This is a presentation of some of the results of my PhD project. I presented it in September 2013 to the Environmental Politics Research Group at Lund University, Sweden.

1. NOT SEEING THE FOREST FOR
THE CARBON IN THE TREES ?
(ITC/U Twente)
(ITC/U Twente)
(IISD)
The role of fighting tropical deforestation
in global climate governance
Benjamin Stephan
(IO 9)

2. WHAT IS REDD+ ?
Reducing emissions from
deforestation and degradation and
„the conservation, sustainable
management of forests and
enhancement of forest carbon
stocks“ (UNFCCC 2010, 1/CP16)
(Conservation International)

3. WHAT IS REDD+ ?
(Conservation International)

4. WHAT IS REDD+ ?
Estimating the Opportunity
Costs of REDD+
A training manual
opportunity cost
payments
tisation
mone
carbon m
(flickr:
B
ar kets
aron V
isuals)

5. RESEARCH INTERESTS
How can the massive attention and broad support for
REDD+ be explained in light of the marginalised and
controversial role deforestation had during earlier
phases of international climate negotiations ?
How is deforestation, and together with it the
mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, being made
governable through REDD+ ?
How is avoided deforestation transformed into carbon credits ?

6. THESIS
1.
The Third Side of the Coin: Hegemony and
governmentality in global climate politics
2.
From Pariah to Messiah: Avoiding deforestation
in international climate governance
3.
4.
5.
Governing the Forest Frontier
Bringing Discourse to the Market
How to trade „not cutting down trees“

7. DISCOURSE THEORY
Discour se The
or y
Laclau
Hegemony &
Mouffe
oucault
F
rnmentality
gove

8. DISCOURSE THEORY ?

9. DISCOURSE THEORY ?
wrath of god
bad land planning
result of climate change

10. DISCOURSE THEORY
power
Laclau
Hegemony & Discourse Theory
Mouffe
Foucault
governmentality
hegemony
government
rationality
the political

11. THE BROAD SUPPORT FOR REDD+
REDD+ = hegemonic project
chain of equivalence
REDD+ = floating signifier

12. d benefits
REDD+ = HEGEMONIC PROJECT
D2
(UN-RED
011)
(UN-REDD
(UN-REDD 2011
)
2011)

13. d benefits
REDD+ = HEGEMONIC PROJECT
‘Immediate action on REDD+ can catalyze accelerated
national development in addition to curbing carbon
emissions. Healthy forests sustain biodiversity and
ecosystem services, ensuring clean water, productive soils,
and protection against floods and droughts — helping
countries adapt to climate change, food security and
generally improving the wellbeing of people.‘ (UN-REDD 2010)
D2
(UN-RED
011)
(UN-REDD
(UN-REDD 2011
)
2011)

14. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE

15. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
different demands

16. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
different demands

17. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
different demands

18. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
constitutive outside
different demands

19. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
antagonism
constitutive outside
different demands

20. HEGEMONY:
CHAINS OF EQUIVALENCE
antagonism
constitutive outside
empty signifier

21. REDD+‘S CHAIN OF EQUIVALENCE
...
biodiversity
loss
=
climate
change
= deforestation =
poverty
...
antagonism
REDD+
...
biodiversity
protection
=
reducing emissions
from deforestation
=
poverty
alleviation
sustainable
development
=
human
well-being
=
...

22. From Pariah to Messiah
95
‘CO-BENEFITS‘ OF REDD+
Figure 4: (Co-)Benefits provided through REDD+11
poverty
human well-being
provision of
reduction
livelihoods
fire wood
protection of
biodiversity
air quality
water
regulation
sustainable
education
resilience to
medicine
survial
social cohesion
clarification of
health
food (security)
development
genetic ressources
protection of habitat
jobs
energy
land tenure
pollination
climate change
national security
culture & tradition
indigenous peoples
livelihoods
rights

23. REDD+ = FLOATING SIGNIFIER
=
=
REDD+
fund-based
market based
‘flooded carbon markets‘
‘funding gap‘
‘risky‘
‘unreliable‘

24. GOVERNING THROUGH REDD+
(WRI 2008)

25. MORE THAN GOVERNING
THROUGH MARKETS
‘The Tapuia, a fictional indigenous group based on a real tribe, lives on a legally
protected reserve [in the Amazon]... the Tapuia have rights to REDD[+] credits
for up to 100,000 tons of CO2 per year, depending both on how successful
they are at keeping their reserve intact and on Brazil’s overall performance in
curbing deforestation. After their project is certified by the Amazon Fund, the
Space Research Agency monitors changes in land cover on Tapuia lands on
behalf of the tribe... men from the Tapuia tribe patrolling the borders of their
reserve find the tracks of a logger’s truck... Using their legal authority to control
their reserve, the Tapuia radio the GPS coordinates of the logger’s trail to
government agents who arrest the loggers, confiscate their equipment, and
close the mill that had been pro- cessing the illegally harvested wood. The pickup truck, fuel, GPS, and radio used by the Tapuia tribesmen are all paid for by
the Tapuia REDD[+] project, which is certified under the Amazon Fund
REDD[+] program, and paid for by investors...‘
(EDF 2009)

26. MORE THAN GOVERNING
THROUGH MARKETS
IWGIA/AIPP

27. MORE THAN GOVERNING
THROUGH MARKETS
governing
through markets
IWGIA/AIPP

28. MORE THAN GOVERNING
THROUGH MARKETS
governing
through markets
IWGIA/AIPP

29. MORE THAN GOVERNING
THROUGH MARKETS
carbon panopticon
governing
through markets
sovereign power
IWGIA/AIPP

30. MAKING CARBON CREDITS
(IO 9)
(PBS)

31. MAKING CARBON CREDITS
baseline
(IO 9)
(PBS)
(greenbiz.com)

32. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
forest

33. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
site for commercial
wood exploitation
forest

34. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
site for commercial
wood exploitation
forest
biodiversity
hotspot

35. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
site for commercial
wood exploitation
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
massive gene pool

36. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
site for commercial
wood exploitation
sacred place
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
massive gene pool

37. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
livelihood
sacred place
site for commercial
wood exploitation
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
massive gene pool

38. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
livelihood
water reservoir
sacred place
site for commercial
wood exploitation
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
massive gene pool

39. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
livelihood
water reservoir
sacred place
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
site for commercial
wood exploitation
carbon sink
massive gene pool

40. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
livelihood
water reservoir
sacred place
forest
biodiversity
hotspot
site for commercial
wood exploitation
carbon sink
massive gene pool

41. FOREST‘S FIELD OF DISCURSIVITY
livelihood
water reservoir
sacred place
forest
site for commercial
wood exploitation
carbon sink
biodiversity
hotspot
massive gene pool

42. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
forest

43. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
forest
carbon sink
Emissions Reductions

44. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq

45. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
coal fired power
plant in the UK
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq

46. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
coal fired power
plant in the UK
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq
blast furnace
in Germany

47. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
coal fired power
plant in the UK
wind farm in
China
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq
blast furnace
in Germany

48. Forest‘s Field of Discursivity
coal fired power
plant in the UK
cement plant in
India
wind farm in
China
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq
blast furnace
in Germany

49. Carbonification of Forests
coal fired power
plant in the UK
cement plant in
India
wind farm in
China
forest
carbon sink
tons of CO2eq
blast furnace
in Germany

50. WANT TO KNOW MORE ?
Methmann, C., Rothe, D. and Stephan, B. (eds),
2013, Interpretive Approaches to Global Climate
Governance: Deconstructing the Greenhouse.
London: Routledge

51. THANK YOU
benjamin.stephan@uni-hamburg.de