CHALLENGE
Chile is one of the most developed countries in the southern hemisphere and relies heavily on its natural resource base for employment and exports. Yet, despite its natural assets and economic prowess, the country is plagued by serious land degradation problems including desertification, accelerated soil erosion, and forest degradation. In addition, climate change is exacerbating land degradation through changes in rainfall quantity and regimen, and the melting of glaciers, which are critical for the country’s water supply.

An astounding two-thirds of the national territory (48 million ha) are affected or threatened by desertification and drought (CONAF 2006). Of the 1.3 million people inhabiting these areas, about 60 percent live in poverty. The main causes of desertification and land degradation in Chile are due to overgrazing, farming on marginal lands without conservation practices, and over-exploitation or poor management of forests. In fact, about half of Chile’s 15.4 million ha of forests are already degraded. Forest degradation is advancing at about 77,000 ha annually, and occurs mainly in the southern forests, where fuelwood extraction is a major contributor to the problem. Despite this alarming situation, there is only an emerging awareness regarding the degradation issues, and the country has yet to make significant advances to counter land and forest degradation. Urgent steps are needed to align country policies and programs to tackle the problem, provide technical guidance to field workers and heighten awareness nationwide.

APPROACH
The main objective of this activity is to provide state-of-the-art knowledge to the Chilean Government and other stakeholders on best practices and guidance for restoration of degraded lands through forestry applications suitable in the Chilean context.

This knowledge activity supported by PROFOR would include:

• a review of the many pilots and ad hoc experiences in Chile to restore degraded lands through forestry (including economic, social and environmental benefits);
• an analysis of the investment returns of select experiences, to demonstrate that the reversal of land degradation, climate change mitigation and the generation of income can be achieved simultaneously under specific conditions;
• a projection of the carbon sequestration potential for afforestation and reforestation of degraded lands in appropriate areas throughout Chile;
• a proposal for a monitoring system that would track desertification and progress in remedial efforts to address land degradation;
• outreach and awareness building activities on the scope and impact of land degradation and remedial measures needed to slow its advance, especially those related to forests and trees. 

RESULTS
This activity, approved in June 2011, is ongoing. Findings will be shared on this page when they become available. Follow us on twitter or join our mailing list for regular updates.

CHALLENGE
Chile is one of the most developed countries in the southern hemisphere and relies heavily on its natural resource base for employment and exports. Yet, despite its natural assets and economic prowess, the country is plagued by serious land degradation problems including desertification, accelerated soil erosion, and forest degradation. In addition, climate change is exacerbating land degradation through changes in rainfall quantity and regimen, and the melting of glaciers, which are critical for the country’s water supply.

An astounding two-thirds of the national territory (48 million ha) are affected or threatened by desertification and drought (CONAF 2006). Of the 1.3 million people inhabiting these areas, about 60 percent live in poverty. The main causes of desertification and land degradation in Chile are due to overgrazing, farming on marginal lands without conservation practices, and over-exploitation or poor management of forests. In fact, about half of Chile’s 15.4 million ha of forests are already degraded. Forest degradation is advancing at about 77,000 ha annually, and occurs mainly in the southern forests, where fuelwood extraction is a major contributor to the problem. Despite this alarming situation, there is only an emerging awareness regarding the degradation issues, and the country has yet to make significant advances to counter land and forest degradation. Urgent steps are needed to align country policies and programs to tackle the problem, provide technical guidance to field workers and heighten awareness nationwide.

APPROACH
The main objective of this activity is to provide state-of-the-art knowledge to the Chilean Government and other stakeholders on best practices and guidance for restoration of degraded lands through forestry applications suitable in the Chilean context.

