Yam Malla, Executive DirectorChandra Silori, Coordinator, Grassroots Capacity Building for REDD in Asia

Regan Suzuki, Coordinator, REDD-net Asia PacificNguyen Quang Tan, Country Program Coordinator, Vietnam

Asia Regional Workshop on REDD-plus after Cancun: Moving from Negotiation to Implementation

Building REDD-plus Policy Capacity for Developing Country Negotiators and Land Managers

IISD, ASB-ICRAF, Norad and MARDHanoi, 18-20 May 2011

RECOFTC - The Center for People and ForestsBangkok, Thailand

RECOFTC – The Center for People and Forests

• Independent not-for-profit international organization

• Strategically positioned between organizations that are responsible for field implementation of activities and those responsible for research that generates empirically-based knowledge

Local and indigenous people hold the key to healthier and better management of forests

• VISION: Local communities in the Asia-Pacific region are actively involved in the equitable and ecologically sustainable management of forest landscapes

• MISSION: To enhance capacities at all levels to assist people of the Asia-Pacific region to develop CF and manage forest resources for optimum social, economic and environmental benefits

Core Functions - Capacity Building

Advocacy

Networks

Training

Advisory Services

Action Research

Target Audience and Approach

• Beneficiaries: local people, esp. poorer households in and around forests

• Strengthening capacities of concerned stakeholders at all levels

• Working with partners and collaborators

• Developing accessible, flexible, dynamic capacity-building tools

• Addressing practical needs• Using local language• Simplifying complex ideas

Geographical and Thematic Focus

Asia-Pacific region (> 20 countries) 6 focal countries

Four thematic areas People, Forest & Climate Change Expanding Community Forestry Livelihoods & Market Access Conflict Management

Three guiding principles Clear and stronger rights Good governance Fair share of benefits

Cross-Cutting Issues Gender and equity Environmental sustainability

People, Forests and Climate ChangeREDD+ Related Initiatives

• Community Forestry—a key strategy for addressing climate change and forest related issues (mitigation & adaptation)

° Analysis of policies and lessons from field implementation° Using the knowledge/information for sharing and discussion at local,

national, international meetings, conferences and workshops° Disseminating knowledge through publications and other channels° Incorporating new knowledge from own and other people’s work in

capacity-building products and services

• REDD+ Initiatives° Grassroots Capacity Building for REDD in Asia-Pacific° REDD-net Asia-Pacific° REDD Learning Network° ASEAN-RECOFTC-Swiss Partnership on SF and CC° ForInfo

Safeguards and Free, Prior and Informed Consent • REDD and other CC-Forest Initiatives

° Whose perspective? Whose agenda?° How do different stakeholders view REDD+ and why?

• What policy implications?° One possible negative outcome is re-centralization of forest management –

thereby undermining: CF’s three decades of achievements Forest rights and benefits

• Safeguards for what? What is FPIC and why? ° Areas with supportive policy framework

Realizing the forest rights and benefits° Areas with no supportive policy framework

Focusing on policy and institutional reforms° Various indigenous groups are proactively developing IP sensitive MRV

processes and safeguards to ensure IP rights are upheld

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Training and capacity building activities (2009-10)

• 64 trainings delivered• Over 2,000 participants involved

(over 800 females)• 20 countries covered

Example 1: Grassroots capacity building for REDD+ in Asia

• Pilot trainings in 5 countries• National programs in 4 countries

– Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos and Nepal

° Training of trainers° Awareness raising° Material development° Engaging local media

• Local language delivery of training programmes

• ToT Manual developed in Nepali, Laotian and Bahasa Indonesia languages

Example 2: Action Research

• Back up theories with practical evidence

• Local-level mitigation and adaptation

• Demonstrate, analyze and synthesize tools

• Forest restoration, data generation, incentives, alternative livelihoods

• 25+ analytical outputs• Policy briefs (6)

• Media briefs (3)

• Resear. article (10+)

• Resear. reports (5)

• Interactive bibliography & blog (1 each)

Example 3: Strengthening Regional NetworksREDD-net Asia-Pacific

• Bridge b/w global and national networks, facilitate constructive dialogue and harness enhanced interest in forest sector

• REDD+ through the civil society lens° Supports Southern civil societies in

promoting the interests of local people in REDD+ dealings

• Knowledge-sharing platform ° Sharing of knowledge, analysis, and tools

to foster a better understanding of how REDD+ initiatives can address local needs

• Regional and global bulletins: Key themes° Equity in REDD+ ° Trust in REDD+° Carbon Rights° Benefit Sharing, Gender, Adaptation,

Conflict, Opportunity costs

Example 4: Strengthening Regional Networks REDD Learning Network

• RECOFTC leads the Network in eight countries as part of our work under the RAFT program

• Key stakeholders are informed on latest REDD+ issues

• Contributes to the development of national REDD+ scheme

° reduce poverty ° strengthen the rights of local

people

• Decoding REDD Workshop Series

Example 4: Strengthening Regional Networks REDD Learning Network (cont…)

• Engaging media - Development of REDD+ Media Pack

° Media brief on an overview of REDD+

° REDD decoding publications ° Carbon, conflict and communities

• Press Conference at the UN Climate Change Talks in Tianjin, China

° Over 20 Chinese and international journalists

• Media Training Workshop° 12 journalists from South and East Asian

countries, including 8 RAFT countries

Example 5: Advisory Services

• Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) in REDD+

• UN-REDD ° FPIC evaluation and verification

toolkit developed with Asia-Pacific IG and FPIC experts for UN-REDD global program

• Evaluation of FPIC processes using toolkit for UN-REDD Vietnam country program

• GIZ – Guidelines for FPIC applications

Way forward … future action research focus

• How social safeguards are defined and applied under different socioeconomic and cultural settings?

• Role of indigenous knowledge° Identify significant opportunities, constraints,

and risks for adaptation and mitigation

• What are risks and opportunities—will REDD-plus escalate conflict in forestry sector?

• How to ensure equitable access to and benefit sharing from carbon trade

• What is the cost of REDD+

Way forward … future policy focus

• Develop policies on safeguards including roles of local communities in the FPIC process

• Review and learn from existing policies on safeguards—FPIC in Philippines, various certification systems

• Create conducive policy environment for good governance and stronger and clear forest rights of local communities

• Mechanism to avoid dilution or misinterpretation of safeguards by participating countries

Conclusion

• Climate change-related forest strategies can succeed when they complement, rather then conflict with, the forest peoples interests

• Community Forestry:

° Offers a basket of robust social safeguards

° Helps building resilience and social and natural capital for local communities

° Ensures both biodiversity conservation and social safeguards • Community Forestry is a robust model to approach the current

question of REDD+ implementation

Website: www.recoftc.org

Thank You!

Healthy forestsHealthy forests……

local people hold the keylocal people hold the key