Kew Declaration

Kew Declaration

Subject – Environment

Context – ‘Kew Declaration’ unites experts on reforestation, aims at policymakers ahead of COP26

Concept –

• The declaration, spearheaded by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew) and Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), was signed by more than 2,600 individuals from 113 countries, including scientists, foresters, financiers, policy specialists, and representatives of botanical gardens, NGOs and tree nurseries.
• The declaration expresses the co-signatories’ concern over large-scale tree plantations of single species and/or non-native trees, which can harm biodiversity and capture less carbon than native forests. It proposes that forests be planted to reflect the diversity of natural ecosystems.
• The declaration was borne out of discussions and research presented at the Reforestation for Biodiversity, Carbon Capture and Livelihoods conference in February 2021 as well as the “Ten Golden Rules for Reforestation to Optimise Carbon Sequestration, Biodiversity Recovery and Livelihood Benefits” published by RBG Kew and partners in January 2021.
• The declaration specifically calls upon “policymakers, financiers and practitioners in countries that have made reforestation pledges” to adhere to the Ten Golden Rules, work with Indigenous and local people and respect their land tenure rights, ensure that any habitats lost are replicable, safeguard threatened species, continue to steward and monitor projects, and “learn from past mistakes.”
• The declaration also calls for subsidies and “positive financial incentives” to support restoration.
• Afforestation, or planting trees on lands that do not historically have trees (such as savannas or moorlands), can actually release carbon from the ground and be destructive to the ecosystem, so selecting the appropriate areas and species for reforestation is critical.
• When people plant the wrong trees in the wrong place, it can cause considerably more damage than benefits, failing to help people or nature.
• One of the promising approaches noted is agroforestry, an alternative to intensive agriculture, which uses forest-based products and has the added benefits of “carbon sequestration, soil structure and fertility, shade, tree products and other ecosystem services,” the declaration states.
• The United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration: 2021-2030.