7 August 2009: The UNFCCC Secretariat has released the submission on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD) filed by Indonesia and Australia to the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA) and Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA).

In their joint submission, the two countries stress the need for measurable, reportable and verifiable (MRV) emission reductions, and call for the Copenhagen agreement to incorporate elements of MRV mechanisms. The submission also urges a Copenhagen outcome to clarify the process by which countries are to design national reference emissions levels for REDD. The submission also describes Indonesia’s national MRV system, as well as experiences with capacity building through the Indonesia-Australia Forest Carbon Partnership. [The submission]