, Netherlands

Vinay Tandon

End Notes

1 No REDD Platform, No REDD, A Reader (2010), http://noredd.makenoise.org

Lohmann, Larry (2008), Chronicle of a Disaster Foretold?, The Corner House, London, UK,

www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/resource/chronicledisaster-foretold

2 Moussa, J. and Verolme, H. (ed.) (1999), Addressing the Underlying Causes of Deforestation and Forest Degradation, Case Studies, Analysis and Policy Recommendations, Biodiversity Action Network, Washington, USA Global Forest Coalition (2010), Getting to the Roots, Underlying Causes of Deforestation and Forest Degradation and Drivers of Forest

Restoration, Global Forest Coalition, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Mery, G. et. al. (2011) Forests and Society = Responding to Global Drivers of Change, International Union of Forest Research Institutions, January 2011

3 See for example: Acción Ecológica and World Rainforest Movement (2005) Carbon Sink

Plantations in the Ecuadorian Andes, Impacts of the Dutch FACE-Profafor Monoculture tree plantations project on indigenous and peasant communities, World Rainforest Movement,Montevideo, Uruguay.

4 http://unfccc.int/methods_and_science/lulucf/items/4122.php

5 The Munden Project (2011) REDD and Forest Carbon, Market Critique and Recommendations,The Munden Project, USA.

6 Swedish EU Presidency (2009) The REDD Initiative: EU Funds and Phases prepared for theInterparliamentary Conference, September 2009the_redd_initiative -EU-Funds and Phases.pdfIndigenous Environmental Network, Funds and Phases: Prep Cooks, Midwives and Assembly Plants for Carbon Market REDD/REDD+, IEN.

7 Goldtooth, T. (2010), Cashing in on Creation: Gourmet REDD privatizes, packages, patents, sells and corrupts all that is Sacred, http://noredd.makenoise.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/REDDreaderEN.pdf

8 http://www.movimientos.org/enlacei/show_text.php3?key=19549

9 See: International Working Group onIndigenous Affairs (2011), Kenya’s ‘Forest People’in Bitter Fight for their Ancestral Homes, April15 2011 http://www.iwgia.org/news/searchnews?news_id=277 Minority Rights Group International (2011), Minority Rights Group Condemns Targeted Attacks on Ogiek Activists, March 7, 2011, www.newsfromafrica.org/newsfromafrica/articles/art_12373.html First Peoples International (2011), In new Kenya,old guard ‘land-grabbers’ attack key leaders-Ogiek land activists survive assaults, http://firstpeoplesblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/ogiek-land-activists-survive-assaults.pdf Interim Coordinating Secretariat, Office of the Prime Minister on behalf of the Government of Kenya, Rehabilitation of the Mau Forest Ecosystem, www.kws.org/export/sites/kws/info/maurestoration/maupublications/Mau_Forest_Complex_Concept_paper.pdf . Los Angeles Times (2010), Kenyan tribe slowlydriven off its ancestral lands, http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jan/04/world/la-fg-kenyaforest4-2010jan04 Survival International (2010), Kenyan tribe’shouses torched in Mau Forest eviction 8 April 2010, Video at: www.survivalinternational.org/news/5722 http://www.survivalinternational.org/tribes/ogiek . REDD Monitor (2009), Ogiek threatened witheviction from MauForest, www.redd-monitor.org/2009/11/19/ogiek-threatened-with-evictionfrom-mau-forest-kenya/

10 REDD-Monitor (2011), Stop the Indonesia- –Australia REDD+ Project In the Customary Area of the Dayak People in Central Kalimantan,www.redd-monitor.org/2011/06/15/stop-theindonesia-australia-redd-project-indigenouspeoples-opposition-to-the-kalimantan-forestsand-climate-partnership/#more-8887

11 PBS/ Frontline World, Carbon Watch Centrefor Investigative Journalism, www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/carbonwatch/moneytree/ Mother Jones (2009), GM’s Money Trees, www.motherjones.com/environment/2009/11/ gms-money-trees REDD-Monitor (2009), Injustice on the carbon

frontier in Guaraqueçaba, Brazil, www.reddmonitor.org/2009/11/06/injustice-on-thecarbon-frontier-in-guaraquecaba-brazil/

NationalMuseum of the American Indian, Conversations with the Earth, Smithsonian Institute, WashingtonDChttp://www.americanindian.si.edu/

12 Cardona, T. et. al. (2010) Extractive Industries and REDD, No REDD A Reader, http://noredd.makenoise.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/REDDreaderEN.pdf

13 The New York Times, Elisabeth Rosenthal (2009), “In Brazil, Paying Farmers to Let theTrees Stand”, 21 August 2009.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/22/science/earth/22degrees.html

14 Gridneff, I. (2011), Carbon conmen selling the sky, The Sydney Morning Herald www.smh.com.au/world/carbon-conmen-sellingthe-sky-20090612-c63i.html See VIDEO A Breath of Fresh Air (2009 by Jeremy Dawes, www.redd-monitor.

org/2009/09/11/more-questions-than-answerson-carbon-trading-in-png/

15 Press Release, IEN and Friends of the Earth Nigeria, “Shell Bankrolls REDD: Indigenous and Environmentalist Denouce,” 7 September 2010.

