The biodiversity-productivity relationship (BPR) is critical to our understanding of the global extinction crisis and its impact on ecosystems. Using ground-sourced data from 777,126 plots across 44 countries, this report reveals a globally consistent positive concave-down BPR, showing that continued biodiversity loss would result in an accelerating decline in forest productivity worldwide.Read more
Rapid conversions and avoided deforestation: Examining four decades of industrial plantation expansion in Borneo
New plantations can either cause deforestation by replacing natural forests, or avoid this by using previously cleared areas. The extent of these two situations is contested in tropical biodiversity hotspots where objective data are limited. This report seeks to bridge that gap by analyzing satellite imagery (1973-2015) to study the expansion of plantations.Read more
The impact of land property rights interventions on investment and agricultural productivity in developing countries: A systematic review
This systematic review examines the effects of land tenure recognition on agricultural productivity, income, investment and other relevant outcomes. The results indicate substantial productivity and income gains from land tenure recognition, although the gains differ markedly by region. The report concludes that there is a need for further research on inter-regional differences and on the role of customary tenure arrangements.Read more
Mangrove forests are potentially threatened by contemporary accelerated sea level rise (SLR). Several studies show that mangroves are able to adapt to SLR through vertical surface elevation change (SEC), however data are lacking, with often only surface accretion rate (SAR) data available. This report systematically reviews published studies of SEC and SAR from globally distributed monitoring sites using meta-analysis, and compares them with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report (IPCC AR5) SLR scenarios.Read more
A commonality in the economics of happiness literature is that absolute income matters more for the subjective well being of people at low-income levels. This study uses a large sample of 6,973 rural households in 23 countries throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America to test whether that theory holds true, and to analyze the existence of adaptation and social comparison effects on subjective wellbeing.Read more
Tree plantations play a controversial role in many nations’ efforts to balance goals for economic development, ecological conservation, and social justice. This report contributes to the debate by analyzing the socioeconomic impact of such plantations. Employing panel data regression techniques on a dataset collected in 180 municipal territories in Chile from 2001-2011, the study’s authors find that growth in plantation areas are associated with higher than average rates of poverty during this period.Read more
Discover this audio-photo essay featuring female voices from around the world: a charcoal producer in Zambia, a timber producer in Ecuador and a swidden farmer in Indonesia. CIFOR’s Gender Coordinator, Dr. Bimbika Sijapati Basnett, comments on the progress and unique challenges for women living and working in rural areas.Read more
Debates over forest loss generally focus on the extent to which industrial plantations are to blame: those in conservation charge plantations for the destruction of forests, while companies argue that planting is done on already deforested land. Until now, there was a lack of information to distinguish “good” from “bad” plantations. A recent CIFOR study reviewed 400 satellite images of Borneo from 1973-2015 to make that distinction.Read more
Peatland fires in Indonesia push scale-topping figures. Besides the cost of emissions and hectares burned, research is ongoing into the political economy of fire and haze, as well as the health impacts the fires present. In this photo essay, images captured during the peak of the 2015 crisis offer insights into the day-to-day reality for those who lived through the environmental crisis in Central Kalimantan and Eastern Riau.Read more
“No Deforestation. No Peat. No Exploitation”: Though simple in their aim, zero deforestation commitments have divided the palm oil sector in terms of which rules – and whose rules – to follow, says CIFOR’s Pablo Pacheco. In Indonesia, the world’s largest producer of palm oil, companies are facing opposition from the government.Read more
Since the Paris Agreement on climate change was reached at COP21, the discourse has shifted towards implementation, focusing on the ‘how’, rather than the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of climate action. CIFOR’s Stephen Leonard outlines the Top 10 considerations for ensuring the Agreement’s smooth implementation.Read more
Land use today is shaped by an array of forces, ranging from concession authorization to cultural taboos. To find out more, CIFOR’s Anne Larson and Ashwin Ravikumar reviewed hundreds of norms and regulations shaping land-use change in five countries: Peru, Indonesia, Tanzania, Mexico and Vietnam.Read more
In the midst of efforts to achieve ‘zero deforestation’, it is important to remember that commitments should involve finding models that work for all stakeholders – public and private – and support smallholders who depend on commodities for their livelihoods. CIFOR’s Pablo Pacheco and Sophia Gynch analyzed the performance of key supply chains in Indonesia and Brazil.Read more
