Tag: mitigation
CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study on REDD+: Factsheets on research findings and goals
Deforestation and forest degradation account for around 10% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing these emissions through the conservation and restoration of forests is therefore critical for efforts to mitigate climate change. REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation plus enhancing forest carbon stocks) was introduced as a fresh, new approach to forest protection: it set out to create a system whereby forest users would receive financial incentives to conserve, restore and sustainably manage forest resources. REDD+ has evolved considerably since it was introduced, in response to how it is understood in different contexts and by different actors, the absence of a new international agreement on climate change, and the numerous technical, political and economic challenges that have arisen in its design and implementation. Many countries are getting involved in REDD+, even while international negotiations are ongoing. Governments are developing national REDD+ strategies and setting up institutions to coordinate activities and manage funding. At subnational levels (i.e., in provinces, districts and villages), organizations are running pilot or demonstration projects. In 2009, CIFOR and its partners launched the Global Comparative Study on REDD+, which looks at national and subnational REDD+ activities in 13 countries. The aim is to identify the challenges and enabling conditions for achieving REDD+ policies and projects whose outcomes are effective, efficient and equitable. The results are being used to guide policy makers, governments and project proponents in designing and implementing REDD+. Phase I of the Global Comparative Study on REDD+ ran from 2009 to 2013. The research generated a wealth of outputs, including peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, conference papers, guidelines, policy briefs, working papers and manuals. The main findings are synthesized in the book Analysing REDD+: Challenges and Choices. Phase II of the Global Comparative Study on REDD+ got underway in 2013. It builds on the findings from the first phase and comprises four research modules: REDD+ Policies, REDD+ Subnational Initiatives, Measuring Carbon Emissions, Mitigation-Adaptation Synergies, and Multilevel Governance, Carbon Management and Land-Use Decisions. A fifth module is focusing on knowledge sharing, a key component of the Global Comparative Study on REDD+.
CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study on REDD+ (GCS)
Informing REDD+ policy: an assessment of CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study
Research on climate change mitigation at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) aims to ensure that forest-based emissions reductions are efficient, equitable and provide benefits to affected communities in developing countries. Through its Global Comparative Study, CIFOR is producing knowledge to inform global, national and local REDD+ policy in 15 tropical forest countries. This assessment asks how well the Global Comparative Study has achieved its aim and how it could be improved. The report presents the evaluation methodology, results and recommendations for CIFOR’s future policy engagement work.
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the global food system
Key messages
- Food system emissions are critical: The global food system contributes 29% of all anthropogenic GHG emissions, with AFOLU accounting for 18% of global emissions. Non-AFOLU emissions (energy, waste, industry) – which are often overlooked – add 11% and are becoming the dominant source of food system emissions in developed countries.
- Avoiding aggregation bias: Grouping some emission sources into broad categories while breaking down others can obscure the importance of the smaller but often significant sources. Targeting these smaller sources, or ‘low-hanging fruit’, can effectively accelerate emissions reductions.
- Closing data gaps: A lack of detailed data on land use and food system emissions hinders the identification of high-impact mitigation strategies. More granular, reliable data collection at national and subnational levels is essential for effective policymaking.
- NDC segmentation: NDCs are organized around the four economic sectors (AFOLU, energy, IPPU and waste) in the IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. This hinders the development of integrated policies to reduce GHG emissions in the food system, which spans across these four sectors.
- Collaboration, engagement and research are key: Strengthening national research and fostering collaboration across civil society, governments, academia and the private sector are vital to creating context-specific, sustainable policies that address climate-change mitigation and adaptation without threatening food security, particularly for vulnerable populations.
Methods for Measuring Greenhouse Gas Balances and Evaluating Mitigation Options in Smallholder Agriculture
This book provides standards and guidelines for quantifying greenhouse gas emissions and removals in smallholder agricultural systems and comparing options for climate change mitigation based on emission reductions and livelihood trade-offs. Globally, agriculture is directly responsible for about 11% of annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and induces an additional 17% through land use change, mostly in developing countries. Farms in the developing countries of sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are predominately managed by smallholders, with 80% of land holdings smaller than ten hectares. However, little to no information exists on greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation potentials in smallholder agriculture. Greenhouse gas measurements in agriculture are expensive, time consuming, and error prone, challenges only exacerbated by the heterogeneity of smallholder systems and landscapes. Concerns over methodological rigor, measurement costs, and the diversity of approaches, coupled with the demand for robust information suggest it is germane for the scientific community to establish standards of measurements for quantifying GHG emissions from smallholder agriculture. Standard guidelines for use by scientists, development organizations will help generate reliable data on emissions baselines and allow rigorous comparisons of mitigation options. The guidelines described in this book, developed by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security (CCAFS) and partners, are intended to inform anyone conducting field measurements of agricultural greenhouse gas sources and sinks, especially to develop IPCC Tier 2 emission factors or to compare mitigation options in smallholder systems.