ABSTRACT
In the past decade, the global community has witnessed a rise in interest and funding for “win—win,” pro-poor carbon sequestration projects as part of a wider sustainable development paradigm (Engel et al. 2008). Many are hopeful that agricultural carbon mitigation holds promise for meeting dual goals of alleviating poverty and improving environments in rural areas. Programs such as the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), and the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) in Developing Countries Programme seek to reduce carbon emissions while ensuring sustainable development and livelihoods for local people. In spite of the potential for “win—win” situations, smallholder farmers do not always benefit from carbon mitigation programs due to various barriers to participation and benefits, such as secure land tenure and certification costs (Boyd et al. 2007; Corbera et al. 2007).
