Dr William Sunderlin gave this presentation in Bonn, Germany on 5 June 2013 at an event organized by CIFOR titled ‘REDD+ performance and verification: Insights from CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study (GCS) on REDD+’. This was an official side event to the 2013 Bonn Climate Change Conference.

1. What are the barriers and opportunities to
conditional incentives in REDD+ projects?
William D. Sunderlin, Andini Desita Ekaputri, Amy Duchelle, Erin Sills, Demetrius Kweka
SBSTA side event on “REDD+ performance and verification:
Insights from CIFOR’s Global Comparative Study (GCS)”
Bonn, Germany, June 5, 2013

2. Outline
• Global Comparative Study on REDD+
• Proponent challenges survey
• Characterization of projects
• Barriers
• Opportunities
• Some thoughts

3. Global Comparative Study on REDD+

4. Module 2 regions, countries, projects

5. Proponent Challenges Survey
• In-depth survey interview of 23 proponent
organizations to ask:
What are the barriers and opportunities to
implementation of REDD+ projects in terms of
attaining the 3Es and co-benefits?
• Research question in this presentation:
What are the barriers and opportunities to move
to conditional REDD+ incentives in REDD+
projects?

6. Proponent Challenges Survey
1. Characterization of projects:
– Sources of pressure on forests
– Progress in implementation of interventions
– Ranking of importance of interventions
2. Barriers to implementation:
– Most challenging factors (general)
– Challenges in effectively sequestering forest carbon
3. Opportunities:
– Solutions toward effective sequestration

7. Definition of conditional incentives
• Includes but is not equivalent to what people
commonly consider to be "PES"
• Broad definition that includes:
monetary and in-kind rewards
Household and village level rewards
Pre-paid and paid upon delivery

8. 1. Characterization: Main sources of pressure
3
3
3
4
6
7
7
8
9
9
10
11
13
17
19
19
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Large‐scale ranching
Large‐scale timber harvest (illegal)
Large‐scale timber harvest (legal)
Large‐scale agriculture
Other
Commercial fuelwood/charcoal collection
Large‐scale plantations
Non-wood forest products harvesting
Mining
Small‐scale legal timber harvest
Small or medium ranchers
Subsistence fuelwood/charcoal collection
Forest fire
Small‐scale frontier agriculture (colonists)
Small‐scale illegal timber harvest
Small‐scale traditional agriculture (local inhabitants)
n= 148 responses

9. 1. Characterization: Implementation of interventions
9
19
22
14
19
12
19
1
1
1
4
4
2
13
3
5
4
7
2
0 5 10 15 20 25
Others
Tenure Clarification
Env Education
Liv Enhance - Cond
Liv Enhance - Non Cond
Forest Enhancement
Forest Access Restriction
Project sites (n=23)
Begun Not yet begun Will not be done

10. 1. Characterization: Among the interventions that have begun or are
planned, which is potentially the most important for effectively reducing
deforestation and forest degradation at your site?
1
1
2
2
3
5
9
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Unknown
Forest enhancements
Livelihood enhancements (non-conditional)
Forest access restrictions
Tenure clarification
Others
Livelihood enhancements (conditional)
Project sites (n=23)

11. 1. Characterization: Among the interventions that have begun or are
planned, which is potentially the most important for effectively reducing
deforestation and forest degradation at your site?
1
1
1
3
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
3
1
0 2 4 6 8 10
Unknown
Forest enhancements
Livelihood enhancements (non-conditional)
Forest access restrictions and conversion
Tenure clarification
Others
Livelihood enhancements (conditional)
Project sites (n=23)
BRAZIL
CAMEROON
INDONESIA
PERU
TANZANIA
VIETNAM

12. 2. Ranking of ten most challenging of 62 factors
Factor Score
Governance: tenure conditions (national) 86
National policy: tenure & land use 83
International policy: REDD+ (economic) 83
Governance: tenure cond. (reg./local) 80
National policy: REDD+ (technical) 79
National policy: REDD+ (economic) 79
Political economy: BAU interests 78
National policy: REDD+ (legal) 78
National policy: forest 77
Governance: capacity 77

13. 2. Which one of 62 factors has been the most
challenging in implementing your REDD+ project?
6
26%
6
26%1
5%
3
13%
2
9%
3
13%
1
4%
1
4%
Project sites (n=23)
Tenure policy and conditions
Disadvantegous economics
of REDD+
International policy
Issues related to local
stakeholders
National agricultural and
forestry policies
National and sub-national
REDD+ policy
Proponent organization
deficiencies
Unknown

14. 2. Barriers: What are the main challenges you have experienced
in designing and implementing a project that will effectively
sequester or reduce emissions of forest carbon?
• Engagement with the community
• Collaboration with government institutions
• Weak local governance
• Tenure
• Inadequacy of REDD+ financing
• Creation of alternative income sources
• Leakage

15. 2. Opportunities: What solutions do you envision in designing
and implementing a project that will effectively sequester or
reduce emissions of forest carbon?
• Improved governance and government capacity
• Improved engagement with local community
• Tenure intervention
• Intensive/sustainable agriculture
• Community forest management
• Intervene to change policy
• Increase area to overcome leakage
• Support low-carbon development planning
• Devise improved financial incentives

16. Thoughts on barriers and
opportunities
• Tendency is to view REDD+ as wholly
focused on one intervention:
conditional incentives
• In fact, conditional incentives in
REDD+ are preceded by, and
functionally linked to, other
interventions
• This hybrid arrangement has allowed
projects to proceed in spite of
inhospitable REDD+ policy and
economic conditions

17. We thank our donors!