Design effective models for governance and implementation of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+)

in the Solomon Islands to provide equitable benefits for forestdependent indigenous people

Presentation by Jady Smith Program Director - Asia Live & Learn Environmental Education
ADB Capturing Economic Benefits from Ecosystem Services: Experiences from Asia & the Pacific (22 February 2012, Thailand)

Project Overview
Location: Solomon Islands (Choiseul Island Province) Duration: 18 months (March 2011 - August 2012) Partners: Live & Learn (International & Solomon Islands) & Natural Resources Development Foundation (NRDF) Beneficiaries: Indigenous communities & landowners, policy makers & project developers
Australia
Vanuatu Fiji Solomon Islands

Contacts
Regional Robbie Henderson robbie.henderson@livelearn.org Solomon Islands Johnson Fangalasuu johnson.fangalasuu@livelearn.org

Project objectives:
Design a pilot REDD+ project that could ensure landowners and the community dependent on the forest are the main beneficiaries
Develop and test a program to educate local people about REDD+, so they can make informed decisions about their participation Identify possible governance and benefit sharing systems for community REDD+ Re-imagine REDD+ as a livelihood opportunity fully integrated with other livelihood and community development aspirations, needs and strengths Enable the target community to have the option of becoming one of the first communities in the Solomon Islands to generate income through REDD+ as an alternative to unsustainable logging Design a project methodology that is replicable as a nested project and could be scaled up

Activities and highlights:

Research of Aspirations & Perceptions (RAP) Research into current national REDD+ policy environment and Readiness status Research into laws impacting on REDD+ (particularly on land tenure and resource ownership rights) Design and implementation of a climate change & REDD+ education program, including animated film & facilitators toolkit Agreements with local communities and local NGO to develop a pilot project model (consultation) Pre-feasibility study completed (Additionality) Draft Project Design Document (PDD) in development

Key issues for REDD+ in the Pacific

Some factors inhibiting an exclusive national approach (favouring a community based and nested approach) Corruption at National Government level Customary land tenure (complex and diverse, pros and cons) Unclear, un-registered, contested or overlapping land ownership at local level Local and national drivers of deforestation and degradation Decentralised governance Weak capacity for national or provincial government governance The larger the land area the more complex the social context

Key issues for REDD+ in the Pacific

Capacity building and empowerment Need to enable stakeholder participation at all levels (required for a critical debate around policy, safeguards, FPIC, participation in projects etc) Very few useful resources currently exist to foster teaching and learning about climate change and REDD+ (particularly at the community level)

Key issues for REDD+ in the Pacific

Urgency deforestation & degradation & its flow on effects

Logging in PNG and the Solomon Islands is currently four times above the sustainable threshold (according to AusAID) and logging is driving poverty and hardship Numerous logging agreements are currently being negotiated on sites bordering our project site (business as usual is highly damaging and continuing at a pace) Income from logging does not reach communities due to corruption Loss of ecosystem services from unsustainable practices is undermining community resilience to the effects of climate change

Key issues for REDD+ in the Pacific

Partnerships between regional agencies and NGOs are critical for REDD+ to succeed International REDD initiatives such as the World Bank FCPF, UNREDD, regional programs and bilateral assistance often Top down (MRV, institutional readiness etc) Need for community level engagement and the reality check that this can provide NGOs have the capacity to fill the gap in practical knowledge about how to realize REDD+ on the ground NGOs can empower civil society to engage and drive demand for equitable benefit sharing from REDD+

Next steps
Investment at the community level Pilot projects an action research approach is well justified and can feed into policy development, while starting to promote an alternative to Business As Usual. Pilot projects should focus on methodologies that can be taken to scale (our design takes this into account) Pilot projects can target community level readiness or full implementation through voluntary markets for PES or REDD+ Investment in enabling education is required to foster critical debate around policy formulation (e.g. safeguards) NGOs and civil society must be stakeholders in the national REDD+ policy development process (need support in this role cant become experts or advocates without support)

Thank you!