World Water Day 2026, under the theme “Water and Gender,” and 2026 World Water Report, titled Water for All: Rights and Equal Opportunities underscores that when people lack the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation, inequalities deepen, disproportionately affecting women and girls. While this focus is important, it remains insufficient for Indigenous Peoples if it is not accompanied by a fundamental shift in who holds decision-making power over water.

This year is a decisive moment for the global water agenda. Key milestones, including preparatory discussions held in Dakar and the upcoming UN Water Conference in December, are shaping global priorities on water governance, investment, and cooperation. Yet there are growing concerns about the direction of these processes. Indigenous Peoples and civil society have warned that current approaches risk prioritizing corporate and financial interests over human rights, while participation mechanisms for Indigenous Peoples remain limited and inadequate.

This concern is not new. It reflects a longstanding pattern of exclusion across global water governance spaces. Indigenous Peoples continue to be marginalized from decisions that directly affect their territories, despite their critical role in sustaining the planet’s ecosystems. Although they represent only around 6% of the global population, Indigenous Peoples manage a significant share of the world’s biodiversity and manage vast areas of land, including some of the most ecologically intact regions. Evidence consistently shows that these territories have higher biodiversity and lower rates of environmental degradation.

This is not a coincidence, it is the result of deeply rooted knowledge systems and governance practices developed over generations. For Indigenous Peoples, water is not merely a resource; it is a living entity and a common good, central to cultural, spiritual, and physical survival. Across diverse regions, from the Amazon to the Arctic, Indigenous worldviews emphasize a relationship of reciprocity and responsibility with water and the broader environment.

For the Zenú people in northern Colombia, the origin of the world and time begins with water. For Ëyuujk communities in Oaxaca, springs are sacred sites where authorities ritually wash their staff of office when assuming and leaving leadership, making water the link between political governance and spiritual life. For the Awajún people in the Peruvian Amazon, rivers are a home defended with life itself. For the Sámi peoples in the Arctic, the quality of snow determines reindeer migration and, with it, the course of community life. For the Maasai in Kenya’s savannas, seasonal water flows shape pastoral cycles, food systems, and culture throughout the year.

Yet these systems are increasingly under threat. Large-scale extractive industries, hydropower projects, and agribusiness expansion continue to drive water contamination, ecosystem destruction, and the displacement of Indigenous Peoples’ communities, often without Free, Prior and Informed Consent.

At the same time, the global push for a “green” energy transition is intensifying demand for critical minerals. Decarbonizing the global economy requires minerals such as lithium, cobalt, manganese, graphite, and copper. Research published in Nature Sustainability shows that more than half of global energy transition mineral projects are located on or near Indigenous Peoples’ and rural communities’ lands; in Latin America and the Caribbean, this rises to 73%. Moreover, 62% of these projects are in areas facing high water risk.

Water insecurity is frequently framed as a technical challenge requiring expert solutions. However, this technocratic approach avoids naming the structural causes of the problem, and those responsible for them. Unequal power relations, extractivist models, and the systematic marginalization of Indigenous governance systems. The issue is not simply about infrastructure or management; it is about rights, justice, and who gets to decide.

Indigenous women are at the center of this crisis. As traditional custodians of water in many communities, they hold critical knowledge about ecosystems and resource management. Yet they face disproportionate burdens when water becomes scarce or contaminated and are often excluded from decision-making processes. Addressing gender and water, therefore, requires more than recognition, it demands concrete mechanisms to ensure their leadership and participation.

Despite these challenges, Indigenous Peoples continue to defend water through community-based governance systems, including collective decision-making, biocultural knowledge, and sustainable management practices. However, these systems are often overlooked or undermined by state policies, and the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent is too often reduced to a procedural formality rather than a substantive right.

The risks are high, and the stakes are global. The biodiversity and ecosystems that Indigenous Peoples protect are essential for regulating the planet’s water cycles and ensuring long-term water security. There can be no meaningful response to the global water crisis without recognizing and supporting the rights and leadership of those who sustain these systems.

