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Abstract: The central motivation to restore ecosystems at a planetary scale has been to reverse degradation and provide multiple environmental benefits, but key global players like governments may be more interested in social outcomes from undertaking restoration, such as job creation. Assessing the job opportunities stemming from ongoing restoration programmes can leverage additional investments for their implementation and support their long‐term maintenance. Here, we aimed to understand and quantify current and potential ecosystem restoration jobs in Brazil, based on a widely distributed online survey performed in 2020 and led by the main restoration networks in the country. We explored the structure, job distribution and outputs of the national restoration supply chain. At the beginning of 2020, 4713 temporary and 3510 permanent jobs were created, nearly 60% of which were generated by organizations specialized in restoration, mainly from the non‐profit (48%) and private (37%) sectors. Restoration jobs were concentrated in organizations working in one (58%) or two (28%) biomes, and the vast majority were in the Atlantic Forest (85%). Similarly, most restoration jobs were concentrated in the southeast region (61%), with one‐third in the state of São Paulo. This geographical distribution was more strongly associated with the states' GDP than with the legal deficit of native vegetation area. Nearly 20% of the restoration jobs were terminated during the COVID‐19 pandemic in 2020. We estimate that restoration activities can generate 0.42 jobs per hectare undergoing restoration, which could potentially create 1.0–2.5 million direct jobs through the implementation of Brazil's target of restoring 12 million hectares. We conclude by reinforcing the value of ecosystem restoration in promoting economic development and job creation, which can be crucial to promote countries' effective engagement in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. We also highlight the critical role of grassroots organizations to maximize restoration opportunities for socioeconomic development during the post‐pandemic economic recovery. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

A growing number of initiatives at global, regional and national scales propose to plant millions, billions or even trillions of trees as a simple solution to resolve complex environmental problems. However, tree planting is much more complicated than it seems. We summarize the multifaceted decision‐making process needed and offer guidelines to increase the success of the proposed ambitious efforts to increase tree cover world‐wide. Given the varied definitions of and motivations for tree planting, it is critical that stakeholders work together to clearly define the biophysical and socioeconomic goals of each project. Then a series of questions must be addressed about where and how (e.g. planting trees vs. allowing for natural forest regrowth) to most effectively achieve these goals and minimize unintended negative consequences, as well as how, when and by whom success of efforts will be evaluated. Key guidelines to successfully increase tree cover include: (a) first addressing the underlying drivers of deforestation; (b) integrating decision‐making across scales from local to global; (c) tailoring tree planting strategies to clearly stated project goals and planning, adaptively managing and evaluating success over a sufficiently long timeframe; (d) focusing on the forest ecosystem as a whole, and not just the trees; (e) coordinating different land uses and (f) involving stakeholders at all stages of the planning process. Synthesis and applications. Tree planting, along with other strategies to increase tree cover in appropriate locations and contexts, can make a valuable contribution to ensuring the ecological and social well‐being of our planet in coming decades, but only if these efforts are considered as one component of multifaceted solutions to complex environmental problems and are carefully planned, implemented and monitored over a sufficiently long time‐scale with stakeholder engagement and broader consideration of socio‐ecological complexities.

Abstract The central motivation to restore ecosystems at a planetary scale has been to reverse degradation and provide multiple environmental benefits, but key global players like governments may be more interested in social outcomes from undertaking restoration, such as job creation. Assessing the job opportunities stemming from ongoing restoration programmes can leverage additional investments for their implementation and support their long‐term maintenance. Here, we aimed to understand and quantify current and potential ecosystem restoration jobs in Brazil, based on a widely distributed online survey performed in 2020 and led by the main restoration networks in the country. We explored the structure, job distribution and outputs of the national restoration supply chain. At the beginning of 2020, 4713 temporary and 3510 permanent jobs were created, nearly 60% of which were generated by organizations specialized in restoration, mainly from the non‐profit (48%) and private (37%) sectors. Restoration jobs were concentrated in organizations working in one (58%) or two (28%) biomes, and the vast majority were in the Atlantic Forest (85%). Similarly, most restoration jobs were concentrated in the southeast region (61%), with one‐third in the state of São Paulo. This geographical distribution was more strongly associated with the states' GDP than with the legal deficit of native vegetation area. Nearly 20% of the restoration jobs were terminated during the COVID‐19 pandemic in 2020. We estimate that restoration activities can generate 0.42 jobs per hectare undergoing restoration, which could potentially create 1.0–2.5 million direct jobs through the implementation of Brazil's target of restoring 12 million hectares. We conclude by reinforcing the value of ecosystem restoration in promoting economic development and job creation, which can be crucial to promote countries' effective engagement in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. We also highlight the critical role of grassroots organizations to maximize restoration opportunities for socioeconomic development during the post‐pandemic economic recovery. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR) is considered worldwide as a powerful approach to recover ecological functionality and to improve human well-being in degraded and deforested landscapes. The literature produced by FLR programs could be a valuable tool to understand how they align with the existing principles of FLR. We conducted a systematic qualitative review to identify the main FLR concepts and definitions adopted in the literature from 1980 to 2017 and the underlying actions commonly suggested to enable FLR implementation. We identified three domains and 12 main associated principles—(i) Project management and governance domain contains five principles: (a) Landscape scale, (b) Prioritization, (c) Legal and normative compliance, (d) Participation, (e) Adaptive management; (ii) Human aspect domain with four principles: (a) Enhance livelihoods, (b) Inclusiveness and equity, (c) Economic diversification, (d) Capacity building; (iii) Ecological Aspects domain with three principles: (a) Biodiversity conservation, (b) Landscape heterogeneity and connectivity, (c) Provision of ecosystem goods and services. Our results showcase variations in FLR principles and how they are linked with practice, especially regarding the lack of social aspects in FLR projects. Finally, we provide a starting point for future tools aiming to improve guidance frameworks for FLR.

