ASB News and Events

The Forest and Climate Change Toolbox has been developed by scientists from the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and other ASB collaborators. The objective is to build understanding and technical proficiency on issues of climate change and forests including mitigation, adaptation, carbon accounting and markets, and biofuels.

Contributors (in alphabetical order)

Arild Angelsen • Henning Baur • Jonathan Haskett • Markku Kanninen • Rodel Lasco • Bruno Locatelli • Daniel Murdiyarso • Levania Santoso • Patrick Smith • Brent Swallow • Meine van Noordwijk • Sheila Wertz-Kanounnikoff

Source: CIFOR – Forests and Climate Change Toolbox.

ASB Partnership for the Tropical Forest Margins is a global partnership of more than 80 research institutes, non-governmental organizations, universities, community organizations, farmers’ groups, and other local, national, and international organizations.

ASB aims to identify, assess, and develop policy, institutional and technological options that can raise income of rural households without increasing deforestation or undermining essential environmental services. Much of ASB research focuses on forest margin benchmark sites in Peru, Brazil, Cameroon, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. ASB links researchers working across different sites and builds connections between knowledge and action at the global, regional, national and local scales. ASB focuses at the nexus of two important global problems: tropicaldeforestation and human poverty. ASB’s coordination office is hosted at the World Agroforestry Centre in Nairobi, Kenya.

The Position

The Programme Associate will be a member of the ASB’s Global Coordination Office. The Associate will support research, coordination and implementation of the ASB global programme, particularly its policy focus on Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) and Agriculture Forestry and Other Land Uses (AFOLU) within the context of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.The Associate will synthesize research findings, understanding of policy processes, facilitating the global partnership, sharing and managing information, raising public awareness, and fundraising. The Associate will support research on multifunctional agroforestry landscapes for environmental services, climate change and policy options and tools for agroforestry. The incumbent will be based at the World Agroforestry Centre, headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the ASB Global Coordinator, the incumbent will have the following responsibilities:

• Research and synthesis (About 50%): Undertake research that contributes to the global synthesis of ASB results across sites in the three tropical continents and ICRAF’s research agenda on environmental services. Assist and engage with REDD analysis by country teams; information synthesis and dissemination; prepare summary results; and disseminate research results through web sites, listservers and other media, in collaboration with the ASB Communications Officer. Contribute to the writing, editing, and dissemination of ASB research outputs.
• Facilitation, partnership revitalization and maintenance (About 20%): Provide support and training to national teams and new projects on REDD and Rewards for Environmental Services in several technical areas: visioning, scenario analysis, modeling, Participatory GIS, and institutional analysis. Facilitate partnership and country scoping for ASB’s policy focus, applying concepts of boundary organizations and outcome mapping. The Associate will also contribute to the implementation of a system of monitoring and evaluation of knowledge outputs and science-policy work through information sharing and management.
• Fundraising (About 15%): Lead and support preparation of concept notes, budgets, workplans, and proposals for submission to donors, especially related to REDD.
• Management (About 15%): Undertake a range of tasks in a variety of areas including: Supporting the Global Coordinator, helping to plan and coordinate workshops and ASB meetings, including the annual meeting of the Global Steering Group. Contribute to strategic planning for policy outcomes, capacity building and institutional strengthening. Participate in the recruitment of ASB Research Fellows and interns.

The Requirements:

• M.Sc. with a minimum of four (4) years post-graduate experience, preferably related to research or research support in an international organization
• Environmental Economist, Geographer (social, economic), Environmental studies or other discipline relevant to ASB: e.g., public policy, natural resource management
• Experience with Climate Policy and REDD related issues
• Good research and writing skills
• Fluency in English, with excellent communication skills (verbal and written)
• Well organized and able to meet deadlines
• Excellent facilitation skills and ability to work well in multicultural and multidisciplinary teams
• Previous experience travelling, living, and working in developing countries and willingness to travel.

While not required, the following skills also would be advantageous:

• Familiarity with French, Bahasa Indonesia, Spanish and/or Portuguese and ASB countries (Peru, Brazil, Cameroon, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines).
• Experience with CGIAR institutions and donors
• Proficiency in Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• Familiarity with the techniques of outcome mapping, community visioning and/or scenario analysis
• Experience in simulation modeling, remote sensing, statistical analysis and/or database management
• Interest and experience in monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment

Terms of offer

World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)/ASB is an equal opportunity employer offering an internationally competitive salary and benefits package, and a collegial working environment. ICRAF offers a collegial and gender-sensitive working environment, believe that staff diversity promotes excellence, and strongly encourages applications from qualified women. The appointment will be for an initial period of three (3) years with nine (9) months probation period, with potential for extension and renewable subject to assessment of performance and availability of funds.

