Climate change and tropical deforestation and forest degradation are among the world’s greatest conservation challenges. Although often viewed as separate problems, they are inextricably linked. To conserve tropical forests—and many other ecosystems—the world’s climate must be stabilized. To stabilize the world’s climate, greenhouse gas emissions from tropical deforestation must be slowed (roughly 20% of today’s emissions of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from human activity come from the destruction of tropical forests). 

We are supporting a discrete portfolio of projects during 2008-2009 connected to REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation). Interdependent grants within this portfolio have the following short- and long-term goals:

Short-term goals:

• Ensuring the availability of nonpartisan research and analysis of proposed REDD mechanisms to inform the UNFCCC negotiations in Copenhagen in December 2009, including information regarding practical REDD rules and guidelines that offer effective financial incentives for tropical nations to reduce deforestation and forest degradation.
• Effective participation of stakeholders, including indigenous and other forest-dependent peoples, at the Copenhagen conference in December 2009 in the consideration of an effective and practical REDD mechanism.

Long-term goal:

• Controlling global tropical deforestation and forest degradation, thereby reducing human-sourced CO2 emissions worldwide by up to one-fifth, protecting tropical forest biodiversity, and conserving other important services provided by these ecosystems.