Thales A P West
Biographic Data
| ID | 6322857 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Thales A P West |
| GIVEN NAMES | Thales A P |
| FAMILY NAME | West |
| SIGNATURE | WEST T A P |
| AFFILIATIONS | Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3896-6516 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 20 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 15 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2019 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Exploring European forest management futures
European forests are under increasing pressure from climate change and societal demands for ecosystem services, which are progressively formalized through European policy frameworks. Addressing these pressures requires adapting forest management to balance societal demands and policy objectives while accounting for future forest suitability. We explore alternative pathways for European forests, with a focus on the future extent and spatial distri…
Who gets credit for reduced deforestation? Evaluating additionality in subnational jurisdictional Redd+ under national policy reforms in Indonesia
Forest carbon offsets have been criticised for overstated impacts, encouraging a shift from project-level schemes to jurisdictional programs intended to address deforestation drivers at scale. We evaluate the additionality of one of the first subnational initiatives to receive results-based payments: East Kalimantan's jurisdictional REDD+ program in Indonesia. Using remotely sensed data and the synthetic control method, we estimate counterfactual…
Making carbon offset not just a pipe dream
Restoring credibility in carbon offsets through systematic ex post evaluation
Forest biomass recovery twenty-four years after conventional and reduced-impact logging in Eastern Amazon
Given the mounting global concerns about mitigating climate change and curbing greenhouse gas emissions, it becomes increasingly crucial to comprehend the effects of logging techniques on biomass dynamics in tropical forests. This understanding is essential for fostering greater carbon retention and sequestration, aligning with the objectives of initiatives like REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation plus sustainable …
Strong transparency required for carbon credit mechanisms
Methodological issues with deforestation baselines compromise the integrity of carbon offsets from Redd
Deforestation baselines are inconsistent across REDD+ methodologies. • Current REDD+ methodologies fail to properly measure additionality. • New REDD+ methodologies need to be urgently developed. The number of voluntary interventions seeking to generate carbon offsets by reducing deforestation and forest degradation, generally known as REDD+ projects, has increased significantly over the past decade. Offsets are issued based on project performanc…
Formal designation of Brazilian indigenous lands linked to small but consistent reductions in deforestation
Indigenous territories in Brazil have existed since the pre-European discovery of the continent. Yet, many of them remain without formal recognition by the state. While numerous studies discuss the social implications of indigenous land (IL) designation, limited empirical evidence exists regarding its role in forest conservation. To address this gap, the present study employs a quasi-experimental design and causal-inference methods to estimate th…
Action needed to make carbon offsets from forest conservation work for climate change mitigation
Carbon offsets from voluntary avoided-deforestation projects are generated on the basis of performance in relation to ex ante deforestation baselines. We examined the effects of 26 such project sites in six countries on three continents using synthetic control methods for causal inference. We found that most projects have not significantly reduced deforestation. For projects that did, reductions were substantially lower than claimed. This reflect…
Brazil’s conservation reform and the reduction of deforestation in Amazonia
Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary Redd+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) has gained international attention over the past decade, as manifested in both United Nations policy discussions and hundreds of voluntary projects launched to earn carbon-offset credits. There are ongoing discussions about whether and how projects should be integrated into national climate change mitigation efforts under the Paris Agreement. One consideration is whether these p…
Comparison of spatial modelling frameworks for the identification of future afforestation in New Zealand
In 2018, New Zealand announced an ambitious effort to plant one billion trees by 2028 as part of its climate change mitigation plan and Paris Agreement targets for 2030 and 2050. Afforestation will be promoted through a series of incentives, including payments for carbon sequestration linked to New Zealand’s Emission Trading Scheme. Given that afforestation will be pursued voluntarily, the identification of future afforestation areas is paramount…
Can timber provision from Amazonian production forests be sustainable
Around 30 Mm 3 of sawlogs are extracted annually by selective logging of natural production forests in Amazonia, Earth’s most extensive tropical forest. Decisions concerning the management of these production forests will be of major importance for Amazonian forests’ fate. To date, no regional assessment of selective logging sustainability supports decision-making. Based on data from 3500 ha of forest inventory plots, our modelling results show t…
Optimal strategies for ecosystem services provision in Amazonian production forests
Although tropical forests harbour most of the terrestrial carbon and biological diversity on Earth they continue to be deforested or degraded at high rates. In Amazonia, the largest tropical forest on Earth, a sixth of the remaining natural forests is formally dedicated to timber extraction through selective logging. Reconciling timber extraction with the provision of other ecosystem services (ES) remains a major challenge for forest managers and…
Carbon payments for extended rotations in forest plantations
Brazil’s conservation reform and the reduction of deforestation in Amazonia
Methodological issues with deforestation baselines compromise the integrity of carbon offsets from Redd
