March 6, 2014 | San Francisco, CA
Tara O’Shea

Leaders from the public, private, and civil sectors will gather in Cartagena, Colombia on April 9, 2014 for REDD+ Talks: Colombia. The event, co-presented by Code REDD and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), will discuss and advance the role of the REDD+ mechanism in sustainable business and development.

REDD+ and Climate Policy

Addressing the perverse economic incentives driving deforestation is critical to comprehensive climate and development strategies. That is why the United Nations has created the REDD+ mechanism, which creates economic value for the carbon storage services forests provide – helping decouple economic development from deforestation.

President Obama’s National Climate Action Plan, released on June 25, 2013, calls for strong action to protect remaining tropical forests through a commitment to lead international REDD+ initiatives. In November 2013, Secretary of State John Kerry pledged further US support for REDD+ through the World Bank’s BioCarbon Fund.

USAID is already acting on these commitments, resulting in the avoidance of over 140 million tonnes of CO2 emissions from deforestation in countries like Colombia, Ecuador, Zambia, and Papua New Guinea.

The Role of REDD+ Talks

The REDD+ Talks series has facilitated unparalleled insight, partnership, and action in REDD+. Bringing together leading REDD+ stakeholders – including indigenous and forest communities, policy makers, private investors, and practitioners – REDD+ Talks: Colombia will build upon this foundation to unite and advance public-private partnerships for REDD+ in Latin America.

Topics to be discussed at the event include REDD+ on the sustainable economic development agenda; sustainable financing for REDD+; and sustainable forest management in the context of jurisdictional REDD+.

Speakers include representatives from indigenous and forest communities, USAID, the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative, Rainforest Alliance, Latin American financial and commodities corporations, and more.

Join us!

To learn more about REDD+ Talks: Colombia and request an invitation to the event, please visit www.reddtalks.com/colombia.

USAID’s BioREDD+ Program will then hold a two day workshop on Innovation in REDD+ Development following the REDD+ Talks: Colombia event. To learn more about this workshop, please visit: http://bioredd.org/newsletter/en/