Alternative methods to control invasive fodder grasses are necessary to reduce the use of herbicides in forest restoration, which has been carried out primarily in riparian zones. We sought to investigate if inter-row cultivation of crotalaria (Crotalaria breviflora DC) or pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata Duschene ex. Poir) with native tree species is an efficient strategy to control invasive fodder grasses in restoration plantings. We tested five treatments in a randomized block design, namely (1) control of brachiaria grass (Urochloa decumbens (Stapf.) Webster) with glyphosate in the implementation and post-planting grass control of the reforestation, (2 and 3) glyphosate use in the implementation and inter-row sowing of crotalaria (2) or pumpkin (3), and control of brachiaria by mowing in the post-planting phase, (4 and 5) mowing in the implementation and inter-row sowing of crotalaria (4) or pumpkin (5), and control of brachiaria by mowing in the post-planting phase. Post-planting grass control was carried out four and nine months after tree seedling planting. Throughout 13 months, we evaluated the percentage of ground cover by brachiaria grass, pumpkin production, and native tree seedling mortality, height and crown cover. The exclusive use of glyphosate, without inter-row sowing of pumpkin or crotalaria showed the most favorable results for controlling brachiaria grass and, consequently, for tree seedling development. Hence, inter-row cultivation of green manure or short-lived crop species is not enough to control invasive grasses in restoration plantings, and complementary weeding is necessary to reduce the highly competitive potential of C4 grasses for supporting native species seedlings growth.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a sensibilidade de espécies nativas usadas em recuperação de áreas degradadas aos herbicidas setoxidim, isoxaflutol e bentazon. As espécies estudadas foram Senna multijuga, Guazuma ulmifolia e Croton urucurana. Os tratamentos de herbicida consistiram de uma testemunha (sem aplicação) e aplicação de um quarto, metade, uma vez, duas vezes e quatro vezes a dose recomendada. As doses recomendadas são 184 g ha-1 de setoxidim, 37,5 g ha-1 de isoxaflutol e 720 g ha-1 de bentazon. Avaliaram-se os sintomas de fitotoxicidade, crescimento em altura, acréscimo no número de folhas e massa de matéria seca de folhas. Em outros experimentos, as doses recomendadas dos mesmos herbicidas foram aplicadas em outras 22 espécies arbóreas nativas, nas quais avaliou-se a massa de matéria seca de folhas. O delineamento experimental dos experimentos foi o inteiramente casualizado, com quatro repetições. Cada parcela experimental se constituiu de uma muda em estádio inicial de desenvolvimento. Os herbicidas não provocaram a morte das mudas, embora todas tenham apresentado sintomas de fitotoxicidade. A aplicação de isoxaflutol reduziu a massa de matéria seca das folhas em 20% das espécies, a aplicação de bentazon, em uma espécie, e a aplicação de setoxidim não reduziu a massa de matéria seca das folhas de nenhuma espécie.The objective of this work was to evaluate the sensitivity of native tree species used in the recovery of degraded land to the herbicides sethoxydim, isoxaflutole and bentazon. The species studied were Senna multijuga, Guazuma ulmifolia and Croton urucurana, and the treatment applied comprised one control sample (no herbicides were applied) and the application of the herbicides at one fourth, half, one, two and fourfold the recommended dose (sethoxydim: 184 g ha-1, isoxaflutole: 37.5 g ha-1, bentazon: 720 g ha-1). Phytotoxicity symptoms, growth in length, increase in leaf number, and leaf dry mass were evaluated. In another experiments, the recommended doses of the same herbicides were applied to other 22 native tree species, for which the leaf dry mass was evaluated. The experiments were carried out in completely randomized design with four replicates. Each experimental plot comprised one sapling in initial developmental stage. The herbicides did not cause saplings death, even though all of them showed phytotoxicity symptoms. Herbicide application reduced the leaf dry mass as follows: isoxaflutole, 20% of the species; bentazon, one of the species; and sethoxydim did not reduce leaf dry mass in any of the species.

