I’m a big believer in the principles behind REDD, namely:
- Globally, forests are massively undervalued.
- Carbon sequestration is one of those typically vital but undervalued services that forests perform for us.
- Now that at least some people are prepared to pay something to abate carbon emissions, it seems crazy to ignore this possibility to value forests more appropriately.
That said, there are several different sides of the coin that bear more than a moment’s consideration. Here is a great satirical take on what REDD might look like in a more equitable world (I’m avidly awaiting part two). And this is a great golden oldie on the parallels with the mediaeval practice of buying indulgences.
Of course, there are lots of practical problems in implementing REDD too, but those are a topic for another post.
Bottom Up Thinking 
Posted by stayingfortea on June 30, 2011 at 3:19 pm
Cheatneutral – what a riot! I hadn’t seen that before. Very clever – “a market-based solution to cheating as critique of carbon-offsetting.