Indigenous Peoples’ Indispensable Role in Environmental Protection

Indigenous Peoples Governance Protects Forests and Prevents Climate Change

A review of over 300 studies into the protection of forests in Indigenous Peoples territories in Latin America and the Caribbean found that maintaining Indigenous Peoples governance over the forests is among the best ways of protecting forests, which in turn helps climate change. A study of 624 households in 59 villages of the Tsimane’ Indigenous Peoples in Bolivia found that the more familiar villagers were with Indigenous Peoples ecology the better they conserved their forests. The review article also noted five ways to aid Indigenous Peoples in protecting their forests: (1) Recognizing collective territorial rights by Indigenous Peoples, (2) Compensating Indigenous Peoples for environmental services, (3) Facilitating community forest management, (4) Revitalizing Indigenous Peoples knowledge of forest management and preservation, and (5) Strengthening organizations and mechanisms for local territorial governance.

The Role of Indigenous Peoples Land Stewardship in Creating Biodiversity

Whether we call it a biodiversity crisis or a sixth extinction event, the world is currently experiencing a rapid loss of biodiversity. Some people present this crisis as resulting from humans destroying the pristine wilderness. However, research looking back over 12,000 years concludes that the vast majority of ‘wilderness’ was in fact shaped intentionally by its human inhabitants. The analysis concludes that the current biodiversity crisis is due to the displacement of the peoples and cultures whose stewardship enabled and protected sustainable biodiversity. These findings stand in contrast to recent efforts towards “fortress conservation”, which proposes removing the Indigenous Peoples inhabiting the protected ecosystems . These findings highlight the importance of protecting the peoples and cultures who have had traditional guardianship over crucial ecosystems as part of our climate change mitigation strategies.

For more information on including Indigenous Peoples in your programming, please see USAID’s Policy on Promoting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the recent Learning Document on Co-Creation with Indigenous Partners, and our Climate Change Strategy!

Do you have a study we should share for a future Facty Friday? Send an email to drg.el@usaid.gov!”