Competition with invasive grasses is one of the most important drivers of tree planting failures, especially in tropical forests. A widely disseminated weeding approach has been glyphosate spraying, the most used herbicide globally in forestry and ecosystem restoration. However, glyphosate use in restoration is highly controversial and requires further studies to elucidate its effects on restoration processes and the environment. We evaluated the use of glyphosate in riparian forest restoration and its impacts on tree planting costs, weed control efficiency, planted seedling performance, herbaceous and woody species regeneration, soil bacteria, and environmental contamination, using mowing treatments as a reference and based on a controlled experiment established in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Glyphosate spraying reduced by one‐half and one‐third the accumulated aboveground biomass of, respectively, weeds in general and of the invasive grass Urochloa decumbens compared to mowing treatments, and it reduced the cost by half. The performance of planted tree seedlings was markedly favored by glyphosate spraying compared to mowing treatments, as expressed by improved seedling height (~twice higher), crown area (~5× higher), and basal area (~5× higher); the regeneration of both native woody and ruderal herbaceous plants were also enhanced. Neither glyphosate nor its metabolite Aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) residues were detected in either water runoff or soil samples, but they were found at relatively high concentrations in the runoff sediments (from 1.32 to 24.75 mg/kg for glyphosate and from 1.75 to 76.13 mg/kg for AMPA). Soil bacteria communities differed before and after glyphosate spraying in comparison to mowing plots (without glyphosate). Glyphosate spraying was far more cost effective than mowing for controlling U. decumbens and greatly improved the performance of planted tree seedlings and natural regeneration, while not leaving residues in soil and water. However, the changes in the structure of bacterial communities and high concentration of glyphosate and AMPA residues in runoff sediments highlight the need for caution when using this herbicide in riparian buffers. We present alternatives for reducing glyphosate use and minimizing its risks in tree planting initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Potential of a drone-borne lidar system to assess the outcomes of a mixed-species restoration plantation experiment. • Brazil's Atlantic Forest, with 20 native tree species, combining two levels of planting density and two management levels. • We elaborate an AGB equation to use the drone-borne lidar for monitoring other restoration plantations in the region. • Leaf area density profile (lidar-derived) also differed among silvicultural treatments. • Drone-borne lidar system can effectively monitor forest restoration plantations. We are in an unprecedented moment for promoting forest restoration globally, with international and regional pledges to restore at least 350 million hectares by 2030. To achieve these ambitious goals, it is necessary to go beyond traditional plot-scale assessments and develop cost-effective technologies that can monitor the structure and function of restored forests at much broader scales. Lidar remote sensing in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms can be an agile and autonomous method for monitoring forest restoration projects, especially under conditions when information updates are frequently needed in relatively small areas or, when using an airplane-borne lidar system may be not financially viable. Here, we explored the potential of an UAV-borne lidar system to assess the outcomes of a mixed-species restoration plantation experiment, designed to maximize aboveground biomass (AGB) accumulation. The experiment was established in Brazil's Atlantic Forest, with 20 native tree species, by combining two levels of planting density and two management levels, totaling four treatment combinations and one control (plots left over for natural regeneration). We analyzed three structural variables from lidar data (canopy height, gap fraction and leaf area index) and one from field inventory data (AGB). Structural differences between the treatments and the control plots were reliably distinguished by the UAV-borne lidar system. AGB was strongly correlated with canopy height, allowing us to elaborate a predictive equation to use the UAV-borne lidar system for monitoring structural features in other restoration plantations in the region. UAV-borne lidar systems showed enormous potential for monitoring relatively broad-scale (thousands of hectares) forest restoration projects, providing an important tool to aid decision making and accountability in forest landscape restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Este trabalho objetivou verificar a viabilidade da semeadura direta de lianas no sub-bosque de floresta plantada em restauração. Para isso, sementes das espécies Phanera sp., Macfadyena unguis-cati (L.) A.H. Gentry and Peltastes peltatus (Vell.) Woodson, de lianas foram submetidas a testes de germinação com e sem luz, e com e sem alternância de temperatura. Posteriormente, essas espécies foram semeadas sob a copa de quatro espécies arbóreas em uma Floresta Estacional Semidecidual em restauração no Município de Iracemápolis, SP, Brasil. Em laboratório, apenas Macfadyena unguis-cati apresentou característica de fotoblastismo positivo. As outras espécies não tiveram germinação limitada pela ausência de luz e alternância de temperatura. No sub-bosque, Peltastes peltatus não emergiu; as outras duas espécies não tiveram a emergência alterada em função das espécies arbóreas do dossel sob as quais foram semeadas. Esses resultados sugerem que, apesar da baixa taxa de emergência, é possível o enriquecimento de florestas em processo de restauração a partir da semeadura direta de algumas espécies de lianas.

