20 October 2010: The UN Environment Programme-World Conservation Monitoring Center (UNEP-WCMC) has launched carbon maps showing how carbon stocks in Asia, Africa and Latin America overlap with biodiversity hot spots. The maps were launched at the 10th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 10) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), convening in Nagoya, Japan.

The maps were produced with the aim of assisting governments in setting priorities for carbon investments. According to UNEP, the maps pinpoint places where investments in carbon can contribute to community livelihoods, forest conservation and fighting climate change. The maps overlay the carbon held in the vegetation and soils of terrestrial ecosystems with population density, protected areas and economic activities. UNEP launched carbon mapping publications for Cambodia, Ecuador, Argentina, Nigeria and China on carbon, biodiversity and ecosystem services. [Climate-L Story on the Launch of the Mapping Project] [UNEP Press Release] [The Maps]