REDD+, Biodiversity and People: Opportunities and Risks

This policy brief summarizes the key messages of the GFEP report "Understanding Relationships between Biodiversity, Carbon, Forests and People: The Key to Achieving REDD+ Objectives" and reaches out to international as well as national policymakers and other stakeholders.

Following key messages are highlighted:

• Biodiversity is a key determinant of forests' ability to effectively provide ecosystem services, notably carbon sequestration, and to remain resilient in the face of disturbances such as climate change.
• The most immediate and greatest benefits for both carbon and biodiversity are likely to come from actions that reduce deforestation and degradation.
• REDD+ actions can have highly variable impacts on carbon and biodiversity, at different spatial and temporal scales.
• Pursuing social objectives alongside REDD+ will also increase the likelihood of achieving carbon and biodiversity goals.
• For REDD+ implementation to be effective, tenure and property rights, including rights of access, use and ownership, need to be clear.
• An integrated landscape management approach provides a useful tool to reconcile environmental, social and economic considerations relevant to REDD+.
• There is a tension between national REDD+ efforts aimed at international standardisation, the strengthening of national sovereignty, and efforts to empower local communities as key actors in REDD+.
• Understanding the relationship between biodiversity, carbon forests and people is the key to achieving REDD+ objectives.

PDFs for download

• Download Policy Brief English (PDF, 2.4 MB)
• Download Policy Brief French (PDF, 2.3 MB)
• Download Policy Brief Spanish (PDF, 2.3 MB)