This knowledge activity supported by PROFOR would include:

• a review of the many pilots and ad hoc experiences in Chile to restore degraded lands through forestry (including economic, social and environmental benefits);
• an analysis of the investment returns of select experiences, to demonstrate that the reversal of land degradation, climate change mitigation and the generation of income can be achieved simultaneously under specific conditions;
• a projection of the carbon sequestration potential for afforestation and reforestation of degraded lands in appropriate areas throughout Chile;
• a proposal for a monitoring system that would track desertification and progress in remedial efforts to address land degradation;
• outreach and awareness building activities on the scope and impact of land degradation and remedial measures needed to slow its advance, especially those related to forests and trees. 

RESULTS
This activity, approved in June 2011, is ongoing. Findings will be shared on this page when they become available. Follow us on twitter or join our mailing list for regular updates.

CHALLENGE
Chile is one of the most developed countries in the southern hemisphere and relies heavily on its natural resource base for employment and exports. Yet, despite its natural assets and economic prowess, the country is plagued by serious land degradation problems including desertification, accelerated soil erosion, and forest degradation. In addition, climate change is exacerbating land degradation through changes in rainfall quantity and regimen, and the melting of glaciers, which are critical for the country’s water supply.

An astounding two-thirds of the national territory (48 million ha) are affected or threatened by desertification and drought (CONAF 2006). Of the 1.3 million people inhabiting these areas, about 60 percent live in poverty. The main causes of desertification and land degradation in Chile are due to overgrazing, farming on marginal lands without conservation practices, and over-exploitation or poor management of forests. In fact, about half of Chile’s 15.4 million ha of forests are already degraded. Forest degradation is advancing at about 77,000 ha annually, and occurs mainly in the southern forests, where fuelwood extraction is a major contributor to the problem. Despite this alarming situation, there is only an emerging awareness regarding the degradation issues, and the country has yet to make significant advances to counter land and forest degradation. Urgent steps are needed to align country policies and programs to tackle the problem, provide technical guidance to field workers and heighten awareness nationwide.

APPROACH
The main objective of this activity is to provide state-of-the-art knowledge to the Chilean Government and other stakeholders on best practices and guidance for restoration of degraded lands through forestry applications suitable in the Chilean context.

This knowledge activity supported by PROFOR would include:

• a review of the many pilots and ad hoc experiences in Chile to restore degraded lands through forestry (including economic, social and environmental benefits);
• an analysis of the investment returns of select experiences, to demonstrate that the reversal of land degradation, climate change mitigation and the generation of income can be achieved simultaneously under specific conditions;
• a projection of the carbon sequestration potential for afforestation and reforestation of degraded lands in appropriate areas throughout Chile;
• a proposal for a monitoring system that would track desertification and progress in remedial efforts to address land degradation;
• outreach and awareness building activities on the scope and impact of land degradation and remedial measures needed to slow its advance, especially those related to forests and trees. 

RESULTS
This activity, approved in June 2011, is ongoing. Findings will be shared on this page when they become available. Follow us on twitter or join our mailing list for regular updates.

CHALLENGE
Chile is one of the most developed countries in the southern hemisphere and relies heavily on its natural resource base for employment and exports. Yet, despite its natural assets and economic prowess, the country is plagued by serious land degradation problems including desertification, accelerated soil erosion, and forest degradation. In addition, climate change is exacerbating land degradation through changes in rainfall quantity and regimen, and the melting of glaciers, which are critical for the country’s water supply.

An astounding two-thirds of the national territory (48 million ha) are affected or threatened by desertification and drought (CONAF 2006). Of the 1.3 million people inhabiting these areas, about 60 percent live in poverty. The main causes of desertification and land degradation in Chile are due to overgrazing, farming on marginal lands without conservation practices, and over-exploitation or poor management of forests. In fact, about half of Chile’s 15.4 million ha of forests are already degraded. Forest degradation is advancing at about 77,000 ha annually, and occurs mainly in the southern forests, where fuelwood extraction is a major contributor to the problem. Despite this alarming situation, there is only an emerging awareness regarding the degradation issues, and the country has yet to make significant advances to counter land and forest degradation. Urgent steps are needed to align country policies and programs to tackle the problem, provide technical guidance to field workers and heighten awareness nationwide.

