Driving forces behind the framing of REDD in Norway

The IPCC in its 2007 report estimated that deforestation accounts for around 20 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) in developing countries has emerged as one of the key means for dealing with deforestation and the loss of carbon sinks in the international climate negotiations. It is gaining weight as a central climate change mitigation mechanism in the UNFCCC negotiations for a post-Kyoto climate regime. At the recent COP16 climate conference in Cancun, REDD was shifted to the top of the negotiation agenda. However, the functioning and success of a REDD mechanism depends to a large extent on the financial commitment of donor countries. Norway has appeared as a leading actor for securing financial transfers from industrialized countries to developing countries. The Norwegian government was deeply involved in the negotiations for a green Climate Fund as surfaced in Cancun. Since 2008 Norway has been the largest financial contributor to the UN-REDD programme and it has facilitated the REDD+ Partnership. According to these occurrences Norway has become an important actor in the international climate change policy. However, it is important to understand the national strategy and motivations behind this policy change. This paper analyzes the particular forces that have influenced and shaped the Norwegian approach to REDD. It poses the question: Why has Norway become an international leader on REDD? To answer this question attention is drawn to the influence of ideas, interests and actors, in particular interest groups as advocates of a forest- or development policy discourse. Hence it is considered important to analyze the driving forces behind the national framing of REDD to explain Norway''s leadership role.