Assisting countries to plan for REDD+ and contribute to multiple policy objectives
UN-REDD Programme resources on multiple benefits and safeguards
UN-REDD Programme country resources hub (multiple benefits)
UN-REDD Programme safeguards video – Experiences from Africa
Information Brief on REDD+ and adaptation
Climate change and biodiversity loss are global challenges that affect all our futures. Decision makers are faced with developing and implementing solutions at both international and national levels. One such effort under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is REDD+, which is intended to provide financial incentives for developing countries to reduce CO2 emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and to conserve, manage and enhance existing forest carbon stocks, as a contribution to mitigating climate change.
Action on REDD+ has the potential to help countries achieve other policy goals in addition to emissions reduction. It could also contribute to biodiversity conservation and enabling the sustainable use of forest resources, which are key objectives for parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The degree to which REDD+ does deliver benefits beyond the protection of forest carbon stocks, and the potential synergies with CBD objectives, will depend on which policy measures are selected to advance REDD+ objectives, and how and where they are implemented. Making sound decisions that achieve multiple objectives requires access to, and application of good information on the extent and distribution of existing forests, biodiversity, other ecosystem services, and the geographical patterns of land-use change and its drivers.
UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre is currently working with national and international partners, through the UN-REDD Programme and the REDD-PAC project, to support a range of countries in their REDD+ planning and implementation. We help countries to assess the linkages between their REDD+ policies and safeguards, and other policy objectives, including National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs). Maps and innovative analysis of spatial information play a large role in this support.
We contribute to the UN-REDD Programme by leading UN Environments technical support to countries on multiple benefits and safeguards. We assist national governments in developing decision-making tools that support REDD+ planning. Our activities include:
The REDD-PAC project, a collaboration between the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) and the Central African Forestry Commission (COMIFAC), aims to support the identification of REDD+ policies that are economically efficient, socially fair, can safeguard and enhance ecosystem values, and can help meet CBD goals. Activities within the project have included:
The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre team carrying out this work have significant experience in supporting countries in creating, using and managing spatial information and developing decision-support tools on biodiversity and climate change. They have a broad range of experience in REDD+ policy, biodiversity, ecology, forestry and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Lera Miles coordinates the Centre’s work with the UN-REDD Programme and Rebecca Mant coordinates the Centre’s work on the REDD-PAC project. Corinna Ravilious is the lead GIS specialist. The work is supported by the whole of the Centre’s Climate Change and Biodiversity team.
Senior Programme Officer
Senior GIS Officer
The UN-REDD Programme is the United Nations Collaborative Initiative on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) in developing countries. The Programme was launched in 2008 and builds on the convening role and technical expertise of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Environment. The UN-REDD Programme supports nationally led REDD+ processes and promotes the informed and meaningful involvement of all stakeholders, including indigenous peoples and other forest-dependent communities, in national and international REDD+ implementation.
The REDD-PAC project is funded by the German government through its International Climate Initiative. The REDD-PAC project team is formed of the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) and the Central African Forestry Commission (COMIFAC).
Additional national partners are acknowledged within individual publications.