Position sur REDD (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts)

Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) expresses its formal opposition to the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) system, arguing that it commodifies forests, violates the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities, and allows industrialized nations to avoid reducing fossil fuel emissions through flawed carbon offsetting mechanisms.

• FoEI rejects the use of REDD carbon credits as a means to offset emissions, asserting that such mechanisms do not reduce global emissions and instead allow polluting countries to continue or increase fossil fuel combustion. The organization argues that carbon stored in forests follows a dynamic cycle and cannot provide the permanent emission reductions required for a commercial regime, unlike fossil fuels which remain underground for millennia.
• The REDD system is criticized for commodifying forests, which reduces their value to a single price point and ignores their social, cultural, spiritual, and biodiversity roles. This transformation exposes local communities to global commercial structures and financial speculation by elites, while potentially creating a 'vicious circle' where high global demand for resources drives up commodity prices, incentivizing further deforestation elsewhere.
• Implementation of REDD has led to adverse human rights impacts, including the displacement of populations, the criminalization of traditional forest management practices (such as crop rotation), and the failure to obtain Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). FoEI notes that the safeguards approved in Cancún are non-binding and insufficient to protect the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities.
• FoEI argues that REDD creates a moral hazard by replacing conviction-based conservation with financial incentives. This shift risks eroding ancestral knowledge and traditional values; once payment projects end, future generations may view forests only as financial assets, potentially leading to increased exploitation of resources for survival.
• The organization highlights technical and governance failures in REDD, including the inability to resolve 'leakage' and the difficulty of establishing reliable reference levels for emission calculations. Furthermore, the system is described as prone to corruption, fraud, and criminal activity due to unclear land tenure and poor law enforcement.
• FoEI proposes an alternative approach to forest protection based on the strengthening of Indigenous and local community rights and collective forest management. They argue that Indigenous lands are often better preserved than state-run conservation units and that public funds should support traditional management methods rather than market-based incentives.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2014). Position sur REDD (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts). https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/REDD-FoEI-paper-Frances.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. Position sur REDD (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts). 2014. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/REDD-FoEI-paper-Frances.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=Position sur REDD (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts) |date=2014 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/REDD-FoEI-paper-Frances.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{friendsoftheearthinternational2014position, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{Position sur REDD (Réduction des émissions dues à la déforestation et à la dégradation des forêts)}}, publisher = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2014}, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/REDD-FoEI-paper-Frances.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }