The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the National Forestry Financing Fund (FONAFIFO) of Costa Rica convened a workshop on payments for environmental services (PES) aimed at building understanding of the importance of PES in tropical forests, and sharing best practices and lessons learned.
11 April 2014: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the National Forestry Financing Fund (FONAFIFO) of Costa Rica convened a workshop on payments for environmental services (PES) aimed at building understanding of the importance of PES in tropical forests, and sharing best practices and lessons learned.
The ‘International Forum on Payments for Environmental Services of Tropical Forests’ emphasized the importance of the broad range of ecosystem services provided by tropical forests, including climate change mitigation, protection of watersheds and the conservation of biodiversity. The meeting highlighted successful PES mechanisms, such as the PES system in Costa Rica under which, over 18 years, tropical forest coverage has increased from 29 percent of the country’s terrestrial area to 51 percent.
The meeting also identified a number of criteria for success, including secure tenure and use rights, adequate funding, supportive policies recognizing and valuing ecosystem services, and sufficient data and information to monitor and assess the delivery of ecosystem services. The meeting was held from 7-10 April 2014, in San Jose, Costa Rica. [FAO Press Release] [ITTO Press Release] [Meeting Website]