The great REDD gamble

Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) contends that REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) fails to deliver permanent emissions reductions and often harms Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Through case studies in Indonesia, Mozambique, and Peru, the report illustrates how REDD+ can exacerbate land tenure conflicts, threaten food security, and facilitate continued pollution in industrialised countries via carbon offsets. FoEI proposes replacing these market-based mechanisms with community-led forest management based on traditional knowledge and a global reduction in the demand for forest-derived products.

• REDD+ is characterized as a 'false solution' because it treats forests as 'carbon stocks' to be commodified, which ignores biodiversity and can lead to cultural upheaval by making conservation conditional on payment.
• The use of REDD credits as carbon offsets may allow industrial emitters in developed regions to continue polluting; for example, Chevron's refinery in Richmond, California, uses the state's cap-and-trade system to offset emissions from expanding its processing of heavy crude oil.
• The Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership (KFCP) in Indonesia failed to meet most objectives and was terminated by the Australian government after being accused of ignoring local Dayak knowledge and exacerbating land tenure conflicts.
• The N’hambita Community Carbon Project in Mozambique failed to deliver social and environmental goals, with some farmers signing 100-year obligations for payments that ceased after seven years, leading to food insecurity and financial failure due to crashing carbon prices.
• In Peru, REDD+ implementation is used to 'greenwash' corporate credentials and distract from the fact that national policies, such as oil and gas concessions covering over 70% of the Peruvian Amazon, continue to drive deforestation.
• FoEI argues that community-managed forests are more effective at reducing deforestation than strict 'protected areas' and recommends that governments prioritize land tenure clarification and support for traditional management practices.

APA

Hall, R. (2014). The great REDD gamble. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-great-REDD-gamble.pdf

Chicago

Hall, Ronnie. The great REDD gamble. Friends of the Earth International, 2014. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-great-REDD-gamble.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hall |first1=Ronnie |title=The great REDD gamble |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=October 2014 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-great-REDD-gamble.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hall2014great, author = {Hall, Ronnie}, title = {{The great REDD gamble}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2014}, month = oct, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-great-REDD-gamble.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }