This publication is focused on oil palm expansion and land tenure in several Southeast Asian palm oil producing countries (the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia) and cross-compares their experiences with the facts and myths, stories and lessons learned from other palm oil producing countries, more specifically, Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea.

Les nouvelles sur l’état de l’agriculture en Afrique sont en grande partie décourageantes, mais on entrevoit des lueurs d'espoir. Quelques efforts stimulants réalisés par des agriculteurs et chercheurs africains au cours des dix dernières années ont sensiblement augmenté la productivité agricole dans certains pays et pour certains produits. Ces cas peuvent servir de modèles pour de futurs efforts, mais seulement si les responsables des politiques de développement et les professionnels comprennent les processus qui ont amené ces résultats, et les éléments clé de leur succès.

Los SAF son un conjunto de tecnologías de manejo de suelo, agua, nutrientes y cultivos agrícolas y forestales que bajo un manejo integrado proporcionan importantes beneficios ambientales, productivos y socioeconómicos.

El documento hace una comparación de los cambios ocurridos en la propuesta Yasuni-ITT, entre los términos de referencia (versión 2009) y el acuerdo entre el PNUD y el gobierno ecuatoriano (versión 3 agosto 2010). El documento forma parte de la serie Análsis de coyuntura de Comité Ecuménico de Proyectos (CEP).

Violent conflict affects three quarters of Asia’s forests and tens of millions of people. In Cambodia, for example, nearly half of the 236 land conflicts recorded in 2009 escalated to violence. Because forest conflict is such a major issue in the region, we need a better understanding of the underlying causes, impacts, and management solutions. This issues paper sheds light on these topics, drawing lessons from eight new case studies.

In this report the results of an independent assessment of the needs for capacity building for the development of community forestry in Indonesia, are presented. Needs were assessed at the level of the institutional context of community forestry development, key organizations and individuals. The team of 2 national consultants carrying out the assessment used the steps and methods of CBNA procedures developed by RECOFTC. 

Thousands came together in "Hopenhagen" from 7-18 December 2009 for what was the most covered and talked about of any United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNF CCC) Conference of the Parties (COP) to date. Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD-plus)1 was one of few issues on which progress was made. However, implications of the wider negotiations for REDD-plus are not yet clear.

A farmer-managed, agroenvironmental transformation has occurred over the past three decades in the West African Sahel, enabling both land rehabilitation and agricultural intensification to support a dense and growing population. This paper traces the technical and institutional innovations, their impacts, and lessons learned from two successful examples. The first is the story of the improvement and replication of indigenous soil and water conservation practices across the Central Plateau of Burkina Faso.

In many areas within the Asia-Pacific region, there are compelling short-term incentives to degrade or to convert forestland for other uses. A common example is poorly regulated timber markets, which provide financial rewards for logging that is inadequately managed, unsustainable, and often illegal. Other examples include poorly planned land conversion for mining, agriculture, and large-scale agribusiness plantations as well as spontaneous clearing by farmers.

 

Should market efficiencies or social objectives drive the design of Payment for Environmental Services (PES) schemes? 

This issues paper challenges the notion that markets should solely drive PES schemes, given the emerging evidence of how PES can impact the livelihoods of the rural poor. Blindness to social welfare can fuel the very real risk of adverse social outcomes, and result in missed opportunities to improve the circumstances and opportunities of the rural poor.