ABSTRACT
In the Brazilian Amazon, deforestation and its associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will only be effectively lowered if a new rural development model is adopted, allowing forest conservation to contribute to local economic growth. This article presents an initiative called “REDD for Amazon Smallholders” which is under development to address this challenge. The initiative involves 350 smallholdings located in an area characterized by the expansion of the agricultural frontier in the Brazilian Amazon (Transamazon Highway region—BR230—in the southwestern region of the State of Pará). Projects that help contain deforestation and reduce frontier expansion can play an important role in climate change mitigation (Carvalho et al. 2004, p. 172), especially if at the same time they create opportunities for compensating those who are able to maintain forest carbon stocks.
