Abstract
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) has recently received broad political support, e.g., under the Bonn Challenge. However, although the concept promises quadruple wins for humans, biodiversity as well as climate change mitigation and adaptation, it remains heavily underutilized in practice. Drawing on a social constructivist reading and a survey in different developing and developed countries, we elaborate on varying existing narratives about FLR at global and country level. Overall, we find that FLR understandings in different countries strongly resonate with the globally pursued idea of enhancing ecological and human well-being. In more detail, however, rural development and climate mitigation oriented motives are prioritized over aspects of species conservation or adaptation. Globally, strong emphasis is placed on collaborative processes empowering local actors. At country level, by contrast, these ideas regarding greater local authority are complemented with a techno-managerial notion of government control. Considering the potential power struggles that could be evoked from such dialectic expectations, we see it as a primary responsibility for global FLR processes to fully embrace the political dimension of FLR and to support conflict resolution and adaptive learning processes.
Highlights
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) has received much political attention recently for its role in tackling multiple societal challenges, including climate change mitigation and adaptation, food security and biodiversity loss
FLR provides an opportunity for countries to fulfill multiple commitments to different international agreements, including e.g., the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) or the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as the New York
To identify how distinct stakeholders understand FLR, we asked survey participants: (i) “How do you define forest landscape restoration?” (ii) “What major achievements can be obtained through FLR?” (iii) “What are your major concerns about FLR?” (iv) “How relevant do you see diff. actors in FLR: national governments, local governments/communities, smallholders, multinational/development banks, private funds, multinational corporations, national companies, certification standards, technical consultants, research?” An open follow-up question (“Please specify your choice”) helped us identify the underlying rationales behind the different rankings. (v) “What needs to be done politically to promote FLR?” Based on the survey answers, and enriched by insights from desk work, observation and interviews, we identified various narratives about FLR that are articulated by different actor groups
Summary
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) has received much political attention recently for its role in tackling multiple societal challenges, including climate change mitigation and adaptation, food security and biodiversity loss. Together with the WRI and IUCN, the Global Partnership on Forest and Landscape Restoration (GPFLR) understands FLR as “a long-term process” focused “on strengthening the resilience of landscapes and creating future options to adjust and further optimize ecosystem goods and services as societal needs change or new challenges arise” [4]. This definition by GPFLR is drawn on and referred to globally in various political and academic contexts This definition by GPFLR is drawn on and referred to globally in various political and academic contexts ([5], p. 1, [14,26]) and strongly informs the work of the Bonn Challenge [2]
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