Rio+20: Are human development indices forest-blind?When policymakers and national planners set out to enhance local “quality of life,” they often base their decisions on a variant of the United Nations’ Human Development Index (HDI), a basket of indicators, ranging from income to life expectanc
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As the Earth warms, forest floors add greenhouse gases to the airHuge amounts of carbon trapped in the soils of U.S.
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Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities on Climate Change against REDD+After more than 500 years of resistance, we, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, peasant farmers, fisherfolk and civil society are not fooled by the so-called Green Economy and REDD+ because we know colonialism when we see it.
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Code REDD for environmental protectionUp to now a forest’s value has been measured mainly in terms of the price of its wood, but the United Nations is currently turning this premise on its head by placing a price on the forest’s capacity to absorb the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
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Timberland in Institutional Investment Portfolios: Can Significant Investment Reach Emerging Markets?A survey was carried out to improve the understanding of current investment patterns in forestry by investors and of the framework in which such investments are made.
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New Online Tool Supports Fight Against Illegal LoggingThe World Resources Institute (WRI) today announced the launch of the Forest Legality Risk Information Tool, an open-access global information website designed to assist purchasers of forest products in securing fiber from legal sources.
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Public consultation launched for revised REDD+ SES version 2The REDD+ Social & Environmental Standards (REDD+ SES) launched its public consultation on revised draft ‘REDD+ SES Social and Environmental Standards Version 2′ from 22nd June until 21st July 2012.
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REDD+ a “game changer” in the move towards a global green economy, says Norwegian Minister Reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation schemes, or REDD+, could be the “game changer” that enables forest-rich countries to meet sustainable development goals and work toward a greener economy, said the Norwegian Minster for Environment at a recent CIFOR event.
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Green businesses set to lead creation of Rio's+20 "Future We Want”It has been impossible to avoid the glut of criticism from green NGOs and politicians left deeply disappointed by the lack of ambition on display at the Rio +20 Earth summit last week.
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Finding Balance: Our future, our forestsThe United Nations Forum on Forests partnered with a multimedia firm to produce a compelling story line about forests that goes beyond simple conservation.
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Sustainable land use for the 21st century It is estimated that the human footprint has affected 83% of the global terrestrial
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Alaska's Tongass forest sparks battle over logging(REUTERS) -- Environmental advocates readied for battle in Congress this week over what they maintain is an erosion of protections for the biggest, oldest trees in Alaska's Tongass National Forest, often called the crown jewel of the U.S. forest system.
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Putting forests at the heart of a new, greener economyThe world's forests have a major role to play in the transition to a new, greener economy, a theme being discussed at the Rio+20 Conference. But to spark that shift, governments must enact programs and policies aimed at both unlocking the potential of forests and ensuring that they are sustainab
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RIO+20: Reforestation Pledges Reach Only 12 Percent of TargetThe world’s countries have committed themselves so far to restoring just 18 million hectares of forests by 2020, barely 12 percent of the goal of 150 million hectares agreed by the Bonn Challenge in 2011.
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Na Hang special-use forest unavoidable of illegal lumberjacks?The Na Hang special-use forest, the land of many kinds of rare and precious trees which are hundreds of years old, have been in serious danger.
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Liberia's hasty forest sell-off risks more conflict
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FMO signs first contract in Sustainable Forestry
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 Summary
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REDD+ and the global economy Summary
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REDD+ safeguards in national policy discourse and pilot projects Summary
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Nova Scotia providing $1 million fund for building and maintaining private woodlot roadsThe province of Nova Scotia is making $1 million available so private woodlot owners, including those in Queens County and the South Shore, can access more of their forest land.
The provincial fund is helping woodlot owners build and maintain woodlot roads.
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Community-Powered Monitoring of REDD+ Summary
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FCPR–Forest Conservation Performance Rating for the Pan-Tropics - Working Paper 294  This note introduces and illustrate
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FORMA and fCPR: Accelerating a Performance-Based Payment System for REDD+ Reducing carbon emissions from forest clearing and degradat
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Calls for halt of World Bank's climate initiatives
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Lenzing Site : Construction Start of the New TENCEL® Production FacilityInvestments of EUR 130 mn in Upper Austria
Expected completion in about 24 months
110 new jobs
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Comparative Study on REDD: Recommendations for Action This study analyses similarities and differences in c
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Small farmers cause substantial damage in the Amazon rainforestSmall farmers are less likely than large landowners to maintain required forest cover on their property in the Brazilian Amazon, worsening the environmental impact of their operations, reported a re
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The Journey of Forest Governance When I started working on forest governance issues, back in the late 19
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Rio+20: Forests form important foundation for a green economy Forests constitute the vast majority of what is green on planet earth. The quest for a green economy at Rio+20 excited the full spectrum of the forest community – from forest industries to local forest rights-holder groups.
