Query: Scientists say halting deforestation ‘just as urgent’ as reducing emissions

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Climate change mitigation <=SEP=> Climate change mitigation consists of actions to limit the magnitude or rate of long-term climate change . Climate change mitigation generally involves reductions in human ( anthropogenic ) emissions of greenhouse gases ( GHGs ) . Mitigation may also be achieved by increasing the capacity of carbon sinks , e.g. , through reforestation . Mitigation policies can substantially reduce the risks associated with human-induced global warming .   According to the IPCC 's 2014 assessment report , `` Mitigation is a public good ; climate change is a case of the ` tragedy of the commons . Effective climate change mitigation will not be achieved if each agent ( individual , institution or country ) acts independently in its own selfish interest ( see international cooperation and emissions trading ) , suggesting the need for collective action . Some adaptation actions , on the other hand , have characteristics of a private good as benefits of actions may accrue more directly to the individuals , regions , or countries that undertake them , at least in the short term . Nevertheless , financing such adaptive activities remains an issue , particularly for poor individuals and countries . ''   Examples of mitigation include phasing out fossil fuels by switching to low-carbon energy sources , such as renewable and nuclear energy , and expanding forests and other `` sinks '' to remove greater amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere . Energy efficiency may also play a role , for example , through improving the insulation of buildings . Another approach to climate change mitigation is climate engineering .   Most countries are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC ) . The ultimate objective of the UNFCCC is to stabilize atmospheric concentrations of GHGs at a level that would prevent dangerous human interference of the climate system . Scientific analysis can provide information on the impacts of climate change , but deciding which impacts are dangerous requires value judgments .   In 2010 , Parties to the UNFCCC agreed that future global warming should be limited to below 2.0 ° C ( 3.6 ° F ) relative to the pre-industrial level . With the Paris Agreement of 2015 this was confirmed , but was revised with a new target laying down `` parties will do the best '' to achieve warming below 1.5 ° C . The current trajectory of global greenhouse gas emissions does not appear to be consistent with limiting global warming to below 1.5 or 2 ° C . Other mitigation policies have been proposed , some of which are more stringent or modest than the 2 ° C limit .

Deforestation in Indonesia <=SEP=> Deforestation in Indonesia involves the long-term loss of forests and foliage across much of the country ; it has had massive environmental and social impacts . Indonesia is home to some of the most biologically diverse forests in the world and ranks third in number of species behind Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo .   As late as 1900 , Indonesia was still a densely forested country : forests represented 84 percent of the total land area . Deforestation intensified in the 1970s and has accelerated further since then . The estimated forest cover of 170 million hectares around 1900 decreased to less than 100 million hectares by the end of the 20th century . In 2008 , it was estimated that tropical rainforests in Indonesia would be logged out in a decade . Of the total logging in Indonesia , up to 80 % is reported to be performed illegally .   Large areas of forest in Indonesia have been cleared by large multinational pulp companies , such as Asia Pulp and Paper , and replaced by plantations . Forests are often burned by farmers and plantation owners . Another major source of deforestation is the logging industry , driven by demand from China and Japan . Agricultural development and transmigration programs moved large populations into rainforest areas , further increasing deforestation rates .   Logging and the burning of forests to clear land for cultivation has made Indonesia the world 's third largest emitter of greenhouse gases , behind China and the United States . Forest fires often destroy high capacity carbon sinks , including old-growth rainforest and peatlands . In May 2011 , Indonesia declared a moratorium on new logging contracts to help combat this . This appeared to be ineffective in the short-term , as the rate of deforestation continued to increase . By 2012 Indonesia had surpassed the rate of deforestation in Brazil , and become the fastest forest clearing nation in the world .

Deforestation and climate change <=SEP=> Deforestation is one of the main contributors to climate change . It is the second largest anthropogenic source of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere , after fossil fuel combustion . Deforestation and forest degradation contribute to atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions through combustion of forest biomass and decomposition of remaining plant material and soil carbon . It used to account for more than 20 % of carbon dioxide emissions , but it 's currently somewhere around the 10 % mark . By 2008 , deforestation was 12 % of total , or 15 % if peatlands are included . These proportions are likely to have fallen since given the continued rise of fossil fuel use .   Averaged over all land and ocean surfaces , temperatures warmed roughly 1.53 ° F ( 0.85 ° C ) between 1880 and 2012 , according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change . In the Northern Hemisphere , 1983 to 2012 were the warmest 30-year period of the last 1400 years .

Avoided Deforestation Partners <=SEP=> Avoided Deforestation Partners , or AD Partners , is a non-profit organization under the auspices of the Center for International Policy in Washington , D.C. AD Partners is involved in the global effort to solve climate change by working to end deforestation in tropical rainforest countries . By avoiding the practice of deforestation , i.e. , clearing forests to provide inexpensive farmland ( also known as `` slash and burn agriculture '' ) , the world gains the significant climate benefits of not releasing carbon into the atmosphere . In addition , avoiding deforestation also allows forests to sequester carbon and scrub the air of pollutants . Beyond protecting our air quality , tropical forests create the conditions for rain , recharge our water sources , provide habitats for myriad plant and animal species , and support a way of life for 1.6 billion forest dependent people . Leading scientists and economists say that ending deforestation is the most cost effective and scalable method of reducing greenhouse gases . In fact , they believe that ending deforestation will cut the timeframe for solving the climate crisis in half .   AD Partners ' focus has been and continues to be on advocating for U.S. and international forest protection policies . A large part of their efforts go towards convening global leaders from government , civil society and the business world at the international United National Climate summits , also known as the UNFCCC COP meetings .   Most recently , AD Partners has joined television and movie climate change projects to help raise awareness about the critical link between climate change and the massive deforestation that continues to occur in rainforest countries such as Brazil and Indonesia . For most of the world , the concept that ending deforestation has a direct and profound link to solving the climate crisis is still very much unknown .