246ISSN 0041-6436 An international journal of forestry and forest industries Vol. 67 2016/1 FORESTS IN THE CLIMATE CHANGE AGENDA Joining forces to achieve SDG15: Delivering on the global agenda for forests, climate and development UN system side event UNFCCC COP22 Interactive town hall discussion on Marrakech, Morocco REDD+ (reducing deforestation and forest Blue Zone, Arabian Room degradation) and other land-use-related initiatives as powerful catalysts for delivering 16 November 2016 on SDG15 and achieving countries’ Nationally 18.30–20.00 Determined Contributions Moderated by Matt Frei (Channel 4 News) Speakers will include José Graziano da Silva (FAO Director-General) and Erik Solheim (UNEP Executive Director), with an international panel of ministers and high-level representatives from Chad, Costa Rica, Fiji, Ghana, Indonesia, the United Kingdom and other agencies (UNDP and World Bank). 246ISSN 0041-6436 An international journal of forestry and forest industries Vol. 67 2016/1 Editor: S. Lapstun Editorial Advisory Board: S. Braatz, I. Buttoud, P. Csoka, L. Flejzor, T. Hofer, Contents F. Kafeero, W. Kollert, S. Lapstun, D. Mollicone, D. Reeb, S. Rose, J. Tissari, Editorial 2 P. van Lierop Emeritus Advisers: J. Ball, I.J. Bourke, P. Iversen C. Palmberg-Lerche, L. Russo Forests’ role in the climate change agenda 3 Regional Advisers: F. Bojang, P. Durst, A.A. Hamid, J. Meza A. Cattaneo and L. Lipper Incorporating forest landscapes into climate-smart Unasylva is published in English, French agricultural strategies 12 and Spanish. Subscriptions can be obtained by sending an e-mail to [email protected]. M.J. Sanz and J. Penman Subscription requests from institutions An overview of REDD+ 21 (e.g. libraries, companies, organizations, universities) rather than individuals are M.J. Sanz preferred to make the journal accessible to UN-REDD, the United Nations programme to reduce emissions more readers. from deforestation and forest degradation (2008–2015) 31 All issues of Unasylva are available online free of charge at www.fao.org/forestry/ G. Muir, J. Murray, E. Sartoretto, D. Hewitt, R. Simpson and J. Fox unasylva. Comments and queries are welcome: Coordinating climate action: experiences from REDD+ [email protected]. and FLEGT 37 FAO encourages the use, reproduction and dissemination of material in this information C.S. Silori, K. Wiset, B.H. Poudyal and T. Vu product. Except where otherwise indicated, Grassroots facilitators as agents of change for promoting material may be copied, downloaded and sustainable forest management: lessons learned from REDD+ printed for private study, research and teaching capacity development in Asia 45 purposes, or for use in non-commercial products or services, provided that appropriate J. Bervoets, F. Boerstler, M. Dumas-Johansen, A. Thulstrup acknowledgement of FAO as the source and and Z. Xia copyright holder is given and that FAO’s Forests and access to energy in the context of climate change: endorsement of users’ views, products or the role of the woodfuel sector in selected INDCs in services is not implied in any way. The designations employed and the sub-Saharan Africa 53 presentation of material in this information W. A. Kurz, C. Smyth and T. Lemprière product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Climate change mitigation through forest sector activities: Agriculture Organization of the United Nations principles, potential and priorities 61 (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or J. Loo of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation Forest genetic resources and adaptation to climate change 68 of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of C. O’Donnell, J. Recharte and A. Taber specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does Climate change, mountain people and water resources – not imply that these have been endorsed or the experiences of the Mountain Institute, Peru 75 recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. FAO Forestry 81 The FAO publications reviewed in Unasylva World of Forestry 83 are available on the FAO website (www.fao. org/publications) and can be purchased through Books 85 [email protected]. Cover: Trees cling to the slopes of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, United States of America © Roy Luck EDITORIAL lmost one year has passed since the parties to the United capacities and the involvement of grassroots stakeholders, thereby Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change improving implementation. (UNFCCC) met in Paris and agreed to make a collec- In turn, Bervoets, Boerstler, Dumas-Johansen, Thulstrup and Ative endeavour to limit temperature increases to below 2 °C. Xia shed light on an important concern for many African coun- But between the intention and its realization lies a great deal of tries, namely woodfuel. They stress the importance of factoring uncharted territory, and it is useful to map out what has already woodfuel into the climate change equation, including both the been accomplished. This issue of Unasylva comes just a few extent to which it is contributing to emissions and the role that days after the Paris Agreement entered into force on 4 November it can play as a substitute for fossil fuels. 