APPROACH
The main objective of this activity is to provide state-of-the-art knowledge to the Chilean Government and other stakeholders on best practices and guidance for restoration of degraded lands through forestry applications suitable in the Chilean context.

This knowledge activity supported by PROFOR would include:

• a review of the many pilots and ad hoc experiences in Chile to restore degraded lands through forestry (including economic, social and environmental benefits);
• an analysis of the investment returns of select experiences, to demonstrate that the reversal of land degradation, climate change mitigation and the generation of income can be achieved simultaneously under specific conditions;
• a projection of the carbon sequestration potential for afforestation and reforestation of degraded lands in appropriate areas throughout Chile;
• a proposal for a monitoring system that would track desertification and progress in remedial efforts to address land degradation;
• outreach and awareness building activities on the scope and impact of land degradation and remedial measures needed to slow its advance, especially those related to forests and trees. 

RESULTS
This activity, approved in June 2011, is ongoing. Findings will be shared on this page when they become available. Follow us on twitter or join our mailing list for regular updates.

CHALLENGE
Chile is one of the most developed countries in the southern hemisphere and relies heavily on its natural resource base for employment and exports. Yet, despite its natural assets and economic prowess, the country is plagued by serious land degradation problems including desertification, accelerated soil erosion, and forest degradation. In addition, climate change is exacerbating land degradation through changes in rainfall quantity and regimen, and the melting of glaciers, which are critical for the country’s water supply.

An astounding two-thirds of the national territory (48 million ha) are affected or threatened by desertification and drought (CONAF 2006). Of the 1.3 million people inhabiting these areas, about 60 percent live in poverty. The main causes of desertification and land degradation in Chile are due to overgrazing, farming on marginal lands without conservation practices, and over-exploitation or poor management of forests. In fact, about half of Chile’s 15.4 million ha of forests are already degraded. Forest degradation is advancing at about 77,000 ha annually, and occurs mainly in the southern forests, where fuelwood extraction is a major contributor to the problem. Despite this alarming situation, there is only an emerging awareness regarding the degradation issues, and the country has yet to make significant advances to counter land and forest degradation. Urgent steps are needed to align country policies and programs to tackle the problem, provide technical guidance to field workers and heighten awareness nationwide.

APPROACH
The main objective of this activity is to provide state-of-the-art knowledge to the Chilean Government and other stakeholders on best practices and guidance for restoration of degraded lands through forestry applications suitable in the Chilean context.

This knowledge activity supported by PROFOR would include:

• a review of the many pilots and ad hoc experiences in Chile to restore degraded lands through forestry (including economic, social and environmental benefits);
• an analysis of the investment returns of select experiences, to demonstrate that the reversal of land degradation, climate change mitigation and the generation of income can be achieved simultaneously under specific conditions;
• a projection of the carbon sequestration potential for afforestation and reforestation of degraded lands in appropriate areas throughout Chile;
• a proposal for a monitoring system that would track desertification and progress in remedial efforts to address land degradation;
• outreach and awareness building activities on the scope and impact of land degradation and remedial measures needed to slow its advance, especially those related to forests and trees. 

RESULTS
This activity, approved in June 2011, is ongoing. Findings will be shared on this page when they become available. Follow us on twitter or join our mailing list for regular updates.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

The objective of this activity is to improve the knowledge of the Chinese government on sustainable forest management so that China’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) can be achieved.

CHALLENGE

Forests rose to prominence in the 2015 Paris Agreement and in many countries’ policies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), including China’s. Since 2015, the Chinese Government has included in its NDC a commitment to increase its forest stock volume by an estimated 4.5 billion cubic meters by 2030, compared to the 2005 level, and to enhance mechanisms and capacities to reduce climate change risks in forest management. However, China’s efforts are hampered by a number of challenges, including poor forest quality, low-production plantations with fragile forest ecosystems, unsustainable financing, and weak coordination between sectors. China’s NDC, therefore, presents an opportunity for the Chinese Government to shift focus from measures that promote bigger acreage to, instead, improve forest quality and enhance the benefits and poverty-reduction that forests bring to forest-dependent populations. However, in order to achieve the goals of China’s NDC, the Chinese Government must use a different approach in planning and implementation than what was done before.

