Results based payments and REDD+ safeguards: Challenges for demonstrating and verifying the social and environmental integrity of Verified Emission Reductions at national and jurisdictional scale
Status: This talk is in preparation - details may change
Status: This talk has been cancelled
This will be a hybrid event with the option to attend in person or join online. If joining online, click on "View online event" in your booking confirmation email for the Zoom link and passcode.
OCTF seminar followed by Q&A – all welcome

Billions of dollars of results-based financing for reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD+) at national, and jurisdictional scale is expected to be delivered over the next 5 years through voluntary markets or results-based payments (RBP) schemes such as the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) Carbon Fund ($700m committed to 14 countries) and Lowering Emissions by Accelerating Forest finance (LEAF) Coalition ($1bn committed and 30 applicants to date). After many years of planning and preparation, REDD+ implementers (at national, jurisdictional and project scales) will now have to demonstrate the social and environmental integrity of the Verified Emission Reductions (VER) they are claiming RBP results for. As a consultancy, we have worked directly with implementing governments, standards bodies and donors for over a decade and have identified numerous challenges for governments to verifiably demonstrate whether the implementation of REDD+ actions was in conformance with the required safeguards, as well as key challenges for the climate finance providers and relevant standards responsible for providing assurance of the social and environmental integrity of the VER.

Daniela Rey Christen is the founding Director of Climate Law and Policy (CLP), an independent advisory organization that delivers country-led and evidence-based climate strategies, policies, and measures through effective and efficient climate governance frameworks. Daniela has over 18 years’ track record experience in environmental law and policy and her focus is to create harmony and find synergies between policy arenas that are traditionally tackled in silo, such as between climate change mitigation and adaptation, sustainable development, human rights and biodiversity conservation. Daniela is a leading global safeguard expert. Her key relevant experience includes supporting national and sub-national governments meet national and international policy commitments in relation to environmental, social and governance (ESG) safeguards, and supporting climate finance providers (e.g. The Green Climate Fund) and relevant Standards (TREES-ART) review, strengthen and adopt ESG safeguards’ instruments to validate and verify high-quality emission reductions efforts in the forest and land use sector.

Since 2013 she has supported 21 national and subnational governments on the identification, evaluation, and strengthening of their governance dimensions (e.g. legal, policy and institutional frameworks) to meet obligations under environmental and human rights conventions, in particular, under the UN Framework on Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). She has led the design and adoption of environmental, climate change and overall sustainable development programmes/projects (e.g. Climate Change Acts, National Adaptation Plans, REDD-plus strategies, Climate Finance Strategies, etc.), in countries around the world, including in Small Island Developing States (such as Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Sri Lanka). At the multilateral level, Daniela has provided ground-breaking strategic policy analysis and design support to multilateral funds and organizations in the context of enhanced climate action to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement and in acknowledgement of the complex climate financing landscape. Prior to CLP, Daniela has held a variety of roles in UN system, CSOs, and law firms. She holds an MSc in Environmental Change and Management from the University of Oxford.
Date: 18 February 2022, 16:15 (Friday, 5th week, Hilary 2022)
Venue: Oxford Martin School, 34 Broad Street OX1 3BD
Venue Details: Lecture Theatre - or join online via Zoom
Speaker: Daniela Rey Christen (Climate Law and Policy)
Organising department: Oxford University Centre for the Environment
Organiser: Jane Applegarth (University of Oxford, Oxford University Centre for the Environment)
Organiser contact email address: jane.applegarth@eci.ox.ac.uk
Host: Dr Constance McDermott (University of Oxford)
Part of: Oxford Centre for Tropical Forests
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://www.tropicalforests.ox.ac.uk/event/daniela-rey-christen/
Cost: Free
Audience: Public
Editor: Jane Applegarth