Financing mechanism for forest mitigation options

The present document has been written as part of the dialogue on possibilities and challenges for forest stakeholders when mitigating climate change through REDD+ activities. The objectives of the TFD REDD Dialogue are to:
i. define the challenges and opportunities of the current financial mechanism options debated by the international community;
ii. elaborate on the possible solutions for identified challenges;
iii. develop a series of recommendations to be considered by leaders in the negotiations leading the COP-15 in Copenhagen.
The dialogue has been structured in a series of meetings along of the Climate Change negotiations, especially in 2009. The first dialogue in the series was convened on 25-26 April, 2009. It was hosted by the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) during its 8th Session in New York City, USA. The dialogue brought together over 50 leaders from a wide spectrum of forest sector stakeholders involved in the debate on REDD. The second meeting will take place
on 19-20 June, 2009 in Montreux, Switzerland. Six working groups were established for deepening the discussions: business/private sector, environmental NGOs, intergovernmental organizations, communities-indigenous &women,
governments and research. These groups elaborated on the following items: scope of REDD, institutional agreements, generation of funds, access to funds, reimbursement, delivery mechanisms, sharing benefits, effective participation, perverse incentives and the support that science can give to REDD-plus. This paper builds on the discussions in New York and on the expert meetings, submissions and discussions within the different negotiation processes within the UNFCCC. It focuses on financing mechanisms for REDD-plus and it is aimed to facilitate the next step in the dialogue process towards Copenhagen.