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A small forest in the Pacific

Carmen MeyerDecember 2, 2014

Local clans in Emalu, Fiji, have chosen not to chop down their forest. They benefit from its products and may now also receive additional compensation under the REDD+ program.

https://p.dw.com/p/1Dy8O
Teaser Stabheuschrecke
Image: Carmen Meyer

Fiji: The challenge of forest protection

Project goal: Retain remaining rainforests in Fiji
Project type: REDD+ is an international climate and forest protection program
Project size: Two rainforest areas - 7,000 hectares in Emalu, 300 hectares in Nakavu
Project volume: 4.9 million euros, transnational in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu as part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI)

How do we keep our forests? REDD+, an international climate and forest conservation program, is one way in which communities are trying to answer that question. In Fiji, two villages are taking part in the project but in very different ways: While the forest owners in Emalu have forgone any use of their primary forest leaving its biodiversity untouched, the people of Nakavu have opted for sustainable forestry. Both approaches are designed to protect the forest ecosystem which in turn helps boost the forests' ability to capture and store carbon emissions. What's more, the locals may have another source of income: Financial compensation under the REDD+ program for retaining their forests as carbon sinks.

A film by Carmen Meyer and Holger Ernst