GFW PARTNERSHIP MEETINGWASHINGTON, DC | FEBRUARY 8TH & 9TH

PHOTO: CIFOR #GFWPartners17

#GFWPartners17 Presenters: Donna Lee and Dan Zarin

PARALLEL DISCUSSIONS 1:FORESTS AND CLIMATE

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The Global Context for GFW Climate: Needs, Roles &

Suggested Priorities

WRI

February, 2017

World Resources Institute February 8, 2017

Prepared byDonna Lee & Dan Zarin

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The relevant global commitmentsAgreement Date Type of GoalParis Agreement Entry into force

Nov 2016Governments agree to global goals + nationally determined contributions

Sustainable Development Goals

Came into effect Jan 2016

Governments agree to global goals

New York Declaration on Forests

Climate Summit Sep 2014

National & Subnational Governments, Companies, CSOs, and Indigenous Peoples agree to a set of collective goals

Bonn Challenge Launched in Sep 2011

Global target comprised of voluntary commitments by countries

REDD+ Ongoing since COP-13 (2007)

Voluntary action at a national or subnational levelOthers: CBD Aichi Target 15, “by 2020… restoration of at

least 15% of degraded ecosystems” and Rio+20 land degradation neutrality goal.Plus: Numerous domestic policy commitments – both national and subnational.

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• ***1.5 or 2 degree goal + carbon balance (Paris)

What are the relevant goals for GFW/GFW Climate?

Global goals include:

• Reduce the loss of natural habitats and biodiversity (SDG)

• Halve the rate of loss of natural forests by 2020 and end natural forest loss by 2030 (NYDF)

• Restoring 150 million ha of degraded landscapes and forestlands by 2020 and an additional 200 million by 2030 (NYDF, Bonn)

National, subnational and other goals include:• Nationally

determined contributions, i.e. NDCs (Paris) + other domestic policy commitments• Eliminating deforestation from the production of agricultural commodities (NYDF)

• Reward countries and jurisdictions that reduce forest emissions (REDD+)

• Strengthen forest governance including rights of Indigenous Peoples (NYDF)

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What role can GFW play?

At the national or subnational scale:• Provide independent verification of national

reporting• Assist countries in developing policies that

support contributions to global or national goals (e.g. NDCs)

• Contribute to improving forest governance, including rights

At the global scale, it can provide information to:• Monitor and report on progress towards

achievement of global goals• Help prioritize international actions and

finance

For companies and corporate watchdogs:• Monitor progress towards achievement of company

goals (e.g. zero deforestation, HCV or primary forest conservation)

• Help identify opportunities to implement preferential sourcing for deforestation free jurisdictions

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What is needed to measure and monitor the goals?

Data & information on:• Forest-related emissions and removals at

the national and subnational level • Forest loss and gain, separating natural

forests from plantations• Locations where specific commodities are

produced • Locations of IPLC lands and resources• The location and status of degraded areas,

natural habitat and biodiversity

The GFW platform is set up to provide this information, however:• Not all data are complete• National / subnational scale data may conflict with global aggregates

(which inform progress on global/collective goals). • There needs to be a stronger understanding of global data sets and

why they differ from national reporting—otherwise this can cause confusion

• Comparative analyses are sorely needed (to help prioritization)• Removals and forest gain measurements are challenging and important

for several goals

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What is needed to achieve the goals?

Governments developing policies to achieve NDCs and other goals require, for example:• Spatially explicit data that links forest

dynamics to drivers of deforestation & degradation

• Data that uses national forest and land use definitions

• Socio-economic and other data that connect forest management to development agendas

• Mapping of land tenure and management systems

• Domestic capacity to measure and monitor forest cover and change to build confidence in the dataCan GFW serve as an effective provider of all of this information?

Some of it? Who are the other key partners?

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Data aggregation to understand the contribution of forests in making progress towards global goals

Separating natural forests from plantations

Data analyses to support prioritization of action and finance

Suggested priorities

Making the role of forests in sustainable development and climate change more accessible to non-experts—demystifying scientific studies!

Improving the understanding and data availability related to forests role as a global sink