Ultimately, addressing water justice requires a shift in perspective: from viewing Indigenous Peoples as stakeholders to recognizing them as rights-holders and decision-makers. It requires moving beyond rhetoric toward enforceable rights, genuine participation, and long-term support for Indigenous governance systems.

Without Indigenous Peoples at the center, global efforts on water, climate, and biodiversity will continue to fall short. With them, there is a pathway toward more just, sustainable, and resilient futures.

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The first of these is carbon trading, with its generally poor results and control over large territories in the name of Conservation: in some cases for 90 years or more. Control that is a major problem for the Indigenous People who live in these areas.

A prime example is the deals signed by the United Arab Emirates based company Blue Carbon, and a number of African countries. According to the UK newspaper The Guardian, the company has signed deals that cover a fifth of Zimbabwe, 10% of Liberia, 10% of Zambia and 8% of Tanzania, a total of approximately 24.5 million Ha., together with a deal with the government of Kenya that involves an as yet unspecified area, but said to be millions of hectares.

Blue Carbon, operated by Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum, has been in operation for only a year, and has no experience in managing carbon offset deals. As far as can be determined, the company has had no negotiations with the Indigenous Peoples who will be impacted by these deals, nor plans or policies in place to ensure the protection of their rights. 

The agreement with Kenya highlights the issues and contradictions of carbon trading. On the one hand, William Ruto, the President of the country, has been creating for himself a profile as a energetic African climate defender, championing private sector investment in the continent, even being cited by Time magazine as one of Africa’s climate leaders. At the Africa Climate Conference in June of this year Ruto claimed the continent’s carbon sinks were an “unparalleled economic goldmine”.

On the other hand, Ruto’s government has been displacing hundreds of Ogiek people from the Mau Forest Complex in Eastern Kenya, where they have lived for centuries, evictions that according to the Ogiek’s lawyers, are likely a result of the deal with Blue Carbon. The case is symptomatic. Not only were the Ogiek never consulted about the conservation deal with the UAE company, a violation of their fundamental right, but are now considered by Ruto’s government as an ‘inconvenience’, and being displaced with violence.

The fact that the Ogiek have found some support in the Judicial arm of the Kenyan State, is positive – a stay order has been issued by the Naroc Law Court  – but there is little guarantee the Kenyan government will respect the decision, and if it does, will not later find a way to interpret the ruling according to its own financial interests.

Respect for judicial rulings is one of the major problems facing Indigenous Peoples in their dealings with national governments and private sector partners. The problem is hardly restricted to Africa and more needs to be done on an international level to make sure that the rights of Indigenous Peoples are protected, and that legal judgements in their favor are respected.

Money is obviously key, and one major motive for the Kenyan government’s interest in private sector funding, is said to be the lack of follow through on past climate financing offered by richer countries. At the 2009 Copenhagen climate summit the figure of 100 billion USD a year by 2020, was pledged to poorer nations to help them cut emissions and adapt to climate change. The figure was reached, but only in 2022. And there is a caveat: in order to meet the goal, many already existing grants and loans have simply been reclassified. As one diplomat pointed out, direct financial aid has not reached 100 billion per year.

The problems with carbon offsetting have been more than well documented and the need for regulation is clear. After years of disagreement over possible rules, a UN climate change committee has now been charged with developing standards to be discussed at COP28. However, given the lack of meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in the process, and the speed with which the private sector is signing long term carbon trading agreements, the likelihood of meaningful standards being established, however small, will depend on international pressure.

LAND IS LIFE therefore calls for strict rules to be put in place at COP 28 to ensure:
1. That carbon offset projects actually do reduce emissions;
2. That governments ensure adherence to the standard of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent of any Indigenous Peoples that would be affected by these projects;
3. That a rigorous evaluation process be put into place for projects such as those of Blue Carbon and similar, together with a robust feedback and grievance mechanism that has the capacity to genuinely influence and shape carbon trading projects, fairly address any complaints arising during the terms of project agreements, and, when necessary, shut down harmful projects.  

