Blog Posts: indigenous people

Peruvian indigenous communities have shown themselves to be exceptional environmental and conservation leaders. Their leaders have worked for a decade to ensure a government commitment to conserve 54 million hectares of forest, as a part of the REDD+ program.

Scientists estimate that by managing the world's land more sustainably, such as by protecting forests and investing in reforestation, we could achieve up to 37 percent of emissions reductions necessary to limit the global rise in temperature to 2 degrees Celsius by 2030.

Las comunidad de Santa Clara Uchunya lleva varias generaciones viviendo en una zona remota del Amazonas peruano. Al igual que muchos grupos indígenas, esta comunidad del pueblo Shipibo-Konibo ha gestionado y dependido tradicionalmente de sus bosques para la caza, la pesca y los recursos naturales.

Pero en 2014, alguien empezó a talar grandes extensiones de los bosques ancestrales de la comunidad.

Sin el conocimiento ni el consentimiento de la comunidad, el Gobierno regional había entregado 200 parcelas de tierra, que fueron compradas a continuación por la empresa de aceite...

The Santa Clara de Uchunya community has lived in a remote section of the Peruvian Amazon for generations, relying on the forest for hunting, fishing and natural resources. But in 2014, someone started cutting down large sections of their ancestral lands. They've been struggling for their land rights ever since.

Eager to extract natural resources, governments and corporations are increasingly snatching land from indigenous groups. But these communities aren't standing by idly—they're mapping territory borders, protesting and even litigating to protect their land and resources.

A new sugarcane plantation forced 600 Cambodian families off their land. Many lost all their belongings, and parents, unable to farm and afford school fees, sent their children to work in Thailand. It's a shocking story, but one that's all too familiar for the 2.5 billion people living on indigenous and community lands.

New data on the LandMark platform backs up what research already shows: Indigenous Peoples and local communities are some of the best environmental stewards.

Better data on land tenure would help Paraguayan beef exporters reach higher-value markets while protecting Indigenous Peoples from deforestation that threatens their way of living.

As Brazilian President Michel Temer fought for his political life over the past three months, he sought support from powerful interests to keep from being impeached. His efforts paid off, but this victory for the president brought a threat to his nation’s indigenous peoples and to Brazil’s climate commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Armed with satellite-generated maps, indigenous peoples are successfully fending off unwanted destruction of their traditional forests.