The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was jointly established by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 1988 to: (i) assess available information on the science, the impacts, and the economics of, and the options for mitigating and/or adapting to, climate change and (ii) provide, on request, scientific/technical/socioeconomic advice to the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Since then, the IPCC has produced a series of Assessment Reports, Special Reports, Technical Papers, methodologies, and other products that have become standard works of reference, widely used by policymakers, scientists, and other experts.

The Special Report on Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry was prepared in response to a request from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA). At its Eighth Session in Bonn from 2-12 June 1998, SBSTA requested a report examining the scientific and technical state of understanding for carbon sequestration strategies related to land use, land-use change, and forestry activities and relevant Articles of the Kyoto Protocol. The scope, structure, and outline of the Special Report was approved by the IPCC in plenary meetings during its Fourteenth Session in Vienna, Austria, from 1-3 October 1998.

This Special Report discusses the global carbon cycle and how different land use and forestry activities currently affect standing carbon stocks and emissions of greenhouse gases. It also looks forward and examines future carbon uptake and emissions that may result from employing varying definitional scenarios and carbon accounting strategies, linked to the Kyoto Protocol, within the forestry and land-use sectors.

As is usual in the IPCC, success in producing this document has depended on the enthusiasm and cooperation of volunteers dispersed worldwide who give freely of their professional and personal time. We would like to express our gratitude to all the Coordinating Lead Authors, Lead Authors, Contributing Authors, Review Editors, and Expert Reviewers. These individuals have expended considerable effort to produce this report and we are extremely grateful for their commitment to the IPCC process.

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