Proceedings of the Workshop - Georg-August-Universität Göttingen

Based upon the critical state in which the TDF ecosystems are found in
Colombia, it is urgent to devote efforts so as to implement strategies focused on
restoration processes in these ecosystems. And in this context, it should be noted that
it will in no way be possible to perform a restoration against the will of the affected
population that is conscious of only being kept afloat by a dependence on land
resources (Andres 2009; Galmez & Komett 2009, Barnsley 2009).
Due to drought conditions experienced by dry forests, seed recruitment and
growth rates are affected and are lower than those of tropical rainforests. Also, some of
the dry forests are subject to large-scale forest fires due to the accumulation of not
decomposed, dry organic matter, although there is evidence that these forests are less
prone to such events due to the plant adaptations (Vieira & Scariot 2006).
In this sense, ecological restoration aims to restore an ecosystem that has been
degraded, damaged or destroyed, through the stimulation and acceleration of natural
succession in order to restore the forests' ability of self-regulation (Rodriguez 2009)
and finally, to allow not only the establishment of core conservation, but also the
recovery of the functionality and environmental services a previously degraded
ecosystem provides or may provide.
This gives great importance to each existing remnant when seeking to preserve a
representative sample of TDF in Colombia. Particularly the San Sebastian hacienda
has almost 200 hectares of forests that have not been touched in at least 40 years;
thereby exists a great opportunity in contributing to the study and conservation of this
type of ecosystem.
Given the significant emissions from deforestation and forest degradation,
especially in developing countries, several parties have focused their attention on
creating positive incentives for those countries, so as to reduce their deforestation rates
and forest degradation (Barnsley 2009). In this sense, emissions from deforestation
and forest degradation in developing countries account for about 20 percent of total
emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) annually, and it is precisely in this context that
the initiative of reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in
developing countries (REDD) is a must (Angelsen 2009). The basic idea behind REDD
is the creation of a system of positive incentives that will persuade developing countries
with tropical forests to reduce deforestation rates, by financially rewarding them
(Barnsley 2009).
Colombian TDF are included in the Andean forest ecosystems (EFA) which
according to Etter & Villa (2000) are the most diverse and threatened terrestrial
ecosystems, recognized as a major global hotspot and representing a priority for
conservation because of their extraordinary richness and endemism, as well as several
of its constituent species being severely threatened (Miles, et al. 2006). In addition to
be a priority for biodiversity conservation in the great hosting, EFAs are the living basis
of populations in surrounding areas, due to the multiple social, economic and
environmental resources they provide (Quesada, et al. 2009).
Forestry activities offer an attractive potential for climate change adaptation and
mitigation of adverse effects. By promoting conservation of forest through management
practices, forest carbon emissions into the atmosphere are reduced, helping to mitigate
climate change and its impacts (Galmez & Komett 2009).
In this sense the REDD systems have great potential to generate collateral
benefits for the conservation of biodiversity and other ecosystem services (in addition
to carbon sequestration). It is considered that tropical forest conservation has been
underfunded in recent decades, both in terms of scale and duration of the funding cycle
(Galmez & Komett 2009). In this sense, the financial flows related to REDD offer new
possibilities providing collateral benefits in terms of conservation. The ecological
importance of these ecosystems is becoming obvious as a source of storage and water
sources regulation, since they are a determining factor for soil protection and
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