UN-REDD

By Johan Kieft (UN Environment – Regional technical specialist) and Richard Wecker (UNICEF Indonesia – DRR specialist), originally published on the UN-REDD blog. Large-scale conversion of natural peatland and forests to croplands on the islands Sumatra, Borneo (Kalimantan) and Papua has radically altered the lives and livelihoods of millions of Indonesians in recent decades. Slash-and-burn […]

By Tim Christophersen, originally posted at the UN-REDD Programme The lack of knowledge on peatlands must be addressed urgently. An often neglected ecosystem, and significant contributor to climate change, is peat. When it burns or dries up huge amounts of CO2 are released. The UK Met Office says carbon dioxide levels have seen a surge in recent months as […]

Originally posted at the UN-REDD Programme Indonesia’s president Joko Widodo announced the other week a landmark moratorium banning all peat-damaging activities. At the Climate COP in Marrakech a new UN Environment-led global initiative, the Global Peatlands Initiative, was launched. Why that sudden focus on protecting peatlands, an ecosystem so far not on the radar of […]

The UN-REDD Programme is pleased to announce the launch of the first online version of its succesful REDD+ Academy courses and accompanying Learning Journals, making this valuable knowledge resource available to REDD+ policymakers, practitioners and communities worldwide. The REDD+ Academy was designed to support developing countries to gain the knowledge and capacities needed to deliver […]

This UN-REDD Info Brief assesses whether and how soft commodity risk policies by banks and investors could potentially benefit UN-REDD countries to achieve REDD+ results based on an analysis of risk policies from a range of financial institutions. This brief has been produced in parallel with a report by UNEP (2015) titled ‘Bank and Investor […]

By Gabrielle Kissinger, consultant at UNEP UN-REDD Programme Indonesian palm oil production is recognized as a driver of deforestation and source of considerable greenhouse gas emissions, particularly in peat-rich areas. But what are the real drivers for palm oil producers—both large and small—to expand production into forests? Clearly market demand has a role to play, […]