Partner: Wildlife Conservation Society
Region/Country: Cambodia
Standard: Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and Climate, Community & Biodiversity Standard (CCB)
Developed and implemented by the Wildlife Conservation Society, this carbon emission reduction program is a key part of Cambodia’s commitment to the Paris Agreement.
- This is the largest carbon emission reduction program in Cambodia’s land use sector.
- The project protects habitat for Asia’s most threatened species including Asian elephants, gibbons, and the giant ibis.
- This work is part of Cambodia’s commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement.
- Formalized land and resource use rights for local communities.
Key Project Impacts
- Covers close to 300,000 hectares in eastern Cambodia.
- Originating in 2002, it’s one of Cambodia’s largest and most successful conservation programs.
- The Keo Seima REDD+ area holds more than 75 million metric tons of carbon, equivalent to the total annual fossil CO2 emissions of New Zealand and Switzerland combined.
- More than 1000 species recorded from the site, including 55 globally threatened vertebrate species, and 75 total globally threatened flora and fauna species.

Project Activities
Climate
Tropical forests sequester vast quantities of carbon dioxide, and deforestation is one of the major causes of global carbon dioxide emissions. By avoiding deforestation, millions of carbon is kept out of the atmosphere and locked into a thriving ecosystem.
Community
This project provides income streams for the residents and landowners. It also provides its indigenous residents with food, fuel, building materials, and spiritual sites. The community regularly uses medicinal plants from the forest as well.
Biodiversity
It is home to the highest number of species record in any protected area including more than 350 bird species have been observed here. Additionally, it is a home to several different monkey species and around a quarter of Cambodia’s remaining wild elephant population. More that 15 new species have been discovered in this protected forest.
This project actively supports the following Global Goals for Sustainable Development:






