Deforestation and Forest Degradation: Concerns, Causes, Policies, and Their Impacts

National and international efforts to reduce loss of tropical forests, while having some impacts, have largely failed to substantially slow the rates of loss from deforestation and forest degradation that reduce species habitat while accounting for 12-17% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. To wit, within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, negotiators are actively considering ways to provide incentives for tropical forest conservation and thus carbon storage plus other service co-benefits. Policy effectiveness, efficiency, and equity can increase if we learn lessons from the past about what drives and what inhibits deforestation and degradation, understanding what has worked or not, and the reasons.

Duke Scholars

Author Alexander Pfaff Sanford School of Public Policy