Despite the high diversity of trees in the tropics, very few native species have been used in plantations. In a scenario of high international demand for nature conservation, ecological restoration and for the provision of forest products, mixed species forestry in the tropics emerges as a promising option. In this study, we examine three large experiments in the Atlantic Forest region of Brazil that combine early Eucalyptus wood production with a high diversity (23–30 species) of native tree species. We tested the following hypotheses: (1) Eucalyptus growth and survival is higher in mixed plantations than in monocultures, while that of native species is lower when intercropped with Eucalyptus ; (2) The diameter of target native trees is influenced by the size and by the identity of neighboring trees; (3) The negative effect of competition from Eucalyptus on native species is directly related to their growth rate. We compared mixtures of Eucalyptus and a high diversity of native tree species with Eucalyptus monocultures and with plots containing only native species, replacing Eucalyptus by ten native species. To test our hypotheses, we examined inventory data considering the stand- and the tree-levels. We calculated survival rate, diameter and height growth and basal area of whole stands and groups of species. We also used a neighborhood index analysis to separate the effect of total competition (i.e. stand density) and the influence of groups of species (intra- and inter-specific competition). The Eucalyptus trees in high diversity mixtures grew larger and yielded nearly 75% of the basal area produced by Eucalyptus monocultures even though this genus accounted for only 50% of seedlings in the mixtures. In the mixtures, Eucalyptus negatively affected the growth of native species proportionate to the native species’ growth rate. With some exceptions, the mixed plantations had no overall negative effect on tree survival or height growth. We conclude that mixtures of Eucalyptus and a high diversity of native tree species are feasible and represent a potential alternative for establishing multipurpose plantations, especially in the context of forest and landscape restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mixed tree plantings and natural regeneration are the main restoration approaches for recovering tropical forests worldwide. Despite substantial differences in implementation costs between these methods, little is known regarding how they differ in terms of ecological outcomes, which is key information for guiding decision making and cost‐effective restoration planning. Here, we compared the early ecological outcomes of natural regeneration and tree plantations for restoring the Brazilian Atlantic Forest in agricultural landscapes. We assessed and compared vegetation structure and composition in young (7–20 yr old) mixed tree plantings (PL), second‐growth tropical forests established on former pastures (SGp), on former Eucalyptus spp. plantations (SGe), and in old‐growth reference forests (Ref). We sampled trees with diameter at breast height (DBH) 1–5 cm (saplings) and trees at DBH > 5 cm (trees) in a total of 32 20 × 45 m plots established in these landscapes. Overall, the ecological outcomes of natural regeneration and restoration plantations were markedly different. SGe forests showed higher abundance of large (DBH > 20 cm) nonnative species, of which 98% were resprouting Eucalyptus trees, than SGp and PL, and higher total aboveground biomass; however, aboveground biomass of native species was higher in PL than in SGe. PL forests had lower abundance of native saplings and lianas than both naturally established second‐growth forests, and lower proportion of animal dispersed saplings than SGe, probably due to higher isolation from native forest remnants. Rarefied species richness of trees was lower in SGp, intermediate in SGe and Ref and higher in PL, whereas rarefied species richness of saplings was higher in SG than in Ref. Species composition differed considerably among regeneration types. Although these forests are inevitably bound to specific landscape contexts and may present varying outcomes as they develop through longer time frames, the ecological particularities of forests established through different restoration approaches indicate that naturally established forests may not show similar outcomes to mixed tree plantings. The results of this study underscore the importance that restoration decisions need to be based on more robust expectations of outcomes that allow for a better analysis of the cost‐effectiveness of different restoration approaches before scaling‐up forest restoration in the tropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the major strategies used to prevent extinction of forest species is restoration of previously depleted areas. In this paper, we investigate the ability of forest restoration to produce tree populations with high genetic diversity in previously deforested areas. We used nine SSR markers to genotype populations of two forest restorations and two areas of natural remnants. There were no significant differences between natural forest remnants and restored forests with respect to inbreeding levels ( f  = 0.20) or genetic diversity, as assessed by levels of heterozygosity (H S  ∼ 0.31–0.43) and allelic richness (2.41–2.94). Instead, we found evidence of gene flow from neighbouring woods to restored forests. Although some populations may show a lower number of private alleles, this would be an expected result of a bottleneck effect in reduced populations such as those in forest restorations. Although the loss of these low frequency alleles has no major consequences for genetic diversity, the impact on population fitness in a scenario of environmental change is unpredictable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Significant effort is being devoted to the expansion of payments for watershed services (PWS) programs at national, regional, and local scales. This expansion faces logistical challenges, in particular identifying appropriate incentives and enrollment processes to provide additional ecosystem services under budget constraints. In Brazil, PWS programs have mostly occurred at the local level, using formulaic contracts to ensure landowners are compensated for provision of specific types and quantities of ecosystem services. However, it is unclear how these financial incentives will function as programs expand to new areas, as pilot programs report high recruitment costs. Using as an example the Cantareira System, an important drinking water supply