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BY Michelle Kovacevic, CIFOR
(CIFOR - June 26, 2012) - Forests have been largely ignored or ambiguously mentioned in the Rio+20 outcome document, yet again postponing progress on integrating forests into sustainable development objectives, said CIFOR scientists at the conclusion of the Rio+20 summit last week.
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The false solutions of Rio+20As evening falls, Albertina Francisco*, a farmer from the Nhambita community in Sofala province, Mozambique, returns home. She is tired after another day of work at her machamba (a term used in Mozambique to refer to a patch of farmland).
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Tree planting project threatens food securityAPPROPRIATION of massive land from villagers for tree planting in the Reduced Emission from Deforestation and Forest (REDD) programme is feared to threaten food security, unless the exercise was carefully undertaken.
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At least 2,500 farmers in the western districts of Uganda are earning extra cash to boost their livelihoods by planting trees alongside their crops in a scheme that is helping to sequester carbon dioxide.
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Opinion-Editorial from British Columbia’s Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource OperationsEnsuring a sustainable timber supply, with the right mix of tree species, is a top priority for the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.
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Land tenure for whom? Recognising community rights essential for REDD+ legitimacy If a scheme to pay developing countries to reduce carbon emissions by slowing deforestation is to have legitimacy, land tenure needs not just to be clarified – but to be clarified in a way that respects the rights of local communities, according to experts from the
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EBRD: Promoting sustainable forestry from Bratislava to VladivostokOur forests are a vital source of life to plants, animals and humans alike. Their trees do not merely provide a habitat for many species, but they also make the air clean and mitigate the effects of climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide.
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Critical Need for Sustainable Forest Management Training in PeruWhen it comes to sustainable forestry, the country of Peru is at a critical crossroads. On a trip to that country this spring, I met with government, industry and conservation officials regarding a proposed Spanish-language training center for their region.
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Gabon is ripe for the fellingMultinational companies are queuing up to do business in Gabon, despite questions being raised about the validity of President Ali Bongo Ondimba’s rule.
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Global Environment raises Rs. 700 cr fundMumbai: Sustainable forestry-focused private equity (PE) firm, Global Environment Fund (GEF), has raised a Rs. 700 crore, small and medium enterprises (SME)-focused South Asia fund dedicated to India—the first niche fund of its kind in the coun
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UK consortium to help fight global deforestation through REDD+ UK satellite imaging company DMCii has successfully led a multi-disciplinary consortium to win a place on the Department for International Development (DfID) Forest Governance Markets and Climate (FGMC) Framework Agreement.
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Asia Pulp & Paper Pledges ‘Sustainable Forest Management’Asia Pulp & Paper has pledged that by 2020 all of its suppliers will be certified under the voluntary Indonesian sustainable forest management scheme.
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Identifying and Working with Beneficiaries When Rights Are Unclear: Insights for REDD+ Initiatives The sustainability of REDD+ initiatives will depend heav
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Making benefit sharing arrangements work for forest dependent communities: Overview of Insights for REDD+ InitiativesBenefit sharing is central to achieving the objectives of
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Is aggressive salvage logging in B.C. causing the crash of the moose populations?The Vancouver Sun is reporting that the salvage logging (Kalamitätsnutzung) of the beetle-killed pine forests in British Columbia is being blamed for moose populations in the interior crashing by up to 70%.
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Clariant Launches Biofuel of the FutureMuttenz, Switzerland, Jul 20, 2012 - Clariant, the Swiss specialty chemicals company, today inaugurated Germany's biggest pilot plant for the production of climate-friendly cellulose ethanol from agricultural waste.
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More old growth forest protected in British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is now protecting an additional 14,750 hectares of old growth forest on the Sunshine Coast.
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1.8 billion acres of timberland sold to TIMOThe world’s largest timber investment management organisation (TIMO), Hancock Timber Resources Group, and Molpus Woodland Group, have bought a 1.88 million acre plantation from Oregon’s Forest Capital Partners.
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OPIC/Terra Global REDD Insurance Project in Cambodia Wins Sustainable Forestry Award
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Do Property Rights Promote Investment But Cause Deforestation? Many policymakers argue that property rights decrease deforestation. Some theoretical papers also make this prediction, arguing that property rights decrease discount rates applied to a long-term investment in forestry. However, the effect is theoretically ambiguous.
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NASA Deforestation Photos: 7 Examples Of Our Disappearing ForestsThe effects of deforestation on the Earth are massive. Land is routinely cleared and degraded for agriculture and the production of wood and paper products.
