Nature-based Solutions – including the protection and restoration of forests – are now universally recognized as an integral part of the solution to global warming. Equally accepted is that the delivery of these critical natural climate solutions requires effort and ambition on scales not yet realized in the forestry sector. Jurisdictional approaches – larger-scale interventions which reduce the potential for leakage often associated with projects and provide a more holistic solution to unsustainable land use within a geography – have emerged as a favoured approach. It has been suggested that globally we need to target at least one million jurisdictional REDD+ emission reductions per year by 2025
A key factor in achieving sustainable, significant emission reductions is a well-planned and comprehensive Government-led REDD+ strategy. Such strategies encompass the participation of a range of stakeholders, including the private sector. The government should head the process but would benefit from drawing on a wide pool of players for financial and execution support.
Pernille Holtedahl, who recently joined the Centre for Climate Finance and Investment as a Research Fellow, has co-authored a paper on options for private sector involvement under Jurisdictional REDD+. The paper offers options for the roles that the private sector can play in supporting government objectives in the forest sector and lays out 7 different models for collaboration. The range of private sector involvement in REDD+ programs is generally not well understood with a typical binary focus either on the great benefits or the catastrophic risks of private sector participation in REDD+. The aim of the paper is to provide nuance to the debate and guidance to governments.
The report was published in December 2021 with an accompanying webinar.