for the São Paulo metropolitan area, we review PWS incentives in the context of factors that affect farmer land use decisions. We base our research on a review of policies affecting PWS in Brazil, existing PWS in the Cantareira region, and drivers affecting land use and technology adoption by cattle ranchers, drawing from the literature and interviews with farmers and agronomists in the study region. While financial incentives (payments) account for both the value of ecosystem services and opportunity costs of shifting pasture production to forest, several economic, social, political, and biophysical factors will likely affect landowners’ decisions to enroll in PWS. This suggests that, while PWS programs may lead to the provision of additional ecosystem services, the complexity of contracts and diversity of local conditions create challenges to broad deployment in the absence of significant outreach efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing acceptance of payments for ecosystem services (PES) programs as environmental policy alternatives suggests a clear need for research on PES implementation, both to validate theoretical frameworks and improve approaches for existing and future programs. We provide a history of the 10-year old Conservador das Águas program in Extrema, a city in Minas Gerais located within the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. To date, the program has coordinated restoration activities that have increased native forest cover in 60% in targeted sub-watershed through contracts with 53 landowners, and has established long-term collaborations among government agencies, civil society, and landowners. Evaluation of the institutional elements of the program using an institutional framework reveals lessons that are relevant for future projects. We find that national legislation and local government organizations have played key roles in enabling and maintaining program activities. Further, strategic decisions by program staff, including targeting important regions and actors within the municipality, the use of Forest Code mandates as an incentive for participation, and use of municipal legislation to secure funding, were critical to the program's success. We use an institutional framework to provide a review of the program, including its legal context, actors, and financial instruments, for those engaged in establishing and sustaining similar programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phylogenetic ecology complements trait-based analysis on community assembly by considering that species are not independent units but are related to each other by their evolutionary history. Phylogenetic patterns clustered when there are more close relatives than expected by chance or overdispersed with less close relatives than expected. Patterns among species in a community indicate underlying biotic and abiotic processes acting on species functional traits. However, phylogenetic ecology has seldom been applied to forest restoration. We used floristic and abundance data from six forest restoration sites of different ages and four old-growth reference forests in the Brazilian Atlantic forest to evaluate similarities in phylogenetic patterns between restoration and reference forests as a measure of restoration success. The presence of an initial tree canopy in restoration forests conducted by planting species increases seed dispersal. Nevertheless, we expected random phylogenetic patterns early in restoration due to dispersal limitation in a highly fragmented landscape. As time since planting increases and in reference forests, we expected less of an effect of dispersal on community composition and more of an effect of negative biotic interactions among close relatives to lead to overdispersed patterns. We did not find a clear trajectory showing that restoration sites would resemble the phylogenetic patterns of reference sites with age since planting. We found significant clustering patterns in two sites, the oldest restoration site and one reference forest. The other reference forests showed, non-significant yet clustering tendencies. The functional traits studied were less conserved than expected by chance, therefore, we cannot relate clustering to be solely the result of environmental filters leading to the presence of close relatives with similar habitat requirements. The presence of closely related species in the Meliaceae family in reference forests and in the oldest restoration site, which was next to a forest remnant, points toward dispersal as the main factor driving phylogenetic patterns in the sites studied. Despite the use of a high number of planted species, differences in the composition of planted species among sites also affected the observed phylogenetic structure. We believe that phylogenetic ecology complements floristic studies by providing information on trait conservatism and shedding light on community assembly processes that affect the successional trajectory of restoration forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We simulated, using LandClim, the effects of land use intensity in tropical forest landscapes. • AGB accumulation and diversity were negatively correlated with land use intensity. • Landscape configuration was an important predictor of AGB and tree diversity changes. • Forest regrowth potential was higher in pasture landscapes than in sugarcane landscapes. • Time was an important factor of AGB and diversity predictions. Natural forest regrowth is considered the most cost-effective strategy to promote large-scale forest restoration, but regrowth trajectories and their consequences for nature and people can be highly variable. This uncertainty may obstruct devoting land, time and resources in promoting this restoration approach. Process-based models allow to simulate forest regrowth under different scenarios and may thus support decision making to manage areas in ways that maximize forest restoration based on natural forest regrowth. In the present study, we used the process-based model LandClim to assess the following questions:1) How does land use intensity affect forest growth, aboveground biomass (AGB) and tree species diversity in agricultural landscapes in the long term? 2) How do different land use configurations affect the structure and expansion of second-growth forests? We based our study on six 4 × 4 km agricultural landscapes, dominated by pastures and sugarcane, in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest region. We parameterized and validated LandClim for the study region by comparing model outputs with published