A number of themes and questions emerged from the Katoomba meeting. The following points are drawn from the various presentations by PES practitioners from Africa and globally

• PES markets are young and it is our responsibility as architects of PES concepts to build a new language and common understanding of PES
• REDD and carbon markets are not silver bullets, although PES is a silver lining. These markets can work together in a matrix
• Large funds for carbon projects (i.e. from Norway) are key but we need to make sure these initiatives and pilot projects work together
• there has been a shift in how we think about development systems à moving from conditional aid to contracts and deliverables
• there are many regulatory challenges when working in developing countries and a good framework needs to be in place to facilitate PES mechanisms
• good information and data is still lacking à payments are built on information and markets are built on payments. We need to fill in the gaps and our technological capability to do that is good.
• Education: we need to communicate information and data effectively, to a diverse set of audiences
• Equity: there are challenges regarding equitable distribution of payments i.e. carbon take place at the global level, so how to link this to local settings?
• Partnership: for these markets to work you need partnership between public, private and civil society – you cannot have fair and effective payment mechanisms without all three being involved

REDD

• The current UNFCCC definition of REDD is blind to other ecosystem services and the Kyoto Protocol is biased towards reducing industrial emissions. This has left Africa far behind
• Biocarbon from agriculture and land management cannot be ignored
• REDD pilot or demonstration activities, especially involving community forestry, are a priority – these can help shape national REDD policies;
• There needs to be clarity in policies around methodology, accounting and how to channel financial flows in order to ensure positive incentives for communities;
• There need to be clear incentives for the private sector to invest in REDD projects – a ‘nested approach’ involving project level credits and national accounting seems essential;
• More capacity building or training on REDD at all levels, including local government, as well as support for education and research

Participants at the private meeting in Morogoro also had the opportunity to visit the CARE/WWF Equitable Payments for Watershed Services (EPWS) project site under development in the Uluguru Mountains of the Eastern Arc, and a REDD demonstration site being implemented by the Kyoto: ‘Think Global, Act Local’ initiative.

For more details on the field trips and recommendations from the meeting, please see the summary of proceedings, and presentations at http://www.katoombagroup.org/event_details.php?id=18