How UNFCCC Parties Can Act on Forests’ Non-Carbon Climate Effects

This briefing by the World Resources Institute (WRI) argues that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) must account for the non-carbon biophysical effects of forests to effectively address climate stability. The authors explain how forests influence temperature and rainfall through albedo, evapotranspiration, surface roughness, and aerosols, noting that tropical deforestation contributes significantly more to global warming than carbon-only metrics suggest. The document proposes six specific pathways for UNFCCC Parties to integrate these biophysical impacts into national reporting, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), REDD+ finance, adaptation planning, the Global Stocktake, and the IPCC's 7th Assessment Report cycle.

• Forests influence global and local temperatures and rainfall patterns through four primary non-carbon biophysical processes: albedo (reflection of solar energy), evapotranspiration (cooling via moisture release), surface roughness (affecting wind and heat lift), and aerosols (particles that interact with the atmosphere and clouds).
• The impact of forest loss on global warming varies by latitude; specifically, tropical deforestation contributes 50 percent more to global warming than calculations based solely on carbon emissions indicate.
• Deforestation has significant regional and local consequences, including the disruption of 'precipitation sheds' that regulate rainfall across national borders and the magnification of local heat stress. For instance, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon impacts rainfall in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay, while local peak temperatures in deforested areas can rise by more than 7.6°C.
• The authors propose that UNFCCC Parties expand annual greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories to include biophysical warming or cooling effects, suggesting that the IPCC supplement guidelines such as the Good Practice Guidance for Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry.
• Biophysical forest benefits should be integrated into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and REDD+ frameworks. While 81 percent of NDCs mention land use, land-use change, and forestry (LULUCF) as a mitigation option, these are primarily carbon-focused; incorporating biophysical effects would allow for better valuation of tropical forest conservation in results-based or market-based finance.
• Forest biophysical processes should be incorporated into adaptation planning and finance, including National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and funds like the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund, to increase resilience against drought and heat stress.
• The document recommends using the first Global Stocktake (GST) and the IPCC's 7th Assessment Report (AR7) cycle to formalize the science of non-carbon effects, including requesting the IPCC to develop methodologies for estimating net global temperature change effects of forest cover change.

APA

Culbertson, M., Seymour, F., & Wolosin, M. (n.d.). How UNFCCC Parties Can Act on Forests’ Non-Carbon Climate Effects. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-01/how-unfccc-parties-can-act-forests-non-carbon-climate-effects.pdf

Chicago

Culbertson, Michael, Frances Seymour, and Michael Wolosin. How UNFCCC Parties Can Act on Forests’ Non-Carbon Climate Effects. World Resources Institute, n.d. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-01/how-unfccc-parties-can-act-forests-non-carbon-climate-effects.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Culbertson |first1=Michael |last2=Seymour |first2=Frances |last3=Wolosin |first3=Michael |title=How UNFCCC Parties Can Act on Forests’ Non-Carbon Climate Effects |publisher=World Resources Institute |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-01/how-unfccc-parties-can-act-forests-non-carbon-climate-effects.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{culbertsonndhow, author = {Culbertson, Michael and Seymour, Frances and Wolosin, Michael}, title = {{How UNFCCC Parties Can Act on Forests’ Non-Carbon Climate Effects}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-01/how-unfccc-parties-can-act-forests-non-carbon-climate-effects.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }