Progress in Natural Resource Based Emission Reduction Activities in the Tropics

In this introduction to the Annals of Tropical Research special issue on natural resource based carbon offsets a framework is provided for describing the architecture of global climate policy instruments and market mechanisms, and the relationships between these components of the international climate change mitigation and adaptation landscape is discussed. The principal constraints and enabling factors for natural resource based offset projects are identified as issues of capacity, finance, governance and regulation. These concerns provide the rationale for a proposed research agenda, comprising conceptual research and capacity building, both of which can be enacted through the implementation of pilot project activities.