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Quebec releases new 2012-2017 Forest Sector Transformation StrategyQuebec‘s new 2012-2017 Forest Sector Transformation Strategy was unveiled Monday by the Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune (MRNF).
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Resolute Forest Products logging under heavy police presence at Barriere LakeMontreal riot police have been sent 5 hours north of Montreal to the area where the Algonquin First Nation of Barriere Lake are protesting Resolute Forest Products‘ logging activity.
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Soon, you can earn credits for planting trees
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Pricing nature's freebies
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Scottish forestry potential looking goodA new report from the Forestry Commission states that Scotland potentially has significantly more softwood resource than was thought.
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Wood-Fired Plants Generate ViolationsBLUE LAKE, Calif.—Malodorous brown smoke from a power plant enveloped this logging town on April 29, 2010, and several hundred residents fled until it passed.
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Mozambique resists external pressures and drafts own REDD+ strategy Mozambique has taken a “remarkable” approach to reducing deforestation, engaging local communities and other stakeholders that will be most directly affected and drafting its own forest conservation strategy rather than relying on external consultants.
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Response to George Monbiot: The valuation of nature and ecosystem services is not privatizationThe idea of placing a value on the environment to encourage its protection has become increasingly popular, but critics say it amounts to little more than the privatisation. We asked three experts in the field to answer this charge – here’s their response.
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Nova Scotia finally defines clearcuttingThe province of Nova Scotia has a goal of reducing clearcutting to no more than 50% of the total tree harvest in the province by 2016.
However, that goal proved to be difficult to implement without a technical definition of clearcutting.
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FPAC urging Canada to deepen economic ties with ChinaThe Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) is urging the Canadian Government to follow through on the conclusion of the Canada-China Economic Complementarities Study which states that Canada and China should continue to strengthen their bilater
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Growing benefits from forest carbon projects
Corporate responsibility managers should take a look at forest carbon offset projects to maximize return on investment in climate, biodiversity, and community benefits
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Liberia: Several Recommendations Advanced for Good Redd PolicySeveral civil society groups and local community from across nine counties have called on the Government of Liberia (GOL) to institute a REDD program that would ensure the provision of community benefits such as funding for development initiatives.
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REDD+ opens up new opportunities for forest product management in the AmazonThe emergence of subnational REDD+ projects in southwestern Amazonia is showing potential for multiple-use management of non-timber forest products, particularly Brazil nuts, and forest carbon.
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Ghana: Eight Million for Reducing Deforestation in Ghana
There are indications that the country could be benefitting from an eight million Cedi (GHC8 million) monetary support from the Embassy of Switzerland for the implementation of anti-deforestation initiatives in Ghana.
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Asia-Pacific Workshop on Reduced Impact Logging
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Deforestation accelerates in BelizeDeforestation in Belize has accelerated since late 2010, reports a new satellite-based assessment of the tiny Central American country's forest cover by CATHALAC (the Water Center for the Humid Trop
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Financing options to support REDD+ activitiesThis report has been prepared for the DG “Climate Action” of the European Commission.
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Woody biomass in the USA sees drop in demandMain reason for the declining prices is the fall of natural gas prices to levels not seen in ten yearsPrices for mill and forest biomass fell in most major consuming regions of the US in the 2Q/12, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review.
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Utilisation of mountain wood and the organisation of mountain wood industries - European practices The objective of the work is to identify and analyse positive and sustainable practices regarding the extraction and use of wood and the organisation (formal, e.g.,organisation of wood owner, union, association, etc.; or informal) of wood supply chains in mountain areas (from production to end pr
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Enhancing forest tenure reforms through more responsive regulationsJuly, 2012. Anne M Larson, Juan M Pulhin. Conservation and Society. Volume: 10 (2). Pages 103-113. DOI: 10.4103/0972-4923.97482
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Regaining Momentum: Priority Tasks for the Green Climate Fund at its First Board Meeting The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is to become the primary multilateral channel for large-scale financing for adaptation and mitigation action in developing countries.
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Australian lumber market quiet for NZ lumberhe Australian lumber market remains subdued due to limited building activity. This market is not expected to rebound in the short-term, therefore should not be relied upon by NZ lumber exporters.
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New investors for Green Triangle’s 46,000-ha estateNew Forests announced that it has introduced new investors to make an investment in the Green Triangle Forest Trust. GTFT was established in March 2012 via the acquisition of the plantation assets of Auspine Ltd by New Forests Australia, New Zealand Forest Fund and a co-investor.
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First Meeting of the Green Climate Fund Board
When: Aug 23 - 25, 2012
Where: Geneva, Switzerland
Organized By: Green Climate Fund
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Mangrove conservation is 'economic' CO2 fixProtecting mangroves to lock carbon away in trees may be an economic way to curb climate change, research suggests.