Deforestation baselines are inconsistent across REDD+ methodologies. • Current REDD+ methodologies fail to properly measure additionality. • New REDD+ methodologies need to be urgently developed. The number of voluntary interventions seeking to generate carbon offsets by reducing deforestation and forest degradation, generally known as REDD+ projects, has increased significantly over the past decade. Offsets are issued based on project performanc…
Strong transparency required for carbon credit mechanisms
Can timber provision from Amazonian production forests be sustainable
Around 30 Mm 3 of sawlogs are extracted annually by selective logging of natural production forests in Amazonia, Earth’s most extensive tropical forest. Decisions concerning the management of these production forests will be of major importance for Amazonian forests’ fate. To date, no regional assessment of selective logging sustainability supports decision-making. Based on data from 3500 ha of forest inventory plots, our modelling results show t…
Optimal strategies for ecosystem services provision in Amazonian production forests
Although tropical forests harbour most of the terrestrial carbon and biological diversity on Earth they continue to be deforested or degraded at high rates. In Amazonia, the largest tropical forest on Earth, a sixth of the remaining natural forests is formally dedicated to timber extraction through selective logging. Reconciling timber extraction with the provision of other ecosystem services (ES) remains a major challenge for forest managers and…
Carbon payments for extended rotations in forest plantations
Overstated carbon emission reductions from voluntary Redd+ projects in the Brazilian Amazon
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) has gained international attention over the past decade, as manifested in both United Nations policy discussions and hundreds of voluntary projects launched to earn carbon-offset credits. There are ongoing discussions about whether and how projects should be integrated into national climate change mitigation efforts under the Paris Agreement. One consideration is whether these p…
Comparison of spatial modelling frameworks for the identification of future afforestation in New Zealand
In 2018, New Zealand announced an ambitious effort to plant one billion trees by 2028 as part of its climate change mitigation plan and Paris Agreement targets for 2030 and 2050. Afforestation will be promoted through a series of incentives, including payments for carbon sequestration linked to New Zealand’s Emission Trading Scheme. Given that afforestation will be pursued voluntarily, the identification of future afforestation areas is paramount…
Brazil’s conservation reform and the reduction of deforestation in Amazonia
Action needed to make carbon offsets from forest conservation work for climate change mitigation
Carbon offsets from voluntary avoided-deforestation projects are generated on the basis of performance in relation to ex ante deforestation baselines. We examined the effects of 26 such project sites in six countries on three continents using synthetic control methods for causal inference. We found that most projects have not significantly reduced deforestation. For projects that did, reductions were substantially lower than claimed. This reflect…
Forest biomass recovery twenty-four years after conventional and reduced-impact logging in Eastern Amazon
Given the mounting global concerns about mitigating climate change and curbing greenhouse gas emissions, it becomes increasingly crucial to comprehend the effects of logging techniques on biomass dynamics in tropical forests. This understanding is essential for fostering greater carbon retention and sequestration, aligning with the objectives of initiatives like REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation plus sustainable …
Strong transparency required for carbon credit mechanisms
Methodological issues with deforestation baselines compromise the integrity of carbon offsets from Redd
Deforestation baselines are inconsistent across REDD+ methodologies. • Current REDD+ methodologies fail to properly measure additionality. • New REDD+ methodologies need to be urgently developed. The number of voluntary interventions seeking to generate carbon offsets by reducing deforestation and forest degradation, generally known as REDD+ projects, has increased significantly over the past decade. Offsets are issued based on project performanc…
Formal designation of Brazilian indigenous lands linked to small but consistent reductions in deforestation
Indigenous territories in Brazil have existed since the pre-European discovery of the continent. Yet, many of them remain without formal recognition by the state. While numerous studies discuss the social implications of indigenous land (IL) designation, limited empirical evidence exists regarding its role in forest conservation. To address this gap, the present study employs a quasi-experimental design and causal-inference methods to estimate th…
Restoring credibility in carbon offsets through systematic ex post evaluation
Exploring European forest management futures
European forests are under increasing pressure from climate change and societal demands for ecosystem services, which are progressively formalized through European policy frameworks. Addressing these pressures requires adapting forest management to balance societal demands and policy objectives while accounting for future forest suitability. We explore alternative pathways for European forests, with a focus on the future extent and spatial distri…
Who gets credit for reduced deforestation? Evaluating additionality in subnational jurisdictional Redd+ under national policy reforms in Indonesia
Forest carbon offsets have been criticised for overstated impacts, encouraging a shift from project-level schemes to jurisdictional programs intended to address deforestation drivers at scale. We evaluate the additionality of one of the first subnational initiatives to receive results-based payments: East Kalimantan's jurisdictional REDD+ program in Indonesia. Using remotely sensed data and the synthetic control method, we estimate counterfactual…
Making carbon offset not just a pipe dream
Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management (11 works) · Environmental Science (11 works) · Ecology (9 works) · Economics (9 works) · Geography (8 works) · Agroforestry (7 works) · Economic and Environmental Valuation (7 works) · Forest Management and Policy (6 works) · Amazon rainforest (5 works) · Natural resource economics (5 works)