27 July 2011: The UN-REDD Programme has released the July 2011 issue of its newsletter, which highlights the UN-REDD Programme’s participation in the Oslo REDD+ exchange, which took place from 23-24 June 2011, in Norway, focusing on matters related to REDD+ safeguards and policies addressing the underlying drivers of deforestation.

The Newsletter reports on national-level activities and regional workshops related to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries as well as conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stock (REDD+).

It features articles on a regional workshop on rights and REDD+ in the Amazon, held from 30 May-2 June 2011, in Quito, Ecuador. On national-level activities, the Newsletter highlights two pilot initiatives on Participatory Governance Assessments for REDD+, taking place in Indonesia and Nigeria. With the help of the UN-REDD Programme, the countries are preparing a framework for a national-level participatory process to conduct governance assessments on ensuring REDD+ safeguards. The Newsletter also reports on the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s efforts in setting up a national REDD+ forest monitoring system, and on jointly published papers with the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) on multi-stakeholder participation, benefit-sharing and safeguards for REDD+. [Publication: UN-REDD Newsletter Issue 20, July 2011]