estimates and information from field data collected across the six landscapes. We then simulated natural forest regrowth under different land use intensities in the six landscapes and analyzed how land use intensity and landscape configuration affect AGB, tree species diversity and the spatial dynamics of second-growth forests. Our results showed negative effects of increased land use intensity on landscape biomass accumulation due to limited forest cover expansion. Landscapes dominated by sugarcane had lower forest regrowth potential than pasture-dominated landscapes due to lower likelihood of abandonment, and limited rates of seed availability and seedling growth. Land use intensity and landscape configuration were also important factors for tree diversity changes. However, temporal patterns differed, and while AGB reached a plateau after 100–150 years, tree diversity peaked between 30 and 70 years. Thus, the effects of land use intensity and landscape configuration on forest AGB and tree diversity take decades to be fully expressed, highlighting the importance of a long-term commitment in restoration projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Scaling-up restoration implies increasing the number and average size of projects. [•] Restoration demands: technology, training, clear laws and economic instruments. [•] Restoration needs a broad network of stakeholders in both public and private forums. [•] Restoration involves both economic and social investments over a long period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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• Our assessment suggests that restored practices conducted 25 years ago developed a well-structured population of Casearia sylvestris in an under forest restoration process. • Contrary to what one could suppose, the proportion of polymorphic loci was higher in the restored area compared to the remnants. • Evidence for different seedling origins established in the restored area and the genetic flow with nearby forest fragments has allowed the success of the monitored restoration area. The restoration projects in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest have shown more concern about genetic variability in floristic diversity in the last years. To create effective conservation policies, we need extensive knowledge on structures and patterns of genetic variation between natural populations and within them. We characterized the genetic population of Casearia sylvestris Swartz in an area under forest restoration processes (Iracemápolis, São Paulo) established between 1988 and 1990, and compared it to a natural remnant of semi-deciduous seasonal forest (Caetetus, São Paulo). The distance between locations is ∼ 210 km. One hundred twenty-eight adult plants were collected, 64 individuals in the native forest remnant and 64 in the restored fragment. The genetic data were generated by the screening of six AFLP primers combinations with a total of 296 loci for each population. The forest restoration site presented overall higher levels of genetic diversity compared to the natural remnant area. The most likely number of genetic clusters found was three (K = 3). The genetic variation was higher within populations, either in the natural or restored site, than between populations. Farther, 25 candidate outlier loci were selected and separated into two groups giving support to future research with species adaptation in these different environments. Our results show that evaluation of restored tree populations of C. sylvestris is crucial to monitoring long-term restoration programs and understand if they persist over time. We hope that our results aim at species management and the establishment of others restoration projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Latin American countries have legal frameworks in place to provide structure to FLR. • Stakeholders perceive legal frameworks as clear but hindered by weak implementation. • Successful FLR requires institutional capacity and funding mechanism improvements. • Stakeholder perception differences highlight cross-sector communication is key. • Stakeholders perceive cross-sector FLR governance platforms positively. Legal frameworks could play a key role in enabling countries to meet their ambitious forest landscape restoration (FLR) targets. In this paper, we examine the perceptions of different types of stakeholders from 17 Latin American countries on aspects of forestry and environmental legal frameworks that enable or hamper FLR interventions at the national level. We first reviewed general, environmental, social and financial aspects of existing legal frameworks in order to provide the basis for a mixed qualitative - quantitative analysis of perceptions. The analysis combines information from semi-structured interviews and a Likert-scale questionnaire given to relevant stakeholders involved in implementing FLR interventions in the countries assessed. We interviewed stakeholders from government, academia, national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and local private and non-governmental organizations. We found that most legal frameworks are in the jurisdiction of either the agriculture or the environmental sectors. As a whole, we did not find evidence of the kind of legal frameworks articulation needed to enable the coordinated deployment of various forest FLR interventions across landscapes. We found efforts in Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Mexico to improve cross-sectorial communication and legislation, and to develop innovative financial mechanisms to support FLR interventions. In general, interviewees had a positive perception of the content of legal frameworks in their countries; however, they highlighted weak implementation capacities, insufficient funding, sectorial and social conflicts, and lack of transparency as key impediments for policy implementation. Academic and NGO stakeholders perceived the content of the legal frameworks more negatively, whereas government officials were more positive. Different perceptions and the prevalence of cross-sectorial conflicts highlight the importance of efforts aimed at improving governance mechanisms and policy integration in the region. In addition, a targeted effort is needed to develop long-term, funding options that are public, private or mixed, and to disseminate information on the importance of FLR interventions for national economies and human well-being. We consider our results as a preliminary overview of the legal environment for FLR implementation in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Riparian