Highlights from 2014
A momentous year of science for forests and people
From bolaina to bushmeat, from palm oil to poverty, the research that CIFOR scientists published in 2014 was as varied as the tropical world it covered.
As we head into 2015, the year expected to deliver new international climate and development frameworks, we look back on the highlights of a busy, exciting year in international forestry research, demonstrating the importance of forests and landscapes for the future of the planet.
Publications
Highlighted publications
Systematic review of effects on biodiversity from oil palm production
This systematic review examined the biodiversity impacts of three first-generation biofuel crops (oil palm, soybean, and jatropha) in the tropics. The study focused on the impacts on species richness, abundance (total number of individuals or occurrences), community composition, and ecosystem functions related to species richness and community composition.
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Enabling factors for establishing REDD+ in a context of weak governance
This study, conducted as part of the Global Comparative Study on REDD+, analyzes the factors that enable national REDD+ processes in the context of weak governance, using a two-step qualitative comparative analysis of 12 REDD+ countries. The factors were then further analyzed to determine their role in efforts to establish comprehensive REDD+ policies that target transformational change. The results reveal path dependencies and institutional stickiness in all the study countries.
Read moreLey 30230: Efectos para la institucionalidad ambiental y la tenencia de la tierra en Perú
Peru’s recently enacted Law 30230 has raised concerns among some stakeholders in the country, who warn that it may have negative consequences for the environment and security of land tenure. Others, however, argue that the law will benefit the national economy. This paper, available only in Spanish, provides an in-depth analysis of Law 30230 and its potential impacts.
Read moreREDD+ on the ground: A case book of subnational initiatives across the globe
REDD+ is being implemented through more than 300 subnational initiatives around the world, which employ a diverse range of approaches. This casebook, the result of five years of field work, takes readers deep into the context, setting and challenges of 23 of those initiatives across 6 countries, sharing lessons learned and revealing the key challenges. The editors and authors also offer concrete suggestions for moving forward toward forest-based climate change mitigation.
Read moreTropical dry forests: The state of global knowledge and recommendations for future research
This discussion paper assesses the state of knowledge on tropical dry forests and identifies research opportunities. Over the past two decades, CIFOR has accumulated a substantial body of work on dry forests, with a particular focus on African dry forests. This paper is intended to build on that work, by gathering wider research from around the world, as CIFOR seeks to widen the geographic scope of its research on dry forests.
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BLOGS
HIGHLIGHTS FROM CIFOR'S FORESTS NEWS BLOG
On forests and climate, Times op-ed gets it wrong
In a September opinion piece in The New York Times, a Yale scientist stated that planting trees was futile for tackling climate change. Reactions from the author’s peers were swift and strong—few stronger than this one from forests and climate expert Lou Verchot, whose response was the year’s most widely read article on Forests News.
Read moreGlobal study shakes up the terrain
The culmination of years of painstaking research from around the world, a raft of studies from the Poverty and Environment Network (PEN) tore down long-standing assumptions about how rural people make their lives and livelihoods from tropical forests. The project’s legacy: a massive data set that could fuel further research.
Read moreEbola and bushmeat in Africa
When the worst known outbreak of Ebola virus disease swept through West Africa, it increased scrutiny of the local practice of hunting wildlife for food—a known vector of past Ebola outbreaks. After some observers called for a ban on bushmeat, CIFOR scientists brought facts to the debate, illustrating that such a ban would criminalize millions—and all but consign them to starvation.
Read moreA look behind the oil palm controversy
Palm oil was a hot topic in 2014, with demand for—and antipathy toward—the tropical forest commodity reaching record highs (even as palm oil prices hit historic lows). A new book co-authored by CIFOR scientist Patrice Levang sought to inject a measure of balance into the discussion, pointing the way to sustainable, zero-deforestation solutions for a remarkable and controversial crop.
Read moreFive-year global study identifies challenges, opportunities for REDD+
It remains one of the most exigent questions in the world of forestry and climate: How to implement a plan to curb both deforestation and climate change, while overcoming myriad hurdles related to finance and fairness, governance and institutional grit. CIFOR published several incisive analyses of REDD+ on the ground in 2014, culminating in a casebook with an in-depth examination of 23 subnational initiatives across the globe.
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DG’S BLOG
Highlights from CIFOR’s DG
Nine suggested SDG indicators for forestry and landscapes
The Sustainable Development Goals aim for different targets for success—and so the indicators for measuring that success must also be different, as traditionally defined goals for forests will no longer apply. Here, CIFOR Director General Peter Holmgren lays out what those indicators might look like.
Read moreEbola and forestry — an urgent scientific challenge
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014 laid bare just how little we know about the links between the animal-borne disease and the loss of the forests that those animals live in. During the crisis, much of the punditry was not backed by sound science, Peter Holmgren wrote.
Read moreLandscape approach strengthens all sectors
The 2014 Global Landscapes Forum in Lima, held on the sidelines of the UN climate talks, was about the “how,” said Peter Holmgren at the outset of the conference—how to put landscape approaches into practice. Read his address to the Forum.