Photo 1: Ogiek house burned to ashes during evictions in November 2023. Land is Life

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November 29th, 2023

To all national representatives attending the meeting of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change in Dubai.

Greetings.

On the eve of the 28th meeting of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change (COP 28), Land is Life wishes to publically voice its concern about the lack of meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in climate negotiations. We believe their front-line role as protectors of much of the world’s natural areas gives them not only the right to be present in debates about the Climate Crisis, but to participate directly at the negotiation table, where their rights have often been ignored.

As you are no doubt aware, Indigenous Peoples contribute significantly to the conservation of biodiversity and to the protection of the world’s vital ecosystems and, as a consequence, to reducing the threat of climate change. In large measure this is due to the struggle to maintain the integrity of their ancestral territories, and protect them against the depredations of illegal loggers, miners and major extractive projects that threaten their lives and cultures. Cultures, it should be added, that are unique and priceless, living, human heritage.

However, despíte a contribution that will benefit the entire planet, Indigenous Peoples are amongst those most affected by rising temperatures and changing weather patterns and, tragically, in many places they face violence, death, and eviction from their homelands in the name of Conservation and climate change mitigation.

These atrocities are often the result of climate change market mechanisms that are only thinly disguised attempts to appropriate their territories.

It is possible to cite a number of examples of this type of violation, but perhaps the most egregious are those of the Ogiek People in Kenya, the Mosop Benet in Uganda, and the Maasai in Tanzania, where thousands have been displaced from the traditional lands they have safeguarded for centuries. Unfortunately, these are only illustrations of a much wider problem that leads us to emphasize, once again, that violence and displacement, or any other violation of Human Rights, are totally unacceptable elements of any conservation or climate change adaptation/mitigation project.

The decisions to be taken at COP 28 will be fundamental in meeting the needs of the global population, and Land is Life urges all delegates to make sure that action is real and substantial.

More specifically, the meeting is a major opportunity to rectify past injustices, and to ensure respect for the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and their full inclusion in all climate change negotiations.

Land is LIfe calls for the following measures to be adopted at COP 28 in Dubai:

1.     That mechanisms be established for the meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in all aspects and all instances of climate negotiations.
2.     That those mechanisms be formulated with the participation of Indigenous Peoples themselves.
3.     That these mechanisms be transparent, inclusive, and participatory.
4.     That adaptive mechanisms, including funding, must be put into place that allow Indigenous Peoples to: a) not only remain on their lands, but b) to institute measures that will ensure those lands are better protected from the ravages of illegal activities and major extractive projects.
5.     That funding mechanisms be implemented that allow conservation projects to be initiated and operated by Indigenous Peoples themselves.
6.     Funding mechanisms must also be put into place to make sure that Governments of emerging nations do not need to rely on market based ‘solutions’, and are able to meet their emission targets without violating the rights of Indigenous and other marginalized peoples
7.     That the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent be legally enshrined as a precondition for all projects that could affect the traditional territories and cultures of Indigenous Peoples.
8.     That the fundamental role of women, and the projects they lead, be recognized and provided with the necessary funding.
9.     That the role of market mechanisms, such as carbon trading, be eliminated, and that those agreements already in place be monitored to prove effectiveness in reducing emissions, be transparent and tightly controlled, and contain international grievance mechanisms that allow for human rights violations to be heard, victims compensated, rehabilitation initiated, and non-repetition guaranteed. Where these conditions are not met, projects should be closed down.

We are all affected by climate change, and fighting it must be a shared struggle; the most vulnerable peoples, especially the world’s Indigenous Peoples, must therefore be supported and allowed to play the positive role they have always played.

