For effective REDD+ implementation with multiple readiness activities, agents and drivers of deforestation and forest degradation needs to be identified appropriately. This study examined how such identification can be utilized for instituting REDD+ activities design. We examined this question by using satellite imagery analysis and socioeconomic surveying around Gunung Palung National Park in Indonesia. After recognizing the deforestation rate in the area, the characteristics of agents and drivers of deforestation were explored by using statistical analysis. Several canonical discriminant analyses revealed that the agents and drivers could be classified effectively by using socioeconomic type rather than ethnic groups or geographical location. A principal component analysis and the associated scatter diagrams showed that various agents and drivers exist in a given area within the study region. Finally, these efforts led to the suggestion of options for REDD+ readiness activities based on the diverse features and underlying causes.

Implementation is expected to be a measure for sustainable forest management by providing benefit for forest users based on their efforts. Without careful attention for the social safeguard, the mechanism of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation with forest management (REDD+) might cause negative impact such as depriving of customary forest use rights under unclear tenure and forest use rights typical in Indonesia. This study aimed to explore how REDD+ Safeguard can be applied in readiness activities by analyzing practical forest use situations in a conservation forest, the Gunung Palung National Park as study site. From the results of the questionnaire survey and interviews, characteristics of forest users were identified and compared. The households, mostly Malays, practicing traditional durian collection, were recognized as main forest users depending on on-farm income especially from non-timber forest product (NTFP). Since the income structure is relatively low and unstable, some of them practice farming in forest area or sell their forest use rights to other households. They are inclined to be lack in legal farm land and certain forest use rights. Based on the findings, consideration for diverse forest users and potential readiness activities were discussed and proposed. For achieving REDD+ implementation with sustainable forest management and social safeguard, it will be necessary to respect for customary rights and take comprehensive measures as readiness efforts.

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Certification schemes, aimed at simultaneously promoting ecologically sustainable agriculture and improving livelihood, are being utilized at a global scale. Among such certification schemes, the Rainforest Alliance is known as one of the most widely used environmental certification programs throughout the world. Previous studies have compared the ecological impacts of certified and non-certified farmlands, or evaluated the economic outcomes of certification. However, few studies have assessed the long-term impacts of the certification scheme. This paper attempts to analyze the long-term outcomes of the Rainforest Alliance certification program through a case study of coffee farming practices in southwestern Ethiopia. We conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with key informants who were deeply involved in the certification program, together with field observations and secondary data collection. The results of the assessment indicated that some areas of the certified coffee forests have been deforested or ecologically degraded and that the Rainforest Alliance program requirements were not uniformly applied. The possible causes include rapid population increase, government policies promoting intensive coffee production, presence of members who did not participate in the certification program, a lack of conservation incentives, and loopholes in the auditing process. To determine the overall success of the Rainforest Alliance certification program would require: monitoring of population growth rates and providing alternative livelihood opportunities, promoting collaboration between environmental and agricultural government authorities, conducting a more stringent on-site inspection, and to provide direct incentives for environmental conservation to all farmers living in or near the certified areas.