Redd And Communities News

Elizabeth Apolinar enjoys her job as a lawyer in the bustling center of Bogotá these days. But now and then she misses the traditional life she used to lead deep…

During the UN climate talks in December 2015 that would ultimately produce the Paris Climate Agreement, indigenous leaders from Africa, Asia and Latin America presented a fairly simple proposition: give…

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s extensive forests seem like a bright spot in an otherwise-troubled country. With forests covering an area larger than Colombia, DRC has managed to sidestep the…

It’s no secret that natural wealth in many African countries often sparks conflict and precipitates decades of the suffering of local populations. Liberia’s ‘resource curse’ is no different. With more…

ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopia’s work to keep its environmental programs sustainable while local communities benefit from forest preservation is set to get a boost. The country’s most prominent program to…

On the surface, the Republic of Congo appears to be making strides toward both conservation and economic development. But the process of becoming an emerging economy is not without its…

Some indigenous communities in South America have been working on a way to participate in REDD+ (Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) on their own terms. In 2009, Colombia…

YAEDA VALLEY, Tanzania – “Carbon,” said Mzee Sinze while sitting in the shade of an ancient, giant Baobab tree. “Carbon is very important to us Hadzabe.” It’s not the answer…

Peru is home to around one tenth of the Amazon rainforest, the second largest block after Brazil. It’s also the best carbon mapped nation in the world thanks to the…

On the eve of the signing of the Paris Climate Agreement, Indigenous leaders from around the world gathered in New York City to call on the UN and the countries…

n December 12, 2015 representatives from 196 nations approved the Paris Agreement to address the challenges of climate change. Proponents praised the agreement as a long-term pathway to curbing global…

Local farmer in Indonesian New Guinea Countries poised to receive World Bank funds for achieving reductions in deforestation have insufficient safeguards for ensuring that local communities don't lose out in…

Illegal logging road through the Murunahua reserve for isolated indigenous peoples. Image © Chris Fagan of Upper Amazon Conservancy (UAC). Forest-dependent peoples face grave threats from deforestation and other depredations,…

Balancing the old world and the new, the Kuna people keep their heritage intact Jesús Smith is sitting at his old wooden desk facing the entrance to his house. He's…

Tropical rainforest. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. Governors from 13 states have pledged to reduce deforestation 80 percent by 2020 provided rich companies step forward with adequate levels of financial…

Global Forest Watch map showing forest loss in and around Tajung Puting and the Rimba Raya project area. Just over a year ago, the Indonesian government officially approved the country's…

Innovation in Tropical Forest Conservation: Q&A with Dr. Amy Duchelle Brazil nut producer in Pando, Bolivia. Photo by: Amy Duchelle. A scientist at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR)…

Papuan man in Indonesian New Guinea. Photos by Rhett A. Butler. A UN program to reduce global carbon emissions may be putting indigenous communities at risk, jeopardizing local land rights…

Deforestation for palm oil in Malaysia Indigenous and forest-dependent peoples from Asia, Africa and Latin America have called for increased recognition of customary land rights in order to curb deforestation…

Rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia. West Sumatra has officially joined Indonesia's effort to cut forest loss as a pilot province under the country's REDD+ program. The agreement, announced today, means that…

A new online tool, dubbed ForestDefender, aims to help indigenous people understand and implement their rights in regard to forests. The database, developed by the Center for International Environmental Law…

In Redeeming REDD: Policies, Incentives and Social Feasibility for Avoided Deforestation, anthropologist Michael Brown relays a constructive critique of the contemporary aims, standards and modalities for mitigating climate change by…

Rainforest in Indonesia. Provided two to three days of training, forest communities can accurately and cost-effectively measure biomass and other data needed to assess REDD+ projects, finds a new study…

Forty percent of the 509 million hectares of land classified as "rural property" in Brazil is owned by 1.4 percent of rural households, finds a new analysis conducted by a…

The Paiter-Suruí, a rainforest tribe that in June became the first indigenous group to generate REDD+ credits under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), has now closed their first deal. As…

The U.N.'s Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (UN-REDD) program may be faltering in Panama due to its failure to build capacity for indigenous people who should play a central…

Corruption and mismanagement in Indonesia’s forest sector have cost the government billions of dollars in losses in recent years, including over $7 billion in losses from 2007-2011, Human Rights Watch…

An Interview with Cacique Betanio Chiquidama, National Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples of Panama This week in Lombok, Indonesia, the Policy Board of the United Nations climate change program known as…

An effort by an Amazonian tribe to protect their rainforest home against encroachment and illegal logging has finally been validated and verified under a leading carbon accounting standard, enabling it…

Panama's largest association of indigenous people will sue the Panamanian government to shut down the country's Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) program. The National Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples…