Branding K-REDD+ and its implications for South Korea's middle power diplomacy |
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Authors: | Yeon-Su Kim Jae soo Bae Larry A Fisher Jione Jung |
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Institution: | 1. School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USAysk@nau.edu;3. Laboratory of Forest Industry and Policy, National Institute of Forest Science, Seoul, South Korea;4. School of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA;5. Development Cooperation Team, Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, Seoul, South Korea |
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Abstract: | ABSTRACTThe need for new and stronger middle power diplomacy is growing as global challenges are increasingly governed by various horizontal inter- and trans-national networks. Climate change is one of the most complex and urgent global challenges that require collective action, and it is an issue for which more middle power leadership is greatly needed. The Republic of Korea (ROK) has been successful in becoming a primary actor in green growth governance, and its success has been attributed to its strategic middlepowermanship, integrating both material and ideational contents. Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) in tropical developing countries has been lauded as an immediate and effective solution to mitigate climate change. ROK's unique history of forest transition before rapid economic growth highlights the fact that improving forest management is possible even with imperfect governance, rapid population growth, and low economic development. The lessons learned from ROK's forest transition can be developed as a distinct contribution to the international effort to address forest-related impacts on climate change, and offer an important opportunity for ROK to play a constructive role and achieve enhanced stature within the international community. |
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Keywords: | Climate mitigation middle power South Korea REDD+ forest transition reforestation |
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