In 2009, the State of Acre, Brazil, approved a law creating an ambitious Environmental Service Incentive System known as "SISA” . The first program under development within SISA (called ISA-C ) will provide incentives for reducing emissions of carbon to the atmosphere from deforestation and forest degradation and is on trajectory to become one of the most advanced jurisdiction-wide REDD+ programs in the world. ISA-C is being designed to deliver robust GHG emissions reductions into a diversity of “pay-for-performance” compensation systems, ranging from regulated cap-and-trade governmental programs to large-scale private sector initiatives. These emissions reductions will flow from a new model of rural development that is already lowering emissions from deforestation and forest degradation as it improves the livelihoods of forest-dependent communities, maintains and restores biodiversity, soils, and water resources, and seeks greater productivity and market opportunities for its farm and livestock sectors. This report summarizes recent research done to provide information and recommendations for strengthening the ISA-C.