Read moreMainstreaming emission reductions across the landscape
The evolution of REDD+ has generated a range of opportunities, while challenges for its implementation have emerged, Peter Holmgren wrote in November. These challenges will require coordination across scales and sectors amid “problematic” financing.
Read moreIs the landscape approach good for forests?
Some have said that the landscape approach’s broader focus risks leaving forests on the margins, but CIFOR Director General Peter Holmgren writes that that’s not the case. Even in an area where farms are favored over forests, the resulting landscape is the conscious decision of local stakeholders—and that’s OK.
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Presentations
HIGHLIGHTS FROM CIFOR'S SLIDESHARE
Forests in a sustainable world
This presentation by Daju Pradnja Resosudarmo focuses on all the benefits forests provide, what problems forests still face, what is causing these problems, how we can strengthen forests in the landscape and what role Sustainable Development Goals could play.
ViewLessons learnt from CIFOR research for PFES in Vietnam
This presentation by Pham Thu Thuy, Grace Wong, Anastasia Yang, Le Ngoc Dung, Karen Bennett and Vu Tan Phuong, given during a workshop in Hanoi, Vietnam, analyses Vietnam’s Payments for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) policy through the lens of achieving effectiveness, efficiency and equity.
ViewDoes forest decentralization strengthen women’s adaptive capacity to climate change? Insight from Cameroon
This presentation, originally made at the 2014 IUFRO World Congress in Salt Lake City, USA, examines the impact of forest management decentralization on women in Cameroon.
ViewThe UNFCCC Policy Landscape
Stephen Leonard, Senior Policy Analyst with CIFOR, gave this presentation on the UNFCCC Policy Landscape as a primer in the lead-up to COP20 in Lima, Peru.
ViewManaging for high value timber and biodiversity in the Congo Basin
This presentation, made at the 2014 IUFRO World Congress in Salt Lake City, USA, explores how biodiversity positively affects the management of high-value timber species, (e.g., protection from pests and pathogens) and, conversely, how management for high-value species helps conserve biodiversity (e.g., how planted forests can conserve biodiversity).
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Videos
HIGHLIGHTS from CIFOR TV
Robert Nasi - The role of Bushmeat in the spread of Ebola
Dr. Robert Nasi, CIFOR’s Deputy Director General, talks about the importance of bushmeat in Central Africa, and the role of bushmeat in the spread of the Ebola virus.
ViewChallenges for local REDD+ initiatives
REDD+, an incentive program to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, risks losing momentum over issues of land tenure and economic viability. CIFOR Principal Scientist William Sunderlin explains.
ViewThe New York Declaration on Forests: 5 top forestry experts respond
On 23 September 2014 at the United Nations Climate Summit in New York, governments, companies and campaigners made a pledge to halt the loss of the world’s natural forests by 2030, halve the rate of deforestation by the end of this decade and to restore hundreds of millions of acres of degraded land. In this video, five experts give their thoughts on the NY Declaration on Forests.
ViewForests Asia 2014: Highlights from the Summit
The Forests Asia Summit: Sustainable Landscapes for Green Growth in Southeast Asia, took place in Jakarta on 5-6 May 2014. The event brought together representatives from government, research, civil society and the private sector in a regional multi-stakeholder dialogue.
ViewDirty Science Part 2: As tides ride higher, can mangroves hold on? Researchers dig in to find out
The Indonesian archipelago is home to millions of hectares of mangrove forest. We know they store huge amounts of carbon, but are they helping to protect our coastlines too? A group of scientists, armed with a GoPro, went to Papua to find out how quickly mangroves are capable of adapting to sea level changes.
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Photos
HIGHLIGHTS FROM CIFOR'S FLICKR GALLERY
Rice fields, Rio Majes, Peru
Photo by Bruno Locatelli/CIFOR
Natural gum store, Adama, Ethiopia
Photo by Ollivier Girard/CIFOR
Traditional fisherman, Gede Pangrango, Indonesia
Photo by Ricky Martin/CIFOR
Primary rainforest in Danum Valley, Sabah, Malaysia
Photo by CIFOR
Rice harvesting, Bantaeng, South Sulawesi
Photo by Tri Saputro/CIFOR
TOP TWEETS
Forests may play bigger role in rainfall than estimated http://ow.ly/vDjHW #blog
Have trouble visualizing both sides of the #palmoil debate? Try a visual story:http://blog.cifor.org/24742/development-miracle-or-environmental-disaster-a-look-behind-the-oil-palm-controversy
Communities willing to reforest - with a little help http://blog.cifor.org/23194/communities-willing-to-reforest-with-a-little-help-research-shows
Link between #ebola, #forests presents an urgent scientific challange, CIFOR director says: http://ow.ly/B1yws
#KnowYourClimate for #COP20: What's the difference between command-and-control & incentive-based mechanisms? http://ow.ly/Fbkvd
Can #REDD survive--and thrive--in the absence of an international agreement? Our new book takes a look:http://blog.cifor.org/25546/redd-on-the-ground-new-book-offers-insights-lessons-from-across-the-tropics #GLCOP20
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