Design Implementation at the National Level.

REDD+ (Reducing Emissions of greenhouse gases from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) is an important tool under the UNFCCC for incentivizing developing countries to adopt and scale up climate mitigation actions in the forest sector and for capturing and channeling the financial resources to do so. This Handbook eloquently examines the methodological guidance and emerging governance arrangements for REDD+, analysing how and to what extent it is embedded in the international legal framework. Organized coherently into five parts, contributions from legal experts, international relations scholars, climate change negotiators and activists explore the history and design of REDD+ in the UN climate regime, as well as linkages between REDD+ and other international agreements. The book also considers global governance for REDD+, its financial dimensions including markets and investment and future developments and legal challenges. Detailed analysis from a range of angles illustrates the interplay of international norms and institutions and maps out a legal research agenda for identifying best practice solutions. Shedding light on one of the most vibrant and fast-moving fields in international law, this comprehensive Handbook is essential reading for scholars of international law and international relations, policy makers in the area of climate change, REDD+ and land sector experts and NGOs.

Legal frameworks to 'reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation' (REDD+) are analysed to focus on protections and benefits for indigenous peoples and forest communities.

Experiences from incentive-based forest management are examined for their effects on the livelihoods of local communities. In the second section, country case studies provide a snapshot of REDD developments to date and identify design features for REDD that would support benefits for forest communities.

In The Protection of Indigenous Peoples and Reduction of Forest Carbon Emissions, Handa Abidin identifies three main approaches that can be used by indigenous peoples to protect their rights in the context of REDD-plus. Further, he discusses how the available protection for indigenous peoples in the context of REDD-plus is currently insufficient to quickly address cases where the rights of indigenous peoples have been violated through REDD-plus activities. Abidin recommends the establishment of a committee and a panel on REDD-plus that could convey greater benefits to the context of REDD-plus and indigenous peoples, as well as to wider contexts such as climate change, human rights, and international law.

This book presents a cohesive collection of contributions representing an African scholarly voice on some of the most burning and emerging topics and experiences regarding the implementation of REDD+ in Africa from a human rights perspective. It addresses the international human rights obligations of states and non-state actors in the context of REDD+ implementation in Africa; how current practices in various African states reinforce or affect human rights standards; and critical issues concerning the rights of vulnerable groups such as women, Indigenous populations, and forest dwellers in the implementation of REDD+ in Africa. Further, it investigates potential gaps in the existing laws, and how they can be addressed from a comparative point of view. The book also sheds light on the roles that different actors can play in fostering change and identifies best practices in the implementation of REDD+ in Africa. The book offers a rich intellectual resource for various actors in the environmental science, climate and environmental law fields who are often confronted with the challenge of how to manage the delicate balance of forests as a development resource; forests as a climate-change mitigation resource; and forests as a catalyst for the rights of vulnerable populations. The book responds to the imbalance and gaps in REDD+ scholarship. Addressing such lacuna in an edited volume of this nature is essential to the present and future work of practitioners, academics and other actors with a sustained interest in REDD+ in Africa.

This book explores how the transnational legal process for REDD+ has affected human rights in developing countries. This title is also available as Open Access.