Land is Life urges the representatives of States, businesses, and other stakeholders at the COP 28 in Dubai to support the positions put forward by the world’s Indigenous Peoples, and ensure that their vital role in finding effective responses to the challenges of global climate change..

Respectfully,

the Board of Directors of Land is Life

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VER VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EndIhnSX6ns&pp=ygUMTEFORCBJUyBMSUZF

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La crisis climática es una realidad que ya nadie puede desconocer. Tampoco existe duda alguna acerca de la seriedad del fenómeno para la vida de los Pueblos Indígenas, explica José Proaño, Director de Programas de Land is Life para América Latina. “Todos seremos afectados de manera dramática y aquí, en América Latina, encontrarnos en la región del planeta que genera menos emisiones de CO2, tampoco impide que las consecuencias del cambio climático sean cada vez más visibles y dramáticas. Más grave aún, es que la crisis impactará con mayor severidad a los pueblos indígenas, con especial énfasis en las mujeres de esas comunidades.”

La respuesta, según Proaño, radica en tomar decisiones difíciles, como cuando la población ecuatoriana optó por dejar el petróleo bajo tierra, en la Consulta Popular sobre la explotación hidrocarburífera en el Parque Nacional Yasuní.

Es indudable que el mundo tiene que superar la era de los combustibles fósiles, y para los Pueblos Indígenas de todo el mundo, incluyendo los Pueblos en Aislamiento Voluntario, mientras más rápido suceda eso, será mejor. Su supervivencia puede depender de ello.

La crisis climática: impacto global, daños particulares

A comienzos de septiembre de 2023, la Organización Meteorológica Mundial (OMM) presentó un informe sobre las temperaturas récord del verano boreal precedente. Según este organismo, el trimestre junio-julio-agosto fue el más caluroso en la historia del planeta tierra: en conjunto, este período resultó 1.5°C más cálido que el promedio preindustrial de 1850-1900. Este dato llevó al Secretario General de la ONU, António Guterres, a concluir que “el colapso climático” mundial ha comenzado. “Los científicos han advertido hace mucho tiempo sobre lo que desencadenará nuestra adicción a los combustibles fósiles.”

Al ritmo en que aumentan los desastres de origen meteorológico – las inundaciones por esta causa se incrementaron un 134% entre 2000 y 2023 –, también se hacen más evidentes sus consecuencias negativas para poblaciones rurales e indígenas en regiones como el continente asiático, los pequeños estados insulares y el África subsahariana.

Los países con menor responsabilidad en la aceleración del cambio climático padecen sus consecuencias con mayor crudeza

De hecho, la Cumbre Climática de África, reunida en Kenia en septiembre de 2023, determinó en su Declaración Final que ese continente “se está calentando más rápido que el resto del mundo”. Las autoridades gubernamentales participantes del encuentro, manifestaron asimismo su preocupación porque “muchos países africanos enfrentan cargas desproporcionadas y riesgos crecientes relacionados con el cambio climático”.

Por lo general, los países con menor responsabilidad en la aceleración de este proceso padecen sus consecuencias con mayor crudeza, pero a la vez albergan gran parte de los activos naturales y culturales que podrían contribuir a atenuarlas. Características que desvelan, simultáneamente, otras inequidades históricas: las naciones africanas, por ejemplo, concentran en conjunto cerca del 40% de los recursos de energías renovables del mundo, pero solo recibieron el 2% de la inversión total en ese ámbito, durante la última década.

Algo similar sucede con los pueblos indígenas, a los que un estudio de la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) consideró “fundamentales para el éxito de las medidas y las políticas dirigidas a mitigar el cambio climático”. En principio, porque son alrededor de 370 millones de personas en todo el planeta, situadas “a la vanguardia de un modelo económico moderno basado en los principios de una economía verde sostenible”, las que pueden impulsar un cambio de matriz productiva a partir de sus conocimientos tradicionales.

