Deforestation and Climate Change: Not for Felling

Carbon stored in forests will stand centre stage at the Copenhagen climate talks in December. A potential new mechanism that would compensate nations for keeping their forests intact is generating high hopes for multiple benefits, not just in lower greenhouse gas emissions but also protecting rural livelihoods and biodiversity. But providing carbon finance alone might not be enough to stop people from felling tropical forests – unless a good chunk of it is spent upfront on improving forest regulation and law enforcement.