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A new report co-authored by RRI and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, adds to the growing body of evidence that Indigenous Peoples and local communities are the most efficient forest managers. But the rise of “fortress conservation” approaches—those grounded in a historical concept of protected areas as pristine, untouched lands—are forcing local peoples from their homes, hurting people and forests alike.
“This new research finds that Indigenous Peoples face significant human rights abuses in the world’s protected areas, part of the disturbing uptick of criminalization and even extrajudicial killings that I have observed in my role as Special Rapporteur,” said Tauli-Corpuz. “This research also shows that Indigenous Peoples and local communities are investing substantially in conserving their forests—up to $US1.71 billion in the developing world. They are achieving at least equal conservation results with a fraction of the budget of protected areas, making investment in Indigenous Peoples themselves the most efficient means of protecting forests.”
Key takeaways:
- The problem of overlap. There is significant overlap between protected areas and territories belonging to Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and conservation policies often override commitments to indigenous rights. A case study on Panama’s Darien National Park demonstrates that the government has failed to recognize a number of Indigenous Peoples’ lands because of their proximity to the park.
- Parks over people. Protectionist conservation can have devastating effects on communities, including displacement and loss of livelihoods. It has also led to the criminalization, and even killing, of communities for accessing their customary lands. A case study from Indonesia highlights how women—often largely responsible for food security—are particularly affected.
- We’re failing to capitalize on a proven solution. Available evidence suggests that respecting the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities is a more cost-effective approach to protecting forests, and the best solution for reducing deforestation and promoting forest sustainability. In some cases, such as in this case study on India, conservation restrictions can even harm ecosystems.
- A new approach is urgently needed. New research from WRI reveals a spike in deforestation, and tropical forest loss is at an all-time high. A new approach is needed to reach global climate goals—one that includes the world’s Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
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There's still time to make progress toward zero deforestation. Ambitious commitments have been made to reduce deforestation by 2020. While the deadline is fast approaching, companies have more collective knowledge and tools at their disposal than ever before. New spaces for private sector-civil society collaboration, encouraging pilot projects, ongoing tenure reforms, and innovative tools indicate that there is potential for the private sector to ramp up progress toward reducing deforestation and respecting community land rights.
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For communities in Nepal, Mexico’s “ejidos” model could offer lessons for how to benefit economically from forests. In late April, a delegation of newly elected Nepali government officials visited the Mexican Network of Forest Peasant Organizations (Red-Mocaf) to see how, in their own context of ongoing decentralization, they can learn from Mexico’s community forestry successes. Though Nepal has a community forestry success story of its own, several obstacles have limited communities’ access to the market of forest products. These challenges—such as restrictive regulations, complex registration processes for community forest enterprises, and the lack of secure tenure rights—were addressed during the learning exchange.
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Leaders from across the world convened in Washington, DC to discuss a key strategy for achieving global goals: recognizing the land and forest rights of indigenous and rural women. Participants hailed from 14 countries. Together, they agreed to pursue a gender justice strategy that spans the RRI Coalition and prioritizes: 1) reducing and preventing criminalization of women land rights defenders; 2) increasing economic opportunities for rural and indigenous women; 3) scaling up women’s leadership and participation in community-level governance; and 4) creating a shared “narrative” around women’s rights to community lands and forests. The group also agreed to create a Gender Justice Advisory Group to oversee implementation of the strategy. For more information, contact Silenny Ramirez at sramirez@rightsandresources.org.
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During the 13th annual meeting of MegaFlorestais, forest agency leaders from eight of the most forested countries in the world came together in northern Sweden to discuss key issues confronting forest agencies, including women’s rights and gender discrimination, communities’ rights to land and forests, climate change and the need to create a sustainable bioeconomy, and increasing political polarization worldwide. In June, the multiagency “Megaflorestais Planning Team” was awarded the Canadian Forest Service (CFS) Merit Award for Outstanding Achievement for their successful efforts to deliver last year’s Megaflorestais leaders meeting in British Columbia, Canada in October 2017.
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Secure indigenous, community, and rural women’s land rights are a solution to many global challenges. Help us spread the message far and wide.
RRI recently launched a think piece series, "Big Ideas. In Brief," a new platform for local leaders and experts. (Read the first four issues here).
Please help us spread the word and reach new readers by:
And, as always, please follow us on Twitter, on Facebook, and on LinkedIn.
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This two-part Q&A with Paul de Wit—an RRI Fellow and expert in land tenure reform—examines food and nutrition challenges in Myanmar and their relation to land rights. It highlights innovative strategies for promoting land reform in support of a more diversified food base.
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