APPROACH

This activity will review, assess and disseminate best practices from other forestry projects in order to extract replicable forest management models and financing mechanisms to inform China’s efforts. Recommendations will be made to the Chinese government regarding technical models, long-term financing mechanisms, multi-sector coordination for landscape management, and public and private partnerships for forest management. This effort aims to enhance the benefits of forests, including carbon sequestration capacity and tolerance to natural disasters, such as extreme climate, fire, and pest attacks. Specifically, this activity will provide analysis to the following:

• Close-to-nature forestry management
• Forest carbon financing
• Key government ecological afforestation and production operations
• Technical improvement and investment effectiveness of government programs
• Financing regimes

RESULTS

This activity is complete. The outcomes of this activity have been achieved.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

The objective of this activity is to improve the knowledge of the Chinese government on sustainable forest management so that China’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) can be achieved.

CHALLENGE

Forests rose to prominence in the 2015 Paris Agreement and in many countries’ policies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), including China’s. Since 2015, the Chinese Government has included in its NDC a commitment to increase its forest stock volume by an estimated 4.5 billion cubic meters by 2030, compared to the 2005 level, and to enhance mechanisms and capacities to reduce climate change risks in forest management. However, China’s efforts are hampered by a number of challenges, including poor forest quality, low-production plantations with fragile forest ecosystems, unsustainable financing, and weak coordination between sectors. China’s NDC, therefore, presents an opportunity for the Chinese Government to shift focus from measures that promote bigger acreage to, instead, improve forest quality and enhance the benefits and poverty-reduction that forests bring to forest-dependent populations. However, in order to achieve the goals of China’s NDC, the Chinese Government must use a different approach in planning and implementation than what was done before.

APPROACH

This activity will review, assess and disseminate best practices from other forestry projects in order to extract replicable forest management models and financing mechanisms to inform China’s efforts. Recommendations will be made to the Chinese government regarding technical models, long-term financing mechanisms, multi-sector coordination for landscape management, and public and private partnerships for forest management. This effort aims to enhance the benefits of forests, including carbon sequestration capacity and tolerance to natural disasters, such as extreme climate, fire, and pest attacks. Specifically, this activity will provide analysis to the following:

• Close-to-nature forestry management
• Forest carbon financing
• Key government ecological afforestation and production operations
• Technical improvement and investment effectiveness of government programs
• Financing regimes

RESULTS

This activity is complete. The outcomes of this activity have been achieved.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

The objective of this activity is to improve the knowledge of the Chinese government on sustainable forest management so that China’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) can be achieved.

CHALLENGE

Forests rose to prominence in the 2015 Paris Agreement and in many countries’ policies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), including China’s. Since 2015, the Chinese Government has included in its NDC a commitment to increase its forest stock volume by an estimated 4.5 billion cubic meters by 2030, compared to the 2005 level, and to enhance mechanisms and capacities to reduce climate change risks in forest management. However, China’s efforts are hampered by a number of challenges, including poor forest quality, low-production plantations with fragile forest ecosystems, unsustainable financing, and weak coordination between sectors. China’s NDC, therefore, presents an opportunity for the Chinese Government to shift focus from measures that promote bigger acreage to, instead, improve forest quality and enhance the benefits and poverty-reduction that forests bring to forest-dependent populations. However, in order to achieve the goals of China’s NDC, the Chinese Government must use a different approach in planning and implementation than what was done before.

