While some countries and communities around the world are making progress in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to the effects of climate change, we need to make far greater use of the solutions that nature offers us.
Sustainable management
Sustainably managing ecosystems such as forests, wetlands and coastal areas can simultaneously reduce carbon emissions and help people adapt to the impacts that are being felt across the world.
Ecosystem-based adaptation
IUCN wants to see practical steps in using these nature-based solutions. Governments need to promote the inclusion of ecosystem-based adaptation in national policies and take action to implement these methods on the ground.
REDD+
IUCN also promotes the implementation of an environmentally-sound and equitable REDD+ mechanism. REDD+ — Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation is a tool that both conserves forest natural resources and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
REDD+ can help reduce the impacts of climate change but to be effective, implementation needs to consider issues such as benefit sharing, governance and the participation of women and indigenous peoples.