January 2011: The ASB Partnership for the Tropical Forest Margins has released a policy brief that describes efforts to reduce conflicts over who controls forests and forest margins.

The brief, titled “Stewardship Agreements to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) in Indonesia,” outlines the Hutan Desa regulation, which provides a framework for reconciling forest management targets and livelihood interests of forest edge villages within national forest. The regulation allows villages to become active forest management units. The brief notes that the application of Hutan Desa agreements can act as a low-cost approach to help realize benefits from REDD+ (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, and the role of conservation, sustainable use of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks). It underlines that only one community has applied this regulation but that there are many options for extension. ASB Partnership for the Tropical Forest Margins is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [The Policy Brief]