Markku Kanninen Director of CIFOR’s Environmental Services and Sustainable Use of Forests Programme

Forests have always been a part of international discussions on climate change, but never to the same overwhelming extent witnessed during the past 18 months. CIFOR’s research into the linkages between forests and climate change goes back several years and is now focusing on two main areas.

The first explores climate change adaptation - the ways in which governments, communities and the natural environment respond to actual or expected changes in the climate. The second strand looks at the role of forests in climate change mitigation - the ways forests and trees can be used to reduce or delay global warming by reducing atmospheric carbon while also improving the livelihoods of the rural poor.

Adaptation for livelihoods and conservation

CIFOR scientists are developing new methodologies to assess the vulnerability of forests, and forest-dwelling people, to climate change. The poor frequently make a living on steep hillsides, on low-lying land and besides the sea - areas which are particularly prone to droughts, floods and other events related to climate-change. These events are not only destructive in themselves, but they can affect the long-term productivity of the land and threaten food production.

To ensure people in vulnerable areas survive, we need to understand how they can adapt to climate change. This means learning more about the way different landscapes provide different environmental goods and services for different stakeholders. Finding useful answers requires an interdisciplinary research approach involving policy makers, scientists and natural resource managers. CIFOR is working with its partners to build a global research network on adaptation to climate change in 14 countries across five regions: South East Asia, West Africa, the Congo Basin, Central America and the Andean Region of Latin America.

Tropical Forests and Climates Change Adaptation – TroFCCA – is a collaborative research project carried out in seven countries across three continents. Its research focus varies according to region. from place to place. For example, in Burkina Faso where people are heavily dependent on wood for their fuel needs, researchers are examining climate change’s impact on timber productivity. In Costa Rica, where forests greatly influence the local hydrology, scientists are studying the impact of climate change on forests and water supply. The findings will help governments develop policies that assist communities adapt to climate change.

Forests and their role in enhancing climate mitigation

CIFOR has a long history of mitigation research. This includes considerable analysis of the underlying causes of deforestation and a significant portfolio of research now looking at carbon sequestration. CIFOR is developing methods, tools and databases to assist governments, organizations, companies and communities develop carbon forestry projects. CIFOR scientists also remain committed in their support for carbon sequestration projects, such as facilitating Clean Development Mechanism schemes in Latin America.

CIFOR’s research on reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) aims at influencing the design of a future post-Kyoto climate protection regime, as well as national REDD schemes. Its research will help ensure carbon reduction schemes are not only effective in lowering emissions, but are also equitable and beneficial to affected communities in developing countries.

CIFOR researchers have also been assessing reward schemes such as payments for environmental services, and their affect on rural livelihoods. Other activities include researching potential synergies between adaptation and mitigation, and assisting negotiations on a future climate protection regime by providing research data on the role of forests in reducing emissions. CIFOR scientists have also been active members of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).