USAID Supports Improved National Forest Monitoring Systems in Asia

Over 90 participants from 18 countries in Asia attended the Fifth Regional Forest Monitoring Systems and Reference Levels for REDD+ workshop, held from October 20 to 22 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Hosted by UN-REDD, USAID’s Lowering Emissions in Asia’s Forests project (USAID LEAF), SilvaCarbon and the Vietnam Administration of Forestry, the workshop brought together participants to review the latest guidance for developing National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMS) and forest reference levels, share lessons learned and discuss challenges.

USAID LEAF’s Tran Van Chau presented a case study on establishing a forest reference level for Lam Dong Province, Vietnam as part of their USAID LEAF-supported Provincial REDD+ Action Plan. U.S. Forest Service Climate Fellow Amanda Whitehurst provided an overview of the benefits and constraints when using emerging remote sensing tools such as Light Detection and Ranging, also known as LIDAR. Participants in the workshop identified gaps in NFMS and reference level development to help plan follow-up activities at regional and national levels. Read more about the workshop here.

Source: USAID/RDMA Regional Environment Office Weekly Update