Application

Applicants are invited to send one (1) page cover letter illustrating their suitability for the above position against the listed qualifications/competencies/skills, and a detailed curriculum vitae with names and addresses of three (3) referees who are knowledgeable about the applicant’s professional achievements (including telephone, fax numbers and email addresses). All correspondence should be addressed to the Human Resources Unit, sent via email to icrafhru@cgiar.org with a copy to ASB@cgiar.org. Please mark the email subject as: “ASB Programme Associate”. Applications will be considered until 28th February 2010 or until the position is filled.

Only short listed applicants will be contacted.

More about ASB

A comprehensive external review in 2005 found that ASB is “… the world’s pre-eminent pantropical research system for producing generalizable understanding of human/environment interaction at the forest margins.” ASB is governed by a Global Steering Group of 10 national and international agricultural research institutions. ASB received the CGIAR Science Award for Outstanding Partnership in 2005. CGIAR Centres participating in the ASB Alliance include CIAT-TSBF, IFPRI, ICRAF and IITA. ASB partners around the world share an interest in conserving forests and reducing poverty in the humid tropics. We invite you to learn more about ASB and ICRAF by accessing our web sites: www.asb.cgiar.org and www.worldagroforestry.org

Despite recent uncertainty, the forest carbon market has grown nearly fivefold since 2006.
The market was worth million in the first half of 2009, .1 million in 2008, after rising to .5 million a year before and from .6 million in 2006, according to Ecosystem Marketplace.

“At the end of 2009, the market for forest carbon stands in an uncertain position on the verge of potentially enormous growth,” the State of the Forest Carbon Markets 2009 report said.

“Amidst this scene of opportunity and risk, investors are still eyeing forest carbon, though many are waiting on more definite regulatory signals before taking a financial leap.”

GreenPower’s Forestry Carbon Markets & REDD Conference will bring these investors together with the regulators and every other link in the REDD value chain to move the market forward and realize the potential of the forestry carbon markets in the USA and beyond. Two days of debate and discussion amongst industry leaders and experts will put you in a position to make the most of your position in this rapidly growing market

Registration and more information: Forestry Carbon Markets & REDD :: A GreenPower Conferences Event.

This study reviews the financial costs of abating greenhouse gas emissions through reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD). It is written from the perspective of an institutional investor seeking cost-effective climate mitigation options. A review of empirical data from Brazil and Indonesia suggests that REDD may, in many areas, provide a cost-effective climate mitigation option, with estimated costs lying in a range of US$ 2-10 per ton of CO2e.

via IUCN publications – The financial costs of REDD : Evidence from Brazil and Indonesia

The Copenhagen climate change conference last month inspired mixed feelings. A fair and binding global deal was not agreed to, and politicians stole the show, more or less sidelining the technical work accomplished earlier in the talks. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) was, as predicted, one of the few issues with a positive outcome.

What's next for REDD+ and AFOLU?

The current version of the text produced by the Ad-Hoc Working Group on Long Term Cooperative Action (AWG-LCA) clears up many of the contentious issues including financing and safeguarding indigenous rights. The SBSTA also finalized its methodological guidance for REDD-plus activities.

Despite its many shortfalls, the Copenhagen Accord (PDF) recognizes the role of REDD-plus and calls for “immediate” establishment of a REDD-plus mechanism (though no specific timeline or target is mentioned).

The developed countries have also collectively committed to new and additional resources approaching $30 billion to support enhanced action on mitigation, including “substantial finance” for REDD-plus. As well, the United States, Australia, France, Japan, Norway and Britain pledged $3.5 billion to fund REDD activities from 2010-2012.

This global recognition of the importance of REDD-plus is a big victory, and shows we have come a long way since the RED concept was first introduced in 2005.

Agriculture has also moved up on the international climate change agenda, with the AWG-LCA calling for a work programme on agriculture . Agriculture has gained visibility thanks to joint efforts by several partners from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and the ASB Partnership. The contribution of the ASB partnership through the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and other networks, cannot be overlooked. Another positive development for AFOLU is $150 billion committed to establishing a Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases.

These are all clear signals to those of us in the scientific community to get on with our work in terms of supporting discussion on the modalities and procedures for both REDD-plus and AFOLU as and when discussions kick in.

Some immediate questions that come to mind include:

• What is the minimum complexity that we can accommodate for Measurement, Reporting and Verification so that we can avoid the complexities of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)?

• What are the scientific considerations for taking into account “national circumstances”?

• What kind of scientific/technical questions need to be answered in an AFOLU readiness programme, and when is it strategic to call for readiness investments for AFOLU?

While it remains unclear whether negotiations will continue through the Copenhagen Accord lens and model or through the existing UNFCCC process, it seems clear to me that our work will be extremely relevant on one or all the above issues.

Have a productive and happy 2010!

Peter A Minang

Global Coordinator, ASB Partnership for the Tropical Forest Margins