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The “4 per 1000 Initiative

The “4 per "4 out of 1000 Initiative: Soils for Food security and Climate”, Security and Climate" is part of the Global Climate Action Plan and called «Initiative» hereinafter, is hereinafter referred to as the "Initiative". It proposes an international research and scientific cooperation program and an science-based action plan aimed at increasing soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration , in order to increase improve food security , and mitigate and adapt to climate change. Its The overarching goal of the initiative is to assist contributing support partner countries and non-state organizations to develop organizations in developing evidence-based projects, actions policies and programs , (hereafter referred to as «projects» hereafter, to promote and encourage actions towards reducing "projects") that promote actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through by protecting and increasing SOC stocks, the target rate of a . Increasing SOC by 4/1000 (0.4%) per year being an aspirational goalis the ambitious and inspiring target.

The Scientific and Technical Committee (STC) of the Initiative was established at the first meeting of the Consortium members during COP22 in Marrakech, aiming at providing scientific and technical support to Consortium members. Following the terms defined by the Consortium, the principal mandate of the STC is to propose a set of reference criteria, hereafter referred to as “4/1000 reference criteria”, for the formative assessment of projects to meet the principles and goals of the Initiative as defined in the Unified Declaration of Intent and the relevant UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as set out in Table 1, with particular focus on SDG 2 on zero hunger, SDG 13 on climate action and SDG 15 on land conservation and restoration.

A project on soil organic carbon submitted to the STC for expert advice, hereafter referred to as “a SOC project”, should include a set of well-defined actions, hereafter defined as “SOC project actions”, that are is expected to result in a quantifiable increase in SOC stocks (or, at a minimum, reduction in losses of SOC) as a primary goal while balancing complementary impacts relating to the SDGs. Each project action should have clearly defined temporal and spatial scales. The SOC project actions should be aimed primarily at increasing SOC or reducing losses, following changes in land management and/or land use management options. The project proposers will be asked to assess the anticipated co-benefits, possible trade-offs, and community benefits of the project based on the 4/1000 Reference Criteria.

Formative Assessment of Soil Projects (FASP)

An The formative Assessment of soil Projects is guided by an ensemble of criteria, indicators, methods, and metrics , has been developed by the STC to provide guidance to project proposers and provide formative assessment of projects. For projects that satisfy the first set of criteria that ensure project actions do not restrict human rights or negatively affect land rights and poverty alleviation, the formative assessment will provide guidance for actions, and recommend improvements. This guidance will help to ensure that the projects are consistent with the aims of the Initiative, and that, with appropriate funding and project management, methods would be . This guide will help ensure that projects are aligned with the objectives of the Initiative and the SDGs and that indicators are in place to monitor progress during project implementation. The formative assessment will provide narrative advice aimed at for improving the quality of the project before it is implemented and during implementation. The post project stage, including funding opportunities, will not be included in project assessments. The depth and quality of the advice will depend on the quality of the information provided about the project.

FOUR STEPS FOR SOC PROJECT ASSESSMENT

The formative assessment comprises four successive steps. Each step addresses a specific category of reference criteria. The assessment continues with The proposed SOC project assessment approach comprises four sequential steps, with each step being defined by a distinct category of reference criteria that include socio-economic and soil science dimensions. Assessment will proceed to the next step only if the criteria are met for the previous step. If not, the project proposer of the previous step are met. If step 1 is successful, step 2 is completed, and if it is successful, the assessment continues with the third and fourth steps.

If the assessment is interrupted, the project owner will be informed of the reasons why the project is not assessed fully. Then, depending . Depending on the level amount of technical information provided , and on the expertise available within in the STC, technical advice will be provided given to the proposer to improve the project. If Step 1 is successful, Step 2 will be completed and if successful, the SOC project assessment will enter the third and fourth final steps of assessment.project owner to improve the project. 

Step 1-Safeguard Criteria: The purpose of this step is will be to check and ensure that the project does not restrict human rights or have a negative impact on affect land rights and poverty reduction. If the project does not meet all the protection criteria, the STC terminates interrupts the assessment and informs the project owner about the reasons why the project is not assessed fully.

Step 2-Direct Reference: These criteria are will be used to assess the direct impact of projects on the following areas:

i) SOC stocks and land degradation neutrality (SDG 15 Life on land),
ii) Adaptation to climate change and
iii) climate change mitigation (SDG 13 Climate change) and
iv) Food security (SDG 2 Zero hunger).

A project must improve soil organic carbon, i.e. increase SOC or reduce SOC loss compared to "business as usual". It should also work towards a positive impact on the other direct reference criteria. Otherwise, the STC interrupts the formative assessment and advises on how the proposal can be improved to achieve a positive impact on all direct reference criteria.

Step 3: Indirect Reference Criteria will be used to assess the indirect effects of projects on a range of other economic, social, and environmental dimensions, including welfare and well-being (SDG 12 Responsible consumption and production), biodiversity and ecosystem services (SDG 15 Life on land), water and nutrient cycles (SDG 6 Clean water and sanitation), etc. If, compared to a business-as-usual baseline, the project is likely to result in have a strong negative impacts impact on social, economic, or environmental dimensions, it will be negatively evaluated on the corresponding criteria.

Step 4: Cross-cutting Dimensions of projects will be reviewed using cross-cutting criteria, including training and capacity building, participatory and socially inclusive approaches.

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