This is a remarkable, and heretofore unprecedented, opportunity for the vigorous NGO community to join forces with principal national negotiators. The French “0.4% Initiative, Soils for Food Security and Climate” is a voluntary plan with no floor or ceiling commitments. It could become quite competitive as different nations report back in future years. It will encourage underdeveloped countries with poor soils to participate, because of its low cost and because poor soils can often demonstrate more rapid carbon sequestration and soil fertility increase than high SOC soils. Furthermore, there is an existing 46 member international organization, the Global Research Alliance for Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA), which can support implementation of the French “Initiative” in many different countries. Also the USDA gives significant support to the GRA.

Here is a link to the French .4% Initiative.

Here is a post from WanQing Zhou, Research Associate, at the Worldwatch Institute, with an explanation and discussion of the French 0.4% Initiative.