How can global forest carbon finance help avoid deforestation and boost rural incomes?

Global carbon markets can provide a strong financial incentive for countries to avoid deforestation. Forest is often converted to low value uses in developing countries.

For example, in Latin America and elsewhere, tropical forest is often cleared to create pastures worth just $300 a hectare, while releasing large amounts of CO2.

But industries in developed countries pay thousands of dollars to reduce their CO2 emissions by an equivalent amount. 

In other words, the forest has greater value as a storehouse of carbon than as a low-grade pasture. 

If developing countries could tap this value through global carbon markets they could use strengthen forest governance, support sustainable land use, and boost rural incomes.