buffers smaller than 8 m can act as a source of sediments to streams. • Forests are the best land use in riparian zones to protect streams from sediments. • The greater the forest buffer the greater the protection of streams. • BMP adoption at watershed scale is the best strategy for watershed services supply. • Compliance with NVPL will not guarantee watershed services supply in Brazil. In Brazil, the Forest Code requires landholders to maintain fixed-width buffers of native vegetation along watercourses – legally called Areas of Permanent Preservation (APPs). In 2012, agricultural activities started to be partially allowed in APPs, but only if best management practices on soil and water conservation are adopted and if a narrow buffer strip with native vegetation is restored adjacently to the watercourse. In this paper, we present a modeling framework to investigate the capacity of legal compliant APPs to supply watershed services (erosion control and stream bank stabilization) in a 2,200 ha watershed in São Paulo State, Brazil. Our results suggest that the narrower the riparian buffer the lower the control of soil erosion dynamic within APPs, and that riparian buffers smaller than 8 m can act as a source of sediments to streams. The adoption of best management practices can contribute to controlling soil erosion within APPs but the presence of native forests in the first 15 m is necessary to guarantee equivalent protection to streams when compared to APPs completely covered by forests. Moreover, we observed that forest restoration within APPs helped to reduce the average soil loss of the watershed by only 20 %, compared to a reduction of 55 % when best practices are implemented in all watershed agricultural areas. We conclude that (i) the reduced requirements for APP restoration may contribute to stream sedimentation, which will likely affect the supply of watershed services by stream ecosystems; (ii) the implementation of best management practices in APPs will not have the same effect as native forests to reduce stream sedimentation; and (iii) the adoption of best management practices in all agricultural production areas – and not only within APPs as required by law – is the best strategy to promote the supply of watershed services to society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global initiatives such as the Aichi Targets and Bonn Challenge have inspired governments to pledge to restore millions of hectares of degraded lands. Many of these calls to action and policy frameworks identify capacity development as important for implementing and scaling-up restoration activities to meet global targets. However, there is little explanation about what capacity development actually involves. How is capacity development approached in the context of restoration? What makes it more or less effective? This article aims to help fill that gap by identifying four components of what an effective approach to capacity development might look like, drawing upon a number of examples in practice. We believe that capacity development initiatives can more effectively support stakeholders to address the complex nature of forest landscape restoration (FLR) if they include the following four components: (a) activities tailored to stakeholder needs and context, (b) knowledge and applied experience from diverse sources and disciplines, (c) skill sets for selecting among a suite of restoration interventions, and (d) inclusion of multiple subjects and skill sets (e.g., social, financial, legal, etc.) in addition to technical or ecological themes. As exemplified by the organizations discussed in this article, these four elements of capacity development can help to support restoration professionals and other stakeholders to think holistically, moving from the scale of an individual farm or plot to the landscape scale where they must address more diverse stakeholder interests, societal trade-offs, and socioecological heterogeneity. This more holistic approach to FLR planning and implementation is needed to more effectively accomplish ambitious FLR targets worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Riparian buffers as a restoration focal point may help to address relationships between bottom-up and top-down approaches. • Riparian buffers may act as a useful bridge to integrate local and regional restoration initiatives. • Riparian buffers and other landscape connectors may be useful to facilitate farmer engagement in forest restoration. • Prioritizing riparian buffers may foster participation and build consensus among stakeholders. The large-scale forest restoration pledges made by many Latin American countries are expected to be mostly implemented in rural areas, where competition for land with agriculture and lack of farmer engagement may prevent forest expansion. Planning for forest restoration actions must combine policy-driven approaches (top-down) that set national and regional targets, with site-specific objectives based on the socio-political context and local needs (bottom-up). Here we present five case studies from projects in Latin America that were conducted in different social and legal contexts, but shared the use of riparian-forest buffers as a focal point for forest restoration in rural landscapes. These cases illustrate how focusing on riparian buffers may help bridge top-down and bottom-up approaches when planning forest restoration in rural landscapes of Latin America. In some cases, restoration actions were motivated by economic incentives and legal compliance whereas in others they were driven by societal demands. We propose that riparian forest buffers deserve special consideration as a suitable place to begin bridging the gap between national-scale restoration commitments and local-scale use and production needs, while facilitating the participation of all stakeholders in both the planning and implementation processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maximizing initial aboveground woody biomass (AGB) accumulation in order to obtain early payments for carbon stocking is essential for the financial viability of reforestation programs fostered by climate mitigation efforts. Intensive silviculture, i.e., silviculture traditionally used in commercial forestry to maximize productivity and gains, has recently been advocated as a promising approach to enhance AGB accumulation in restoration plantations. However, this approach may hamper natural forest regeneration and ecological succession due to high competition between colonizing plants and planted trees. We investigated