This working paper gives an overview of the availability of information for land concessions in 14 forested countries, with a special focus on open spatial information. More specifically, this paper examines the legal framework for granting concessions, laws governing the disclosure of spatial concessions data, and the completeness and quality of concessions data in each country.
Nearly all forest fires in Indonesia are human-caused. New data reveals where they've ignited over the past 15 years, shedding light on how to squelch the problem.
New analysis shows what effect forest management policies are having in Indonesia, Brazil and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
It's not enough to merely commit to deforestation-free supply chains. Businesses should keep their eyes on the real prize: prosperous and productive rural economies.
The world's intact forest landscapes, vast swaths of unbroken wilderness largely unaffected by human activity, are shrinking. That's troubling because these regions are key to fighting climate change.
Intact forest landscapes (IFLs), or vast stretches of unbroken forest wilderness, are some of the most important ecosystems in the world. The fact that the world lost an area of IFLs twice the size of California over the past decade spells trouble for nature, the climate and human well-being.
Israel is joining a global movement towards holistic forest management that values ecosystem services.
Grappling with Brazil's longest recession since the 1930s, government officials are under enormous pressure to combat rising unemployment, address corruption and control inflation. Yet two recent bills designed to solve the problem are misguided attempts that could degrade the environment, diminish human rights and hurt the economy.
The recent forest fire in the Great Smoky Mountains is tragic, but it’s hardly unique. It mirrors a spate of unusual fires that have devastated many parts of the world over the past two years—blazes that may become more common as climate change increases temperatures.
The Brazilian government announced an unforeseen increase in deforestation last week -- a 29 percent rise in 2016 compared to the previous year -- at a time when the nation has been seeking to eliminate deforestation in the Amazon as part of its plan to curb climate change, conserve biodiversity and protect indigenous rights.
Our podcast team sat down with Chip Barber and Austin Clowes of the Forest Legality Initiative to learn how to build a sustainable guitar.
The best guitar necks are made of mahogany, and the most sustainable guitar companies are finding innovative ways to source the wood without destroying its stock.
To date, 21 African nations have signed onto the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100) and committed to restore 63.3 million hectares (156 million acres) of degraded land.
A new report shows that forests managed by Indigenous Peoples and communities hold about one-quarter of the world's tropical aboveground carbon.
Guitar fretboards are often made of ebony. With the prized tree now endangered, consumers must demand more sustainable sourcing.
Degraded lands—lands that have lost some degree of their natural productivity through human activity—account for over 20 percent of forest and agricultural lands in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Economic Case for Landscape Restoration in Latin America finds that achieving Initiative 20x20’s goal of restoring 20 million hectares of land in Latin America and the Caribbean could yield net benefits of at least $23 billion over 50 years, an amount equivalent to about 10% of the value of food exports from the region.
New WRI research shows that bringing life back to degraded lands in Latin America and the Caribbean would yield $23 billion in net benefits over 50 years.
A Colorado wildfire that caused $25 million in damage also played havoc with Denver's drinking water supply, prompting the Mile-High City and others to invest in watershed protection to safeguard forests where the water they need originates. Protecting forested watersheds is critical for utilities that serve over 10,000 U.S. cities. Here are 10 factors that can guide watershed investment.