The political definition of 'forest' used in REDD (Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) threatens to undermine the program's objective to conserve ecosystems for their ability to sequester carbon, according to a new analysis by the Alternatives to Slash and Burn (ASB) Partnership for Tropical Forest [...] There has been an acceleration in deforestation over recent decades, and a growing concern that remaining forests are losing their ability to function as carbon sinks. Thus, human destruction of the world’s forests is an important topic at COP15. Advocates demonstrated a new tool at the Copenhagen talks that should [...]
by Jack Rosebro
Progressive deforestation in Rondonia, Brazil as seen in satellite imagery; from left, 1975, 1989, and 2001. Sources: USGS Landsat images via Google Earth. Click to enlarge.Through its philanthropic arm, Google.org, Google introduced an online suite of beta software that leverages cloud computing [...]
It what could be a critical development in helping tropical countries monitor deforestation, Google has unveiled a partnership with scientists using advanced remote sensing technology to rapidly analyze and map forest cover in extremely high resolution. The effort could help countries detect deforestation shortly after it occurs making [...] 
While developing countries in the tropics have received a lot of attention for their deforestation emissions (one thinks of Brazil, Indonesia, and Malaysia), emissions from logging—considered forest cover change—in wealthy northern countries has been largely overlooked by the media. It seems industrialized countries prefer it this way: a [...] 
Tropical deforestation claimed roughly 13 million hectares of forest per year during the first half of this decade, about the same rate of loss as the 1990s. But while the overall numbers have remained relatively constant, they mask a transition of great significance: a shift from poverty-driven to [...] 
Destruction of old-growth or primary forests looms large in discussions in Copenhagen over a scheme to compensate tropical countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD). Some environmental groups are pressing for conservation of old-growth forests — the most carbon-dense, and biologically-rich state of forests — to [...] 
Funds generated under a U.S. cap-and-trade or a broader U.N.-supported scheme to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and degradation ("REDD") could play a critical role in bringing deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon to a halt, reports a team writing in the journal Science. But the window of [...] Funds generated under a U.S. cap-and-trade or a broader U.N.-supported scheme to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and degradation ("REDD") could play a critical role in bringing deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon to a halt, reports a team writing in the journal Science. But the window of [...] 
Rising demand for timber and agricultural products could work against a proposed initiative to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD), warns a new report from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). The briefing, Putting the Brakes on Drivers of Forest Destruction: A Shared Responsibility, says that investment in [...] Yesterday the New York Times featured the plight of Indonesian rainforests and the relevance of stemming deforestation in order to address global climate change on the front page. While the article correctly identifies the global importance of rainforests and peatlands for the climate, it leaves the reader inadequately [...]
As negotiations wrapped up in Barcelona at the UN Climate Talks, the opportunity for a robust agreement to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation in developing countries (REDD) is dangling from a wire. The latest negotiating text, which parties will be working on at the opening of the Copenhagen [...]
The world’s forests are a critical piece of the climate change puzzle. Covering over 30 percent of the Earth’s land surface, forests play a huge role in regulating weather patterns and absorbing the carbon that we release into the atmosphere. Not to mention, global deforestation is a huge contributor to [...]