Carbon credit schemes already exist for rainforests; the new work suggests mangroves could be included too.
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4 10 2 print Interview with the new CEO of The GEF, the world's largest funder of environmental projectsThe Global Environment Facility or "GEF" unites 182 government members, in partnership with multiple international institutions, nongovernmen
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World Bank Forest Investment Programme challenged to respect indigenous peoples' rights in Peru
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Forestry management strategies changingRotation lengths, thinning years and intensities are usually the focus of forestry management guidelines. However, a new study has suggested that these might not be the best areas to focus on.
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Korean, ASEAN ministers to adopt ...joint declaration on forestsOver 100 high-level officials from 11 countries participate in two-day special meeting to discuss forestation cooperation
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Free, prior and informed consent in REDD+, by Isilda Nhantumbo
“The government took our forest land to create a forest reserve and the same government confiscated our land for planting trees. All that is left is unproductive savannah,” said a community representative speaking during a meeting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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Lao Government Announces Dramatic Shift in Land and Forest policy
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The governance of REDD+: an institutional analysis in the Asia Pacific region and beyondJune, 2012. Tim Cadman & Tek Maraseni. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management. Vol 55 (5). DOI:10.1080/09640568.2011.619851
Summary
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Forest Peoples Programme: Numbers Across the WorldBy providing estimated figures for indigenous and forest peoples’ populations in countries and regions across the globe, this report seeks to raise awareness of the existence of peoples who primarily depend on forests for their livelihoods, and to enhance their visibility as key actors and rights
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Indigenous Peoples and the Green Climate Fund
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Brazil Perfects Monitoring of Amazon Carbon EmissionsA new system to calculate the amount of greenhouse gases generated by deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon jungle region has come at a good time for assessing the effects of the reform of the country’s forest code.
The new satellite system optimises government monitoring of forests.
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South Australia - SA forests sold to The Campbell GroupThe South Australian state government has agreed to sell the South East timber harvesting rights to a consortium led by The Campbell Group (TCG) for an undisclosed amount. Backed by Australia’s Future Fund, the U.S.
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Safcol pins hopes on new business model to unlock R3bn project pipeline Stated-owned forestry company Safcol, which improved its financial performance in 2011/12 on the back of a recovery in lumber markets, expects to complete a review into its future role and structure by September, which could open the way for it to again invest in sawmilling and extend its Souther
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REDD+ initiative for saving forests in Khyber PakhtunkhwaTHE FORESTS in Pakistan are severely threatened by growing consumption of fuel wood and illegal logging. It is feared that if immediate action is not taken this natural resource would be totally consumed within next 15 years.
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REDD+ revisited - steady pace or passed momentum?Two years ago Focali published an update on the latest development in REDD+ pilot initiatives (Focali Brief 2010:04). We now revisit the REDD+ scene to take a look at what has happened with the initiatives, investments and readiness work as the negotiations seem to have lost momentum.
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Forestry’s shrinking talent poolThe National Post made mention today of the shrinking talent pool for Canada’s forestry sector.
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First of Its Kind Multimillion Dollar Trust Fund Launched to Protect Guyana's Forests
The governments of Guyana and Germany along with Conservation International launch fund to protect critical ecosystems, maintain global carbon stocks and benefit local communities
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Deforestation now driven by profit, not povertyThe main drivers of deforestation worldwide are no longer subsistence-level farmers trying to put food on their tables, but corporations, converting massive tracts of land for industrial agriculture, said the founder of the Mongabay website, adding that this offers a rare opportunity for conserva
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East Africa's forests shrink, especially near parks
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UNFCCC Releases Technical Paper on Financing Options for REDD+26 July 2012: The UNFCCC Secretariat has released a technical paper (FCCC/TP/2012/3) on financing options for the full implementation of results-based actions relating to the activities referred to in decision 1/CP.16, paragraph 70 (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in
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Ten Central African countries agree to improve forest monitoringA new regional initiative will help ten Central African countries to set up advanced national forest monitoring systems, FAO announced today.
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Conservation and Military Objectives Met Through Land AcquisitionJACKSONVILLE, Fla, USA, Sep 5, 2012 - Georgia Land Trust (GLT) was awarded a grant from the Department of Defense (DOD), as part of the Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI), to purchase 5,500 acres from Rayonier Forest Reso
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Consumer demand 'can influence sustainable forestry'Harvesting forestry sustainably and profitably is entirely possible, but requires consumers and businesses to pressurise governments into action.
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India’s forest area in doubtTo judge from India’s official surveys, the protection of its forests is a success. Somehow, this resource-hungry country of 1.2 billion people is managing to preserve its rich forests almost intact in the face of growing demands for timber and agricultural land.
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