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  The impacts of biofuel production on biodiversity: A review of the current literature »

  This report reviews the current state of knowledge on the biodiversity impacts (both positive and negative) of biofuel production, with an emphasis on the potential influence of current and future government policies. Although the focus is primarily on first generation biofuels, second and third generation biofuels are also discussed. The potential for sustainability criteria to ameliorate biodiversity impacts is also assessed.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Implications of the REDD Negotiations for Forest Restoration »

  This briefing provides an update on negotiations under the climate change convention on REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation), and their relevance to forest restoration. It has been prepared as part of the REFORLAN project, European Community Sixth Framework Programme contract number 032132. REFORLAN has carried out research on dry forest restoration in Mexico, Chile and Argentina. Hence this briefing has a particular focus on these countries.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Carbon and biodiversity: A demonstration atlas »

  The 24 page demonstration atlas, launched at the 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, shows that areas high in both carbon and biodiversity do exist and can be identified by relatively simple mapping tools. Prioritising such areas could give the 'double benefit' of reducing emissions from land use change whilst conserving biodiversity. Three regional maps along with six national maps are shown for the tropics, derived from global-scale data.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Forests in Flux. Climate change: the threats to world forests »

  Consideration of predictions for global climate change and the general scientific principles underlying the interaction between vegetation and climate, and examination of likely scenarios for different forest regions.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Tropical Montane Cloud Forest Sites (1997) »

  General Data License (excluding WDPA)

  Datasets Available from UNEP-WCMC: Excluding WDPA
  Access to UNEP-WCMC datasets is provided on the understanding that you read and consent to be bound by the Terms and Conditions attached. For the purposes of this Agreement the “Data” comprise any of the spatial data and associated attribute data downloadable from the UNEP-WCMC website, excluding the World Database on Protected Areas.

  Read the data policy here

  This dataset shows the location of tropical montane cloud forest sites as recorded in a worldwide inventory compiled by UNEP-WCMC and published in "A Global Directory of Tropical Montane Cloud Forests", Aldrich et al., 1997. This inventory was compiled from literature searches and correspondence with regional experts, and contains a total of 529 sites. The central location for each site is recorded but does not identify the great variability in their size, which ranges from 50 hectares to hundreds of square kilometres.
   

  Resource Type: Spatial Data / Maps
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  Carbon in Drylands: Desertification, Climate Change and Carbon Finance »

  This paper reviews the potential for carbon sequestration in dryland ecosystems, which includes forests, but also covers other habitats, such as grasslands, and, importantly, soils. It also considers ways in which carbon storage in drylands affects land degradation issues.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Monitoring for REDD+: carbon stock change and multiple benefits »

  This paper investigates the relationship and potential synergies between monitoring systems for carbon stock changes and multiple benefits from REDD+.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Mapping vulnerability of tropical forest to conversion, and resulting potential CO2 emissions. A rapid assessment for the Eliasch Review (2008) »

  Using global scale maps and statistics, we estimate that the conversion of all vulnerable tropical forests to the most valuable other land use at each location could lead to emissions of 670 Gt carbon dioxide (CO2). We then evaluate the role of the global protected area network in preventing emissions from tropical deforestation.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Carbon, Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services: Exploring Co-benefits Jiangxi Province, China »

  At UNFCCC COP14 UNEP-WCMC released Carbon and biodiversity: a demonstration atlas (Kapos et al. 2008). Using global datasets on carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystems and areas of high priority for biodiversity conservation, this publication illustrated the potential of spatial analyses to assist decision-makers in identifying areas where reducing emissions from land use change could at the same time help to secure biodiversity benefits.

  However, to support planning and decision-making at national and sub-national scales, such analyses must be based on data developed at an appropriate scale and should be done in consultation with a wide range of stakeholders to help prioritise among the different benefits and services under consideration.

  This report presents data and analyses on areas of high carbon density and high priority for biodiversity in Jiangxi Province, China. The degree of their overlap with protected areas is assessed, and their relationship to the distribution of human population is explored.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Impacts of Climate Change on Wildlife »

  The impacts of "human-induced" climate change are now being observed in every aspect of life, and it is the most significant and far-reaching current environmental threat. This book introduces a series of case-studies highlighting the observed current changes in a number of species and habitats, ranging from the tropics through to the polar regions, and in some cases predictions for future impacts.

  Resource Type: Reports