Climate Change for Forest Policy-Makers: An Approach for Integrating Climate Change Into National Forest Policy in Support of Sustainable Forest Management – Version 2.

By Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

They play an essential role in reducing vulnerabilities and enhancing adaptation of people and ecosystems to climate change and climate variability, the negative impacts of which are becoming increasingly evident in many parts of the world.

In many countries climate change issues have not been fully addressed in national forest policies, forestry mitigation and adaptation needs at national level have not been thoroughly considered in national climate change strategies, and cross-sectoral dimensions of climate change impacts and response measures have not been fully appreciated. This publication seeks to provide a practical approach to the process of integrating climate change into national forest programmes. The aim is to assist senior officials in government administrations and the representatives of other stakeholders, including civil society organizations and the private sector, prepare the forest sector for the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change. This document complements a set of guidelines prepared by FAO in 2013 to support forest managers incorporate climate change considerations into forest management plans and practices.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• Release date: Aug 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9789251316948

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

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FAO. 2018. Climate change for forest policy-makers – An approach for integrating climate change into national forest policy in support of sustainable forest management – Version 2.0. FAO Forestry Paper no.181. Rome, 68 pp. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.

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Cover photo: Nigerien Forestry Officer gathering information from the local community about their needs in terms of plants to be reintroduced by a planting campaign. ©FAO/Giulio Napolitano

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Section 1 – Background, aim and approach

Climate change, forests and land use

Climate change and forests

The Paris Agreement and Nationally Determined Contributions

Mitigation and adaptation in the context of the Paris Agreement

Sustainable Development Goals

Climate finance

REDD+

Sustainable forest management and national forest policy

Aim and objectives of the approach

Use of the approach

Section 2 – Strategic level outcomes to be achieved

Element A – Forest-related policies and laws

Element B – Concordance of broader development policies with forest policies

Element C – Institutional frameworks

Element D – Financial incentives, economic instruments and benefit sharing

Element E – Stakeholder participation

Element F – Information, communication and research

Element G – Stakeholder capacity and action

Element H – Cooperation and coordination

Section 3 – Operational actions

Evidence and analysis

Planning process

Implementation

Monitoring and evaluation

Section 4 – Tools and information

Evidence and analysis

Planning process

Implementation

Monitoring and evaluation

References

Boxes

1.1 Forests in the land-use sector

1.2 Description of the eight elements of the forest governance framework

3.1 Description of the four stages of a policy process model

Figures

1.1 Examples of mitigation and adaptation measures in the forest sector

1.2 Pillars and principles of governance

1.3 Possible uses of the approach

3.1 The four-stage policy process

3.2 Organization of operational actions included in Section 3

Foreword

As the impacts of climate change and climate variability become increasingly evident in many parts of the world, the critical role of forests in climate change mitigation and adaptation has become widely recognized. By acting as carbon sinks and storing carbon, forests make a