APPROACH

This activity will review, assess and disseminate best practices from other forestry projects in order to extract replicable forest management models and financing mechanisms to inform China’s efforts. Recommendations will be made to the Chinese government regarding technical models, long-term financing mechanisms, multi-sector coordination for landscape management, and public and private partnerships for forest management. This effort aims to enhance the benefits of forests, including carbon sequestration capacity and tolerance to natural disasters, such as extreme climate, fire, and pest attacks. Specifically, this activity will provide analysis to the following:

• Close-to-nature forestry management
• Forest carbon financing
• Key government ecological afforestation and production operations
• Technical improvement and investment effectiveness of government programs
• Financing regimes

RESULTS

This activity is complete. The outcomes of this activity have been achieved.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

The objective of this activity is to improve the knowledge of the Chinese government on sustainable forest management so that China’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) can be achieved.

CHALLENGE

Forests rose to prominence in the 2015 Paris Agreement and in many countries’ policies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), including China’s. Since 2015, the Chinese Government has included in its NDC a commitment to increase its forest stock volume by an estimated 4.5 billion cubic meters by 2030, compared to the 2005 level, and to enhance mechanisms and capacities to reduce climate change risks in forest management. However, China’s efforts are hampered by a number of challenges, including poor forest quality, low-production plantations with fragile forest ecosystems, unsustainable financing, and weak coordination between sectors. China’s NDC, therefore, presents an opportunity for the Chinese Government to shift focus from measures that promote bigger acreage to, instead, improve forest quality and enhance the benefits and poverty-reduction that forests bring to forest-dependent populations. However, in order to achieve the goals of China’s NDC, the Chinese Government must use a different approach in planning and implementation than what was done before.

APPROACH

This activity will review, assess and disseminate best practices from other forestry projects in order to extract replicable forest management models and financing mechanisms to inform China’s efforts. Recommendations will be made to the Chinese government regarding technical models, long-term financing mechanisms, multi-sector coordination for landscape management, and public and private partnerships for forest management. This effort aims to enhance the benefits of forests, including carbon sequestration capacity and tolerance to natural disasters, such as extreme climate, fire, and pest attacks. Specifically, this activity will provide analysis to the following:

• Close-to-nature forestry management
• Forest carbon financing
• Key government ecological afforestation and production operations
• Technical improvement and investment effectiveness of government programs
• Financing regimes

RESULTS

This activity is complete. The outcomes of this activity have been achieved.

PROGRAM SUMMARY

The objective of this activity is to improve the knowledge of the Chinese government on sustainable forest management so that China’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) can be achieved.

CHALLENGE

Forests rose to prominence in the 2015 Paris Agreement and in many countries’ policies on Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), including China’s. Since 2015, the Chinese Government has included in its NDC a commitment to increase its forest stock volume by an estimated 4.5 billion cubic meters by 2030, compared to the 2005 level, and to enhance mechanisms and capacities to reduce climate change risks in forest management. However, China’s efforts are hampered by a number of challenges, including poor forest quality, low-production plantations with fragile forest ecosystems, unsustainable financing, and weak coordination between sectors. China’s NDC, therefore, presents an opportunity for the Chinese Government to shift focus from measures that promote bigger acreage to, instead, improve forest quality and enhance the benefits and poverty-reduction that forests bring to forest-dependent populations. However, in order to achieve the goals of China’s NDC, the Chinese Government must use a different approach in planning and implementation than what was done before.

APPROACH

This activity will review, assess and disseminate best practices from other forestry projects in order to extract replicable forest management models and financing mechanisms to inform China’s efforts. Recommendations will be made to the Chinese government regarding technical models, long-term financing mechanisms, multi-sector coordination for landscape management, and public and private partnerships for forest management. This effort aims to enhance the benefits of forests, including carbon sequestration capacity and tolerance to natural disasters, such as extreme climate, fire, and pest attacks. Specifically, this activity will provide analysis to the following:

• Close-to-nature forestry management
• Forest carbon financing
• Key government ecological afforestation and production operations
• Technical improvement and investment effectiveness of government programs
• Financing regimes

RESULTS

This activity is complete. The outcomes of this activity have been achieved.