2016 and coincides with the 22nd Conference of the Parties of The article by Kurz, Smyth and Lemprière provides a different UNFCCC (COP 22), which will be decisive for the effective perspective on wood, looking specifically at the role of harvested implementation of the agreement. wood products to maximize the displacement of emissions from The articles cover a range of aspects relating to the role of other sectors, and the accounting principles involved. forests in the climate change agenda. Together they provide a Strategies to deal with climate change must take a range of areas comprehensive overview, both for those already versed in the into account in order to be successful. Loo’s article highlights complexities of the issues and those who would like to gain a the adaptation potential of forest genetic resources, as well as better grasp of them. Readers will be able to gain better insight their importance in the tree-planting efforts needed for climate into the background and status of ongoing climate negotiations, change mitigation. the functioning of mechanisms and initiatives such as Reducing The final article describes some effective adaptation measures emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+), for coping with the tangible effects of climate change, presenting and where these stand in the international architecture. They the case of mountain areas in Peru that are already witnessing will also discover several interesting and innovative success significant glacial retreat and glacial lake outburst floods. stories that point the way to some avenues for further exploration. These and other types of climate-change-related phenomena The introductory article, by Iversen, provides a snapshot of will spread and increase as temperatures rise, and the many the main international agreements relating to climate change, effects of climate change are only just beginning to be felt glob- the place of forests within these agreements, and the obstacles ally. This issue of Unasylva cautions that we will have to work that remain to be overcome. Although the UNFCCC has long faster, more collaboratively and in a more integrated way if we recognized forests’ key role in climate regulation, accurate are to successfully tackle the enormous challenge that is facing and comparable monitoring and reporting are still a challenge. us today. u The second article, by Cattaneo and Lipper, identifies further challenges. Arguing that the drivers of deforestation and for- est degradation are often situated outside the forest sector, it highlights the need to look at land use through a broad lens and build the synergies between forestry and agriculture. Sanz and Penman give a detailed account of REDD+, argu- ably the most important mitigation initiative involving forests, and explain its role in providing a framework and guidance for countries to develop concrete action plans. Sanz then looks specifically at UN-REDD, a multilateral programme that supports over 60 partner countries in meeting their REDD+ commitments. Muir, Murray, Sartoretto, Hewitt, Simpson and Fox explore REDD+ from another angle, making a convincing case for strengthening its interlinkages with the European Union’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) initiative. Whereas REDD+ provides incentives to keep forests stand- ing, FLEGT improves the functioning of the market for forest products by eliminating illegal timber. Viet Nam, Honduras and Côte d’Ivoire are examples of countries that are successfully developing synergies between the two. Silori, Wisyet, Poudyal and Wu also share noteworthy examples of the application of REDD+ on the ground, looking at several Asian countries where efforts are being made to strengthen the 3 © FAO/GIULIO NAPOLITANO Forests’ role in the climate change agenda P. Iversen Where and how forests fit into the orest ecosystems are affected by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentration main international agreements climate change, e.g. changes in levels in the atmosphere at a level that on climate change. temperature, changes in precipita- would prevent dangerous anthropogenic Ftion patterns and an increasing frequency interference with the climate system, to of extreme weather events. At the same be achieved within a timeframe sufficient time, forest ecosystems remove signifi- to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to cant amounts of greenhouse gases, mostly climate change. Exactly what this means in CO2, from the atmosphere through forest practice is not explained, but the 197 coun- growth, afforestation and reforestation, tries that have ratified and become Parties and add to them through deforestation and to the Convention have nevertheless agreed forest degradation. to work towards this objective, with dif- The United Nations Framework Conven- fering responsibilities for developed and tion on Climate Change (UNFCCC)1 was developing countries.