Policy options in peatland conservation and restoration: A review of the UNEP Global Peatlands Assessment and future strategy for global governance

In 2022, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Peatlands Initiative (GPI) published the first Global Peatland Assessment (GPA) examining current knowledge on the state of a newly approximated total extent (500 million hectares) of peatlands across all seven continents. The GPA launch at United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP 27 in Sharm-el-Sheikh (Egypt) was a landmark moment for collaborative efforts to provide evidence on the roles of policymakers, academic research and community-led initiatives in supporting global peatland conservation and restoration. Following an assessment of key geographic regions, and of the policy and governance in place to protect, preserve and restore national peatlands, the GPA concluded that policy and governance on peatlands in their current (2022) state offered limited scope to address international agendas without a unilateral national policy approach. This article employs a narrative review methodology to draw together findings from the GPA and information from peer reviewed and grey literature to enable a more comprehensive systematic analysis, interpretation and contextualisation of evidence towards achieving an integration of peatland policy and governance worldwide. Although no new empirical results are presented, the process reveals three consistent challenges, namely: 1. (i) contradictory and fragmented policy frameworks; (ii) insufficient and poorly structured finance for restoration; and (iii) limited inclusion of communities and rights holders. These challenges form the basis for three recommendations to guide the formulation of policy for global and national frameworks. The recommendations are: 1) a commitment to establish national policies that protect, preserve and restore peatlands and align with globally established policy; 2) to develop and provide transparent market policy and mechanisms that allow international financial investment to support gaps in national public funding for restoration, conservation and stewardship of intact and high-integrity peatlands; and 3) to develop and integrate a mechanism for public consultation on peatland conservation and restoration programmes to ensure that agency and concerns for local community, culture and economy are formally recognised at global level. We discuss the rationale for each recommendation in the context of the GPA, to demonstrate how each will contribute to ensuring sustainable peatland governance along with the protection and conservation of peatlands, as a part of future global efforts supported by the UNEP GPI.