16 Cabello J. (2010), Enclosure of Forest and Peoples: REDD and the Inter-oceanic Highway in Peru, No REDD, a Reader, http://noredd.makenoise.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/REDDreaderEN.pdf

17 See for example: Poverty and EnvironmentPartnership -ODI, IUCN, UNDP, SIDA, IIED, ADB, DFID, the French Ministry of the environment and UNEP WCMC, (2008) Making REDD work for the Poor, www.povertyenvironment.

net/?q=filestore2/download/1852/Making-REDDwork-for-the-poor-FINAL-DRAFT-0110.pdf Karsenty, A (2008) The architecture of proposed REDD schemes after Bali: facing critical choices, in International Forestry Review Vol. 10(3), 2008

(pp. 443 – 457), ONF International, 2008. Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD), Analysis of 7 outstanding issues for the inclusion of tropical forests in the international climate governance. ONF International,

Paris, France, and Peskett, L. And Harkin, Z., 2007. Risk and responsibility in Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation. Overseas Development Institute, London, UK.

18 Poverty and Environment Partnership, 2008, Global Witness, 2008. IndependentForest Monitoring and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation. Global Witness: Cotula, L. and J. Mayers, 2009.Tenure in REDD: Start-point

or Afterthought?, Natural Resource Issues No. 15, International Institute for Environment and Development: London, UK; Grieg-Gran, M., I. Porras,and S. Wunder, 2005. “How can Market Mechanisms for Forest Environmental Services help the

Poor? Preliminary Lessons from Latin America”. World Development, 33(9): 1511-1527.

19 REDD+ Partnership (2011), REDD+ Partnership Voluntary REDD+ Database Updated Progress Report, 11 June 2011, page 6, table 1.

20 See the Climate and Land Use Alliance, a joint funding initiative of the Ford Foundation, the Betty and Gordon Moore Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and ClimateWorks: “The projected 2011 budget for the

initiatives described in this strategy overview is approximately $32.5 million”,www.climateandlandusealliance.org

21 See for example http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/articles/financial_operations/pdf/sec_2011_487_final_en.pdf

22 See http://noredd.makenoise.org for more information on the No REDD Platform

Research Fellow for REDD+ and land use

Oversea Development Institute or ODI’s work on climate change is split into four cross-institute teams that draw on dedicated communications, project management and business development support. The themes are: Adaptation and resilience; Climate finance; Land use, including forests, fuel and food; and Low carbon growth and energy. We are offering an exciting opportunity for an experienced individual to join our Land use team as an ODI Research Fellow.
The post-holder will be part of the Climate Change, Environment and Forests (CCEF) programme, which forms the hub of ODI’s cross-institute work on climate change.
Recent highlights of ODI’s work on climate change includes:

1. Leadership of the research and knowledge management components of the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (www.cdkn.org)

2. Significant international profile for our work on climate finance, both internationally and at the national level, including the Climate Funds Update website (www.climatefundsupdate.org)

3. Hosting of the REDD-Net research and networking project, to enhance the social co-benefits of REDD+ (www.redd-net.org).

About the job:
Responsibilities of the role include:

research and policy advisory work: conducting high-quality, innovative research
fundraising: attracting funds through bids and marketing, including the development of a substantial personal research portfolio
public affairs: disseminating and promoting ODI’s work and ideas on climate change.

We are looking to recruit a climate change, land use and forests specialist to contribute to the growth of ODI’s work on REDD+ and land use. The successful candidate will have:

extensive knowledge of key issues and organisations in international development and forests, land use and/or agriculture
experience of policy-orientated research, demonstrated by a track record of publications and reports
proven ability to translate research ideas into fundable projects
strong analytical skills, a capacity to write clearly and excellent organisational and oral communication skills.

Salary: Research Fellow 1: £36,883 – £45,336 pa or Research Fellow 2: £46,695 – £57,430 pa
Position in: Climate Change, Environment and Forests
Closing date: 16 October 2011

Apply here

BioCarbon Tracker

BioCarbon Tracker, a Greenergy project developed by Ecometrica, is an innovative online project to map and monitor the impacts of biofuel and commerical agricultural demand on stocks of carbon in forests and other ecosystems. BioCarbon Tracker uses satellite data and advanced methods to map the ecosystems where biocarbon is stored, identify vegetation at risk from land use change and monitor where high biocarbon stock land such as forest is converted to agriculture.

Follow the link below to check out the highest resolution online maps of terrestrial carbon currently available:

http://www.biocarbontracker.com

BioCarbon Tracker is a non-profit company funded by Greenergy, with scientific input from Ecometrica, the University of Edinburgh and the National Centre for Earth Observation.