Summary
This high-level event convened on 13 November 2017, in Bonn, Germany, on the sidelines of the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The event was organized by UN-REDD Programme and the World Bank Group with panelists highlighting how REDD+ and other forest focused land-use initiatives have been instrumental in triggering change at the country level.
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Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada
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L-R: Anne Désirée Ouloto, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Côte d’Ivoire; Jorge Mario Rodríguez, Executive Director, National Forestry Financing Fund, Costa Rica; Grace Balawag, Deputy Program Coordinator, Tebtebba; Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Director of the Viet Nam REDD+ Office; and Tarsicio Granizo Tamayo, Minister of Environment, Ecuador
Mario Boccucci, Head, UN-REDD Programme Secretariat, and Ellysar Baroudy, Coordinator, Forest Carbon Partnership Facility/BioCarbon Fund, World Bank, moderated the event.
Mario Boccucci, Head, UN-REDD Programme Secretariat, emphasized the role of partnerships in scaling up REDD+ implementation.
Eva Mueller, Director, Forestry Policy and Resources Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), posed the question: “what makes change transformational and what is a scale that is realistic?”
Howard Bamsey, Executive Director, Green Climate Fund, stressed that REDD+ is central to improving livelihoods and reducing emissions.
Vidar Helgesen, Minister for Climate and Environment, Norway, encouraged participants that “while progress feels slow,” the multilateral environmental agreements do have a profound impact.
Karin Kemper, Senior Director of Environment and Natural Resources, World Bank Group, said of REDD+: “we know it is not easy; it has taken a long time, but we cannot do it alone, and we look forward to partnering with you.”
Anne Désirée Ouloto, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Côte d’Ivoire, said her country wants to “bring back its green landscape” and increase forest cover by 20% by 2030.
Tarsicio Granizo Tamayo, Minister of Environment, Ecuador, said reforesting a country cannot take place without supporting the social issues of forest communities.
Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Director of the Viet Nam REDD+ Office, said REDD+ presents an opportunity to invest in the forest sector and to make it more sustainable.
Grace Balawag, Deputy Program Coordinator, Tebtebba, described difficulties in understanding REDD+ implementation during the early stages.
Jorge Mario Rodríguez, Executive Director, National Forestry Financing Fund, Costa Rica, recalled efforts during the previous century to convince forest owners that “we can live with the forest, but not without it.”
Participants listen to panelists highlighting progress made in REDD+ implementation.