Although contributing 14% of the world’s GHG emissions, agriculture has been largely neglected until now. Michael Coren looks at the future of the agricultural sector and climate change in an editorial for the Katoomba Group. With synergies between mitigation and adaptation within reach, agriculture’s time has finally come.

VietNamNet Bridge published Charlotte Streck’s article about Vietnam’s role in REDD+ on occasion of a Hanoi Conference on Payment for Ecosystem Services from REDD. The article discusses Vietnam’s active involvement in REDD+ related activities over the past 20 years, signaling how it serves as a model for the ‘plus’ component of REDD+, and can further develop its policies and programs.

Climate Focus authors Michael J. Coren and Charlotte Streck wrote about international REDD+ policies in the recent Policy Impacts on Deforestation:  Lessons Learned from Past Experiences to Inform New Initiatives published by Duke University in June 2010. This comprehensive study looks at interventions and policies to reduce emissions and increase forestry carbon stocks. You can download the publication here or view the whole "International Forest Carbon and Climate Policy" Series here.

Validation progress

China is exploring carbon emissions trading as an instrument to boost energy efficiency in buildings.

This report explores the options open to the Kazakh Government and the country’s private sector to engage in carbon finance activities as soon as possible, taking into account the legal, institutional and economic aspects. The prospective timeframe analyzed includes both the Kyoto Protocol (the Protocol) commitment period until and including 2012 and the time thereafter. To this end, the report describes the basic division of Annex I country versus developing country Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (the Convention), and Kazakhstan’s various interventions at the international level to position itself in between this strict divide in the Convention and then in the Protocol.

World Bank technical note authored by Carole Megevand (World Bank), Anne Martinet (ONFi) and Charlotte Streck on options for setting REDD+ reference levels for the countries of the Congo Basin. The note has been developed in the context of a local workshop hosted by COMIFAC and the Government of Cameroon that took place in Douala from the 16-18 November 2009. Download the note in English or French from the following website.

Despite the many calls to reform the CDM, its conceptual underpinnings are strong and it will most

In a special report commissioned by the Government of Norway released March 16th 2009 Climate Focus’ Charlotte Streck contributed to the structuring of financial mechanisms that frame a flexible, global approach to providing adequate incentives to REDD policies and greenhouse gas reductions from the forest sector.

New Mechanisms for Financing Mitigation Transforming economies sector by sector (March 2009) , by David Reed, Pablo Gutman, Kim Carstensen. WWF discussion paper. Climate Focus provided several background papers to the WWF team.

Seminar Proceedings ASEAN High Level Seminar Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation: Towards a Cross-sectoral Programme Approach in ASEAN (2009). Prepared on behalf of GTZ, Hertie School of Governance, The (German) Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, The Australian Government/AusAID, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

The Role of Sector No-Lose Targets in Scaling up Finance for Climate Change Mitigation Activities in Developing Countries by Murray Ward (ed.) Prepared for DEFRA.

Review (2008) of Climate Change and Forests: emerging policy and market opportunitie by Pleininger, T. Ecological Economics.

Impact Assessment on LULUCF and Forest-Based Carbon Credits: A Response to DG Environment’s Staff Working Document (2008) by Climate Focus, Terra Carbon, Sustainable Forest Management, Ecosecurities and the Carbon Market Association. A paper that rebuts concerns expressed by the EU Commission with respect to CDM forestry projects.

The hidden value of Bali: Why saving the world's rainforests is good for the climate and the US economy (2008) by J. Horowitz and R. O’Sullivan, published by Mongabay.com. The article is also available on the EcosystemMarketplace website under the title "Analysis: Why saving the world's rainforests is good for the climate and the US economy."

Trading Secondary CERs from Hydropower Projects above 20MW (2008), by Climate Focus’ Legal Team. Climate Focus has developed a memorandum that examines the issue of recognizing CERs from hydropower projects above 20MW (“Hydro CERs”) in the EU. Hydro CERs, at present, are mutually recognized and thus freely tradable on the EU ETS.

