World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007 - (Page 5)

Kyoto Protocol. Including forests is also politically important because it will give a wider range of countries concrete roles in the next treaty. Collecting better data is an essential first step to influencing the inclusion of forests in the next treaty. WWF will provide technical support to a key set of countries so that they can develop baseline assessments of deforestation along with monitoring programs. Using this data and consulting with all stakeholders, we will develop policy proposals that are both ecologically sound and politically plausible. Building on our experience with the Forest and Marine Stewardship Councils, we will advocate environmentally and socially responsible standards for forest and land-use carbon projects. This is already important for the so-called “voluntary market” for carbon offsets and will be important in any future carbon market that includes forest-based carbon projects. WWF in the United States will invest our greatest resources, however, in forest-carbon fieldwork. In pilot projects, we will show how reducing deforestation is not only achievable, but also can deliver net benefits to a country and its people when harnessed to a wellconceived carbon emissions reduction plan. In the Terai Arc of Nepal, for example, WWF is supporting the regeneration of valuable forests, while instituting local carbon accounting methodologies and – by building thousands of household biogas plants – decreasing use of wood as fuel. Adaptation and Resilience Our mission compels us to take measures to protect animals and habitats from the immediate, as well as long-term, threats of climate change. Put simply, we need to buy time for species while efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stabilize our climate take effect – a process that will stretch over the next century, at the very least. It makes sense, then, that we explore the ability of natural systems to adapt to and resist the effects of climate change. To that end, we are invested in assessing and enhancing the ability of ecosystems to withstand those effects. Our prominence in this field in large measure reflects the work of WWF’s Dr. Lara Hansen, who brings the principles of adaptation and resilience to climate change work in the WWF Network’s ecoregions, including the WWF-US priority places. In the Florida Keys and the Caribbean, Climate Adaptation: Shorelines in Africa WWF is testing climate adaptation models all over the world. In Africa, we’re looking at several ways to protect threatened shorelines. Sea-level rise and stronger storm surges are two of the effects of climate change being felt in coastal regions. In many tropical places, the massive root systems of the coastal trees called mangroves have always held shores against the ocean’s battering; however, they are now among the most degraded forest systems in the world. In Coastal East Africa WWF is building the resilience of mangroves in order to protect coastal ecosystems and human communities. To do this, we are reforesting degraded areas with mangrove species that are more adaptable to climate change, integrating land-use and marine planning, and reducing overharvesting. In Madagascar, we have partnered with Conservation International to analyze the island’s vulnerabilities. We are working with Malagasy communities, academics and government agencies to raise awareness of climate change impacts and to learn how local people are seeing the effects of climate change in their world. Their involvement will build support for adaptation activities that protect the forests and coral reefs. Where the changes brought on by global warming are already evident, taking actions that enable adaptation is a much-needed step in the right direction. worldwildlife.org 5 http://worldwildlife.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007

WWF - Annual Report 2007 Contents The Landscapes of People's Lives The President’s Report Africa, Land of the Soul Building Prosperity from Africa’s Natural Wealth A Namibian Odyssey Natural Capital: Putting a Price on Nature Investing in Fish and Fishermen Wildlife in the Balance Africans on the Move WWF Results Across the Globe A Different Kind of Fieldwork A River Dammed Pooling Efforts in the World’s Aquarium More Than Just the Daily Catch All Along the Equator A Partnership for Freshwater Funding and Financial Overview Statement of Activities Ways to Give Staff National Council Board of Directors

World Wildlife Fund - Annual Report 2007

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