By watching the forest from a different perspective, we can understand the impact forests have on our way of life. Thomas Pesquet, an ESA astronaut, had a unique opportunity to do just that. After 196 days spent on boardof the International Space Station, the French astronaut shared his life-changing experience in a video produced in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), raising awareness about climate change among millions of viewers. However, outer space does not only give us a different perspective; space-based Earth observation tools are valuable for addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation. It is...

Each year, more and more countries recognize forests’ potential in reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+). This October, two events took place in West Africa to improve the Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) and Enhanced Transparency, including MRV for REDD+ activities, and facilitate knowledge exchange at both regional and national levels. The first event, “The Second Annual Meeting of the West African South-South Network on MRV and Transparency”, hosted by the Government of Senegal in Dakar on 11-13 October 2017, gathered more than 60 participants from 14 West African countries to expand regional collaboration on MRV and enhanced transparency1...

While Tunisia’s forest cover is relatively low (approx. 6.6 per cent), this remaining forest is critically important to the Mediterranean ecosystem and plays an important role in climate mitigation.  As in many countries, Tunisia’s state forest boundaries are unclear, and encroachment has become a major challenge.  Over time, boundaries preserved on maps dating from the time of the French protectorate (i.e. 1881 - 1956) have diverged from the reality on the ground where population and demand for agricultural land have increased.  Native Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis) forests are gradually being replaced with olive groves, wheat fields, and settlements. A comprehensive...

The Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG), with technical and financial support from FAO, will host the Pacific Regional Workshop on Forest Monitoring from 5 to 9 December 2017 at the newly opened PNG National Forest Inventory Office in the PNG Forest Authority headquarters, Port Moresby. Experts from PNG, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga, Indonesia and the Pacific Community (SPC) will share achievements and challenges of forest monitoring. The workshop will also introduce and provide hands on training on FAO forest monitoring tools including Open Foris and SEPAL.  The workshop is financially supported by the European Union, Global Environment Facility and the...

What kind of ‘triggers of change’ are needed to further accelerate concrete actions on the ground, at institutional level, and on a global level to scale up REDD+ implementation? The issue was addressed by Eva Müller, Director of Forestry Policy and Resources, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in her opening remarks at the joint UN-REDD/World Bank Group side event “Scaling up implementation for accessing REDD+ payments” held on 13 November 2017 on the occasion of UNFCCC COP23, Bonn, Germany. The event explored how REDD+ and other forest-focused land-use initiatives can and are boosting implementation towards accessing results-based...