What came out of Warsaw on REDD? Part 1: The REDD decisions

Negotiators at the UN climate negotiations in Warsaw last week agreed a series of decisions on REDD. Ecosystem Marketplace reported at 20:30 on 22 November 2013, that, “Complete REDD package sails through the COP. It’s now a done deal.”

This is the first of a series of REDD-Monitor posts looking at the negotiations and decisions at COP19 in Warsaw. We’ll start with the decisions themselves. Negotiators in Warsaw came to seven decisions relating to REDD (listed below). The Cancun Mandate for REDD has now been completed.

Later in the week, I’ll look at some of the reactions to the REDD decisions that came out of Warsaw, and at some point I’ll try to work out what all of this might actually mean for people and forests. In the meantime, feedback, comments and suggestions are welcome.

In a press release, Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, said that,

“Governments have shown their firm commitment to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in Warsaw. They have delivered a set of decisions that will make a significant impact in reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries and catalyze actions in this critical area of addressing climate change.”

The decision came in the context of the failure in Warsaw to address climate change. The best the UNFCCC could say in its press release at the end of COP19, was that the conference kept governments “on track towards 2015 climate agreement”. The process was not totally derailed, in other words.

Here are the REDD decisions, taken from the UNFCCC website (the titles in bold come from the REDD+ Safeguards Working Group, the titles in UNspeak are from the UNFCCC):

• REDD+ finance (in the COP): Work programme on results-based finance to progress the full implementation of the activities referred to in decision 1/CP.16, paragraph 70;

• Coordination of finance (in the joint SBI/SBSTA): Coordination of support for the implementation of activities in relation to mitigation actions in the forest sector by developing countries, including institutional arrangements;

• National forest monitoring systems (SBSTA): Modalities for national forest monitoring systems;

• Summary of information on safeguards (SBSTA): The timing and the frequency of presentations of the summary of information on how all the safeguards referred to in decision 1/CP.16, appendix I, are being addressed and respected;

• Forest reference emission levels (SBSTA): Guidelines and procedures for the technical assessment of submissions from Parties on proposed forest reference emission levels and/or forest reference levels;

• Measuring, reporting and verification (MRV) of forest-related emissions (SBSTA): Modalities for measuring, reporting and verifying;

• Drivers of deforestation and forest degradation (SBSTA): Addressing the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation.