The transnational policy process for REDD+ and domestic policy entrepreneurship in developing countries

Abstract

This article aims to understand the complex relationship between transnational pathways of policy influence and strategies of domestic policy entrepreneurship in the pursuit of REDD+ in developing countries. Since 2007, a complex governance arrangement exerting influence through the provision of international rules, norms, markets, knowledge, and material assistance has supported the diffusion of REDD+ policies around the world. These transnational pathways of influence have played an important role in the launch of REDD+ policy-making processes at the domestic level. Indeed, over 60 developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America have initiated multi-year programmes of policy reform, research, and capacity-building that aim to lay the groundwork for the implementation of REDD+. However, there is emerging evidence that the nature of policy change associated with these REDD+ policy efforts ultimately depends on the mediating influence of domestic factors. This article offers an analytical framework that focuses on whether and how domestic policy actors can seize the opportunities provided by transnational policy pathways for REDD+ to challenge or reinforce the status quo in the governance of forests and related sectors.