This post describes a best practice example from Mexico that begins with an effort to advocate for a policy change, resulting in a shift in government policy. Also, this post will describe climate-related actions with a goal fined in terms of the policy.

The Alianza México REDD+ (Mexico REDD+ Alliance) is an initiative formed by the non-governmental organizations: The Nature Conservancy, Rainforest Alliance, Espacios Naturales y Desarrollo Sustentable, and the Woods Hole Research Center.

Among the alliance’s achievements is the Emissions Reduction Initiative (IRE) presented in 2016 by Mexico to the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) as the national initiative to reduce emissions in the forestry sector. The IRE aims to provide positive incentives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while protecting forests, conserving biodiversity, and improving the livelihoods of indigenous populations and local communities dependent on forests. It is a strategy that seeks to address environmental and social issues.

Government institutions such as CONAFOR and other federal, state, and municipal agencies helped support this initiative. The Alianza México REDD+ played a crucial role in financing the construction of investment programs that supported the Emissions Reduction Initiative (IRE) and set guidelines for budget allocation to support this effort. These guidelines enabled the channeling of resources to state governments and, from there, to public agencies involved in territorial development, who implemented the initiative in the field. Additionally, they organized consultation forums to ensure the full participation of stakeholders. They also collaborated with the federal government to develop the National Strategy for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (ENAREDD+), a comprehensive and multisectoral plan consisting of seven components:

• Public Policy and legal framework
• Financing schemes
• Institutional Arrangements and capacity development
• Reference level
• Monitoring, reporting, and verification
• Social and environmental safeguards
• Communication, social participation, and transparency.

The alliance created several tools to monitor, report, and verify the initiative: a national biomass map, a high-resolution national reference map, a remote sensing method for forest inventories, and a community monitoring initiative in 7 states.

Events held within the framework of the implementation of the Emissions Reduction Initiative (IRE) are the following:

• 26/03/15 National Workshop on the project Evaluation of effective benefit distribution mechanisms within the framework of the IRE in Mexico; Mexico City; State government, the federal government, academia, civil society, NGOs.
• 13/04/15 The Emissions Reduction Initiative Kick-off Meeting for the Carbon Fund; Mexico City; State governments of ATREDD+, CONAFOR.
• 4/04/15 Workshop for formulating the methodology to develop investment plans within the framework of the IRE; Mexico City; State government, the federal government, academia, civil society, NGOs.
• 24/04/15 Workshop on “Equity criteria and benefit distribution for the design and implementation of REDD+ Investment Programs”; Yucatan; Federal government, academia, civil society, NGOs, and international organizations.
• 28/04/15 to 22/05/15 Workshops to provide feedback on the construction process of the Investment Programs; Jalisco, Yucatan, and Chiapas; Federal government, academia, civil society, NGOs, and international organizations.
• 03/06/15 Meeting with IUCN on recommendations to include a gender perspective in the Investment Programs; Mexico City; Mexico REDD+, consultants, TNC, IUCN.
• 12/06/15 Working Group Meeting for ENAREDD+ of the National Forestry Council (CONAF) to present progress of the IRE process; Mexico City; CONAFOR, REDD MOCAF, RITA, AMBIO.
• 17/07/15 Meeting on the Emissions Reduction Initiative of CONAFOR; Jalisco; CONAFOR central offices and state management.
• 23/07/15, 31/07/15, 07/08/15 Follow-up meetings with initiatives supporting the development of the Investment Programs (Mexico REDD+, CONAFOR, LAIF Project, and IUCN); Jalisco; Mexico REDD+, CONAFOR, LAIF Project, IUCN, IRE consultants.
• 26/08/15 Meeting with the Intersecretarial Commission on Climate Change and its REDD+ Working Group to present the IR process; Chiapas; Government agencies.
• 4/09/15, 21/09/15 Video conference follow-up with CONAFOR State Managements from the five states of the IRE for the development of preliminary PI documents; Jalisco, Chiapas, Yucatan, Quintana Roo, and Campeche; CONAFOR central offices and state management.
• 14-16/10/15 Training Workshop for Public Agents of Territorial Development (APDT) for the participatory construction of the Investment Programs; Mexico City; APDT, IRE consultants.
• 14/12/15 Meeting to present the proposal for state reference levels and progress in constructing the IRE; Jalisco; CONAFOR central offices and state management, IRE consultants.

Contact:

Sarah Gammage- Director of Public Policy And Governmental Relations For Latin America

Email: Prensa@tnc.org

The Nature Conservancy (TNC)

 

This Post was submitted by Climate Scorecard Mexico Country Manager Pablo David Necoechea Porras.