PhD candidate, Environmental Policy Group

My PhD research focuses on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), an internationally negotiated financing mechanism to compensate developing countries for reducing their forest-related carbon emissions. While still being negotiated, REDD+ is currently being discussed and constituted in various forms by state and non-state actors operating at the international, national and project level with different, potentially competing discourses. I analyse how existing discourses around REDD+ shape the constitution of REDD+ policies and practices, and with what consequences for multi-level trends in forest governance. In doing so, I focus on discourses around 1) what REDD+ should achieve; 2) who should monitor REDD+; and 3) how REDD+ should be financed. The research covers an analysis of international monitoring standards for REDD+; a comparative analysis of national REDD+ strategies across 7 countries; an in-depth analysis of the Indian national REDD+ strategy; and a case study of one REDD+ project in India.