the impacts of different silvicultural treatments applied to restoration plantations with 20 native tree species on AGB accumulation and spontaneous regeneration of native woody species in an experiment set up in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. Intensive silviculture demonstrated a remarkable potential to enhance AGB accumulation in restoration plantations by increasing up to three times the AGB of tree stands (from ~25 to 75 Mg/ha in the 12th year). Intensive fertilization/weed control enhanced AGB accumulation, while higher tree density and the proportion of pioneers did not have a significant effect on AGB over the time. In spite of higher costs (cost increase of 13–19%), the cost‐effectiveness for AGB accumulation of intensive silviculture was comparable to that of traditional silviculture applied to restoration (US$50–100/Mg AGB for 3 × 2 m spacing). Contrary to our expectations, we did not find a trade‐off between AGB accumulation by planted trees and the spontaneous regeneration of tree species, since intensive silviculture enhanced the regeneration of both planted (total of 12 species) and colonizing woody species (total of 30 species) in the plantation understory. Specifically, a strong association was found between AGB stocks and the abundance and richness of colonizing species, a vast majority of which (90% of species and 95% of individuals) were dispersed by animals. We report a case of positive correlation between AGB stocking and woody species regeneration in the restoration of the Atlantic Forest. Fostering the establishment and maintenance of restoration tree plantations can, in some cases, be a win‐win strategy for climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation in human‐modified tropical landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enrichment planting is a strategy to increase tree diversity and reintroduce desirable species in restored forests, mainly in fragmented landscapes. However, the conditions that improve the performance of enrichment planted seedlings are not yet fully known. Here, we evaluate the role that overstory taxonomic diversity and mean overstory to seedling phylogenetic distance have as predictors of early performance of native tree seedlings planted beneath mixed-species restoration plantations in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. By applying a phylogenetic approach, our study responds to recent calls for testing the application of such tools in restoration. We planted 12 mid- to late-successional species beneath a mixed-species restoration plantation with three nested tree diversity levels of 19, 58, and 107 species and estimated the mean phylogenetic distance between each seedling species and the overstory community. Seedling performance was not significantly affected by overstory diversity or mean phylogenetic distance. Overall good performance of the seedlings shows that enrichment planting beneath a mixed-species overstory can be successful even under variations in overstory species number and phylogenetic distance. However, significant species-specific differences in performance highlight the importance of an informed selection of which species to enrich plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Restoration projects designed to promote one ecosystem service may have synergistic benefits to other services. Therefore, bundling them can be an effective way to maximize the return to the investments in programs of payments for ecosystem services (PES). Here, we investigated the additional gain of restoration actions—which were implemented as part of a PES program to protect a key watershed for water supply—on increasing functional landscape connectivity in the Atlantic Forest region of southeastern Brazil. Using a landscape ecology approach, we estimated the amount of forest cover before (2006) and after (2012) restoration activities by the PES program and changes in structural and functional landscape connectivity for birds with varying gap-crossing capabilities. Forest cover increased from 42.5 to 86.1 ha after the implementation of restoration projects by the PES program. In the simulated scenarios of landscape connectivity, the mean patch size of functionally connected forest increased by 1,034%, 392%, 248%, and 94% for species with gap-crossing capabilities of 0, 20, 40, and 60 m, respectively. Our results highlight the potential for incorporating biodiversity conservation objectives into PES projects primarily designed to enhance water-related ecosystem services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental legislation has fostered ecological restoration programs worldwide, but few studies have reported the outcomes for landscape connectivity. Here, we investigated the contribution of forest restoration programs planned to comply with the Brazilian Forest Code for increasing forest cover and landscape connectivity in agricultural landscapes of southeastern Brazil. We gathered data for 85 landscapes and 2,408 rural properties, totalizing 748,601 ha of farmlands within the Atlantic Forest biome and its ecotone with Cerrado, two global hotspots for biodiversity conservation. Together, rural properties account for 50,783 ha of native vegetation deficit found on Areas of Permanent Protection (APPs). On the basis of this, we performed a landscape connectivity analysis by simulating scenarios in accordance with the requirements of the legislation for two sugarcane mills that are already under ongoing restoration efforts. We evaluated the relative changes promoted by restoring all deforested riparian buffers within APPs, as determined by the Forest Code. The simulation of restoration at the property-level resulted in the reconnection of isolated forest patches, reducing their number in the landscape and increasing their overall and core size. At the sugarcane mill level, the restoration of riparian forests increased the index of connectivity. Despite these benefits, final forest cover (remnant plus restored forests) would still be reduced (<20%—the minimum forest cover on the private land to comply with the environmental law) in most landscapes and insufficient to conserve species sensitive to forest fragmentation. The mandatory restoration of riparian buffers plays a relevant role for improving landscape connectivity in human-modified tropical landscapes, but this strategy shall be complemented by other approaches to increase forest cover and landscape connectivity to mitigate the enormous species extinction debt accumulated for tropical forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]