Avoided Deforestation Partners hosted a tremendous side event at the Copenhagen Marriott on "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation (REDD): Opportunities for U.S. Initiatives in Support of a Global Framework." 

Richard Branson, Jane Goodall, Bharrat Jagdeo (President of Guyana), and Jens Stoltenberg (Prime Minister of Norway) share a stage at REDD event.

Again and again, high-level experts confirmed what we're hearing on the ground, at side events, press debriefs and happy hours - REDD is going to be the big winner this week.

Unless progress on finance and emissions reduction deals completely collapse here at Copenhagen, which is not likely, we are " on the verge of a major breakthrough on protecting tropical forests," said Kevin Knobloch, President of the Union of Concerned Scientists. 

WWF US President Carter Roberts added: "This may be the most important moment in the history of forests ever in the world...we are within reach of the ability to save magnificent places."

In the hours of thoughtful speeches and discussions, two announcements stood out as key catalysts to ensure that REDD momentum continues strong through the end of COP-15 and that the week ends with a strong deal on forests. 

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack closed the event by announcing that the Obama administration has committed $1 billion over the next three years to REDD+, and will work closely with global partners to raise more funds.

Vilsack said that "the Obama Adminstration feels strongly that REDD needs to be part of deal in Copenhagen, and our negotiating team is working hard to make REDD happen...protecting the world’s forests is not a luxury, it is a necessity.”

By putting a (somewhat) significant amount of money on the negotiating table for REDD, the U.S. government is signaling to the rest of the world that they are committed to working with governments around the world to make REDD happen.

Much earlier in the event, Brian McClendon VP Google CO-Founder Google Earth announced the “Earth Engine" prototype and wowed the audience with images, which will give nations ability to measure changes in forest cover in great detail and dramatically lower the cost and complexity of monitoring forests.  Google has established the proof of concept, and moving forward, will add radar imagery and a user interface to input data.  

Doubts about the ability to effectively monitor, report, and verify (MRV) reduced emissions reductions from protecting forests hampered the inclusion of forest protections in the Kyoto Protocol, but is no longer an issue, as Google's announcement drove home today.  

McClendon said that "complex forest science and measurements becomes user friendly" with the new program, and that Google will be "working with partners in 2010 to roll out pilot programs, starting with scientists in developing countries"...and commit to making it more widely available by COP-16.

Google.org had a number of key partners in developing the program, including the Gordan and Betty Moore Foundation and The Carnegie Institute for Science.

Balancing the positive news slightly was a forthright reality check by Bharrat Jagdeo, the President of Guyana, who came to the event directly from negotiations and said that that "developed world is not putting money on the table and we’re not going to have a solution unless there is money on the table...if we cannot find $10B/year for fast-track mitigation funding through 2010, how will we find $30B/year to outcompete alternative uses of the forest?"


Full list of speakers:  Jens Stoltenberg - Prime Minister of Norway; Tom Friedman - Author, Journalist, The New York Times; Hon.Tom Vilsack - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture; Amb. Stuart Eizenstat - Former U.S. Negotiator Kyoto Protocol; Frances Beinecke - President, National Resources Defense Council; Jane Goodall, DBE, Founder - The Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace; Sir Richard Branson - Founder,The Virgin Group; Bill Tyndell - Duke Energy; Robert Zoellick - President,The World Bank Group; Helen Clark - Director, UN Development Programme, former Prime Minister, New Zealand; Hon. Eduardo Braga, - Governor, Amazonas, Brazil; HE Bharrat Jagdeo - President of Guyana; David Yarnold - Executive Director, Environmental Defense Fund; Peter Seligmann - Chairman and CEO, Conservation International; Mark Tercek - President and CEO,The Nature Conservancy; Carter Roberts - President,World Wildlife Fund, U.S.; Kevin Knobloch - President,Union of Concerned Scientists; Dennis Welch - Executive Vice President, American Electric Power; Julia Marton-Lefèvre - Director General, IUCN; Brian McClendon - Vice President, Google, Inc., and Co-Founder, Google Earth; Jeff Horowitz - Founder, Avoided Deforestation Partners. 

Rebecca Lutzy is reporting live from Copenhagen.

Rebecca is the Content and Community Manager at The Energy Collective and a Ph.D. candidate in Princeton University's Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy program.