In 2008 UNEP-WCMC produced a report with a consortium of Chinese and international partners on research needs for reducing poverty through better ecosystem management in China. This work was for DFID, NERC and ESRC of the UK government, as a contribution to their design of a proposed international research programme on ecosystem services for poverty alleviation (www.nerc.ac.uk/research/programmes/espa/) The China ESPA report identified that China’s great progress in poverty reduction has slowed, as the remaining poor tend to be found in environments of low productivity or high risk of ecosystem degradation, such as mountains, grasslands and deserts. The government of China is investing heavily in poverty reduction and environmental management, with opportunities for improving the synergies between these activities. Research needs include better understanding of ecosystem functioning for multiple services, and development of methods to analyse policies and projects for both poverty reduction and supply of ecosystem services.
Resource Type: ReportsThe Great Apes, including the chimpanzee, gorilla and orangutan, are threatened with extinction. All species are rapidly declining in abundance, even within protected areas.The main factors responsible for this decline are loss and degradation of habitat, and hunting. Construction of roads in forest areas is particularly damaging, as such development facilitates hunting and other activities which lead to habitat destruction.
This report assesses the impact of infrastructural development on great ape populations, using the GLOBIO modelling approach. GLOBIO is a multivariable spatial model, which estimates the extent of land area with reduced abundance and diversity of living organisms, as a result of infrastructural development. The model can also be used to develop scenarios of possible future impacts, based on the current rates of infrastructural development.
Resource Type: ReportsThe Last Stand of the Orangutan was prepared by a Rapid Response Team at UNEP/GRID-Arendal and UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre as a broad collaborative effort, involving contributors from the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Forestry, Indonesia, and partners of the Great Apes Survival Project (GRASP).
Resource Type: ReportsThis paper provides an overview of the current state of knowledge regarding relationships between carbon and biodiversity in tropical forests.
Resource Type: ReportsThis document provides a basis for estimating the probable impacts of different forest cover creation approaches on the ecosystem-derived benefits of biodiversity, water provision, soil conservation and non-timber forest products.
Resource Type: ReportsThis paper provides an overview of the issues surrounding and opportunities for achieving ‘multiple benefits’ from Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in developing countries (REDD). The UN‐REDD Programme understands the term ‘multiple benefits’ to include both the ecosystem and social benefits of REDD.
It is an output of the International Support Functions component of the UN‐REDD Programme, relating specifically to the development of output 3.2: ‘Tools to encourage the capture of ecosystem service co‐benefits developed’,focussing on the ecosystem aspects of multiple benefits.
Resource Type: ReportsThe conservation of world forests is an important measure in order to address the ever-worsening consequences of climate change. Tanzania has over 34 million hectares of forests and woodland habitats (more than 30% of the whole country). This report concludes that REDD strategies in Tanzania should be integrated with, and improve upon, current conservation strategies.
Resource Type: ReportsThe paper provides an analysis of the ecosystem-derived multiple benefits of REDD+.
The terminology around multiple benefits is not yet clear cut. Here, the different terms in use are reviewed and suggestions are made about how terms can be used in a consistent way.
Resource Type: ReportsWhen forests that would have been lost or degraded are retained or restored through REDD+, they deliver ‘multiple benefits’ in addition to protecting or enhancing carbon stocks. These ecosystem-based benefits may include conservation of forest biodiversity, water regulation, soil conservation, timber, forest foods and other non-timber forest products. REDD+ can also lead to direct social benefits, such as jobs, livelihoods, land tenure clarification, carbon credit payments or enhanced participation in decision-making under stronger governance. The UN-REDD Programme works with countries to address both ecosystem-based and social benefits, as well as a range of other REDD+ relevant areas. This brochure focuses on the ecosystem-based benefits of REDD+, which often depend upon forest biodiversity.
Resource Type: Reports©2013 UNEP All rights reserved