LEAF Asia

The USAID-funded Lowering Emissions in Asia's Forests (LEAF) program strengthens capacities of developing countries in Asia to produce meaningful and sustainable reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the forest-land use sector, thus allowing these countries to benefit from the emerging international Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) framework. LEAF employs a regional approach to meet its goal, with field demonstration activities in six countries (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea and Malaysia) and to share lessons learned and best practices to scale-up innovation in other Asian countries. Specific program activities are designed to meet four primary objectives: •Replicating and scaling-up innovation through regional platforms & partnerships; •Improving policies and establishing market incentives for GHG reductions; •Building and institutionalizing technical capacity for economic valuation of forest ecosystem services and monitoring changes in forest carbon stocks; and •Demonstrating innovation in sustainable land management. Winrock International Institute for Agricultural Development (Winrock International), a world leader in forest carbon and ecosystem science, is the prime implementing partner. SNV–Netherlands Development Organization, with expertise in community forestry, rural development and local renewable energy, and Climate Focus, a leader in climate policy development, are partners of Winrock.