Large-scale monoculture plantations have been accused of land–grabbing, forest destruction, unfair distribution of benefits, and so forth. So it might sound counter-intuitive to suggest timber plantations as a prime solution to promote forest conservation. Yet CIFOR’s Romain Pirard urges policymakers to take a closer look.Read more
“The land sector will be key in achieving the well-below 2 or 1.5 degree goal agreed in Paris and this is clearly reflected in the long-term goal of net zero emissions, Article 5, and the Preamble of the Agreement. This role, however, is not limited to that of forests or agriculture in isolation, but across the landscape.”Read more
“Approaching solutions holistically is at the heart of what is known as the ‘landscapes approach’ and the global movement that is arising around it. The term is not known beyond development circles, but it should be, because every stretch of land or sea touched by mankind makes up the millions of landscapes on this planet.”Read more
“The CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA) is the world’s most ambitious international research program in its field. In 2015, over 200 FTA researchers produced more than 600 FTA publications, of which 80% are open access. More than 50,000 people were trained, and very large audiences have been reached through the program’s events, websites and social media.”Read more
In arid places, the planting of trees is discouraged out of the belief that trees reduce the availability of water. But scientists in Burkina Faso have found that when a certain number of trees are present, the amount of groundwater recharge is actually maximized.Read more
New research uses spatially and temporally explicit data to better understand deforestation trends in South America, providing welcome detail for policymakers and others looking to understand a 15-year period (1990-2005) of significant land-use change.Read more
Agrarian change happens at the landscape scale, but making the transition to sustainable agriculture requires an understanding of local benefits and trade-offs. A new study examines seven multi-functional landscapes in Ethiopia, Cameroon, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Bangladesh, Zambia and Burkina Faso.Read more
More than 300 people, 21 communities, four landscapes and two countries were involved in this groundbreaking study in land tenure in Ecuador and Peru. A sample of indigenous and mestizo communities with a mixture of individual and collective property titles were asked about their forest and natural resource use, and perceptions of land ownership.Read more
Travel to West Timor, Indonesia, to witness the traditional Mutis-Timau honey harvest. Every year, community members travel great distances back to their sacred homeland when nature signals it is time to collect the honey. Learn how this sustainable forestry practice complements national policy on forest conservation and brings in local income.View
Forest landscape restoration (FLR) is the ongoing process of regaining ecological functionality and enhancing human well-being across deforested or degraded areas. Journey to Ethiopia’s arid north with CIFOR scientists to learn about the Tigray region, which has become an international ‘poster child’ for successful conservation efforts.View
This presentation, given at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conversation, assesses the livelihood impacts of agrarian change across the forest transition in six tropical landscapes in Zambia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Bangladesh.Read more
This presentation, given by Terry Sunderland at the 2016 PEFC Conference Sustainable Landscapes, Sustainable Livelihoods in Bali, Indonesia, examines the vital links between forests and food security, and how to best operationalize the ‘landscape approach’.Read more
The Summit’s 300+ participants brought perspectives from across the region to discuss ways toward a more integrated approach to forests, people and development.Read more
Regional leaders gathered in Brunei Darussalam to discuss ways to slow, halt and reverse deforestation in the Asia-Pacific. But what does it mean to ‘reverse’ deforestation? And how can it be done without reversing the rapid development that supports the economies and livelihoods of the region?Read more
An increasing number of states are embracing commitments made under the Paris Agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit global temperature rise. But how do these grand ambitions play out in reality?
The sixth Global Landscapes Forum in Marrakesh, Morocco, brought together stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to work together on planning climate action for sustainable development.
CIFOR’s Director General Peter Holmgren spoke on the sidelines of the Global Landscapes Forum about the landscapes approach, what it means for the global climate agenda, and what’s coming up next for the GLF.
The German Ministry for the Environment and the Ministry for Economic Cooperation are working together to support the GLF for the next four years in Bonn. The platform for global action will meet in Bonn for the first time in 2017.