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BioCarbon Fund Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (ISFL)

The BioCarbon Fund Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes collaborates with forest countries around the world to reduce emissions from the land sector through smarter land use planning, policies, and practices. The ISFL is pioneering work that enables countries and private sector actors to adopt changes in the way farmers work on the ground to the way policies are made at the international level. This work supports sustainable landscapes, climate-smart land use, and green supply chains. ISFL provides countries with both updront finance and results-based finance.

Each Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (ISFL) program focuses on an entire jurisdiction (state, province, or region) within a country, thereby enabling it to engage with multiple sectors affecting land use and have an impact on a relatively large area. The ISFL utilizes a landscape approach in each jurisdiction, which requires stakeholders to consider the trade-offs and synergies between different sectors that may compete in a jurisdiction for land use—such as forests, agriculture, energy, mining, and infrastructure.The ISFL aims to pioneer a comprehensive landscape carbon accounting approach as the basis for purchasing emission reductions. Part of the conceptualization of the ISFL stemmed from a growing consensus that there is a need for accounting for reductions in GHG emissions from land use at a large scale.

Support provider 
Germany, Norway, UK, US
Purpose of support 
Project and program implementation
Steps to access  

The selection of countries was made in 2013. Updates are available here.

Climate objective 
Sectors and themes 
Agriculture, Forestry and Land-Use, Industry and Infrastructure, Jobs and Livelihoods
Type of support provider 
Type of recipient 
Fund size 

USD 350 million

Co-financing required 
Trustee or administrator 
World Bank
Contact information