One of the key issues to make REDD work is the establishment of a forest monitoring system. Examples of how the monitoring system could be designed was discussed in a side event during Forest Day 3, held in Copenhagen on 13 December, where forest monitoring experts presented different approaches to measuring past and future carbon emissions caused by deforestation and forest degradation.

Steven de Gryze from Terra Global Capital presented an approach of forest monitoring dealing with mosaic deforestation and community-based participatory biomass inventories. The methodology addresses the gradual deforestation caused by encroachment of smallholders.

Patrick Newton from Helveta presented his work, which also deals with a bottom-up community-based forest monitoring system. The system allows illiterate people to collect data using a device with symbols for the different parameters. The system has successfully been used in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It is clear that any methodology used for the measurement, reporting and verification of carbon emissions for deforestation and forest degradation need to be transparent and adaptable, if needed. The methodologies naturally also need to be economically attractive.