Forestry: Can the private sector play a role?, by Robert O'Sullivan in Kyoto and the carbon markets, a special supplement to Environmental Finance and Carbon Finance, November 2007.  

Featured in the IUCN/WWF publication ArborVitae in 2007, this article presents arguments in support of a greater role for land-use related emissions and removals within any attempt to stabilize atmospheric GHG concentrations.  It discusses some of the factors complicating the inclusion of AFOLU solutions in the Kyoto regime, and other options such as non-market based approaches.

A Carbon Stock Approach to Creating a Positive Incentive to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (2007), Steve Prior, Robert O'Sullivan, and Charlotte Streck, submission to the UNFCCC Secretariat, 23 February 2007.

Protecting forests to mitigate global climate change, (in press) paper prepared for a DFID brainstorming session on ‘Illegal logging and associated trade: exploring future options’, held on 24 January 2007, at Chatham House in London, published online.

ViewPoint: LULUCF projects under JI: Will they be impossible?, by Robert O’Sullivan and Bernhard Schlamadinger, published in PointCarbon; CDM & JI monitor, January 24, 2007.

Options for a Green Investment Scheme for Ukraine (2006), by Charlotte Streck, James Atkins, Jelmer Hoogzaad and Yulia Pahshenko, The World Bank (unpublished report) - report 2.

Options for a Green Investment Scheme for Ukraine (2006), by Charlotte Streck, James Atkins, Jelmer Hoogzaad and Yulia Pahshenko, The World Bank (unpublished report).

Will Joint Implementation LULUCF projects be impossible in practice? Open letter to the JI Supervisory Committee and the UNFCCC secretariat by Bernhard Schlamadinger, Charlotte Streck, Robert O’Sullivan.

Response for the call for comments of the International Emission Trading Association and the Climate Group on the Voluntary Carbon Standards (2006) by Climate Focus.

Submission to the call for input of the JI Supervisory Committee on the format of JI PDDs and the relevant PDD guidelines (2006) by Climate Focus.

Local and Global benefits of including LULUCF Credits in the EU ETS (2006), by Robert O’Sullivan, Charlotte Streck, Toby Janson-Smith, Jonathan Haskett, Bernhard Schlamadinger and John O. Niles (unpublished report).

Key technical issues relevant to CDM Forestry Projects (2006), by Charlotte Streck, Toby Janson-Smith, Joachim Schnurr (unpublished report).

Submission to the call for input of the 23rd meeting CDM Executive Board on Additionality (2006) by Climate Focus.

Reasons for excluding forest carbon credits in the EU ETS, Prepared by Benoît Bosquet, Charlotte Streck, Toby Janson-Smith, Jonathan Haskett and Ian Noble.

Small-Scale Afforestation and Reforestation Projects: Simplified Modalities and Procedures (2004), by Sandra Greiner and Sergio Jaurequi, World Bank Carbon Finance Business submission to UNFCCC, FCCC/WEB/2004/2.

Small-Scale Afforestation and Reforestation Projects: Simplified Modalities and Procedures (2004), by Sandra Greiner and Sergio Jaurequi, World Bank Carbon Finance Business submission to UNFCCC, FCCC/WEB/2004/2.

As part of a  project of technical assistance to the Argentinian Office of Clean Development Mechanism, and the Coordinación Ecológica del Área Metropolitana Sociedad del Estado (CEAMSE), this publication covers legal issues related to the recuperation of gases from landfill projects, different modalities used in contracts for these projects and aspects related to environmental aspects.

How to define small-scale landfill gas projects? (2004), by Sandra Greiner, World Bank discussion paper.

Additionality test clarification (2004), by Lex de Jonge, Sandra Greiner and Gerhard Mulder, submitted to the CDM EB and presented for discussion at Carbon Expo, Cologne, Germany in May 2004.

Options for a Green Investment Scheme for Bulgaria (2004), by Charlotte Streck and Varadan Atur et al., The World Bank (unpublished report).

Joint Implementation and EU Accession Countries (2002), by Mercedes Fernandez and Axel Michaelowa, Discussion Paper N. 173 Hamburg Institute of International Economics, Hamburg.