Sin embargo, la OIT indicó también que estas poblaciones concentran otras seis características que las vuelven especialmente frágiles ante un eventual colapso del clima. La primera y más dañina de ellas es la pobreza, que acosa a un 15% de sus integrantes; al igual que la dependencia de los recursos naturales; la vulnerabilidad de las regiones geográficas y ecosistemas en que viven; la potencial obligación de migrar por la destrucción de esos hábitats; las desigualdades de género y la falta de reconocimiento como personas indígenas, de sus derechos e instituciones.

Pueblos Indígenas africanos como los Maasai de Tanzania, por ejemplo, ya han sido desplazados de sus territorios y confinados al borde del hambre a partir de políticas que restringen sus actividades de pastoreo en “áreas de conservación”. Advertidos de esta circunstancia, los gobernantes reunidos en la cumbre africana instaron a “apoyar a los pequeños agricultores, Pueblos Indígenas y comunidades locales en la transición a economías sustentables dado su papel clave en la gestión de los ecosistemas”. Pero aun así, múltiples culturas ancestrales, en todo el mundo, pueden afrontar idéntico destino a corto o mediano plazo.

América Latina

Los Pueblos Indígenas de América Latina tampoco escapan de los impactos de la marginación y el cambio climático. “Mientras en el mundo se discuten las formas de parar el cambio climático, las empresas transnacionales no han hecho ningún esfuerzo por bajar las presiones sobre nuestros territorios”, sostuvo Leonidas Iza, presidente de la Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador (Conaie) en la Cumbre Climática COP27 de Egipto, a fines de 2022.

Por su parte, para Germán Freire, autor de la investigación “Latinoamérica Indígena en el Siglo XXI”, publicada por el Banco Mundial (BM), no siempre el porvenir es sinónimo de aprendizaje: “Cuando escribimos el informe en 2015, nos impactó que, a pesar de los avances de las décadas pasadas en términos de marcos legales y representación, los pueblos indígenas seguían rezagados detrás de todos los demás en casi todos los aspectos. Desde entonces, las cosas han empeorado aún más, debido a los efectos acumulativos de la pandemia, el cambio climático y el crecimiento de la desigualdad. Los pueblos indígenas necesitan estar al volante de su propio desarrollo para que este sea sostenible y resiliente”.

Sobre un estimado de 42 millones de personas indígenas en América Latina, un 43% es pobre, mientras que el 24% sufre pobreza extrema

En sintonía con otros análisis globales, el documento del BM puso el foco en la notoria marginación económica que castiga a este sector de la población: sobre un estimado de 42 millones de personas indígenas en la región, un 43% es pobre, mientras que el 24% sufre pobreza extrema. Una cifra a la que podrían añadirse otros 5.8 millones de habitantes indígenas para 2030, de acuerdo a estimaciones del Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID), si no se contiene la crisis ambiental en curso; proyección triste pero nada descabellada, ya que “América Latina y el Caribe es la segunda región del mundo más propensa a sufrir desastres de origen climático”.

De allí la importancia de garantizar el pleno acceso a derechos, tierra y recursos para las culturas originarias latinoamericanas, como parte de “una estrategia eficaz para combatir el cambio climático” apoyada en sus saberes y su conducta responsable con el entorno. Como ejemplo, los investigadores del BM puntualizaron que entre “2000 y 2012, la deforestación en la Amazonía brasileña fue de 0,6% dentro de los territorios indígenas protegidos legalmente, mientras que fuera de estos llegó al 7%, lo que produjo 27 veces más emisiones de dióxido de carbono”.

No se trata de un dato menor tomando en cuenta que, desde 1990 hasta 2015, la superficie forestal de la región disminuyó en 14 puntos porcentuales. Tendencia que puede volverse terminal en Brasil: durante la presidencia de Jair Bolsonaro, este país limitó las agencias ambientales y redujo las normas de protección forestal; mientras que en mayo de 2023, la Cámara de Diputados aprobó un proyecto de ley que busca limitar los reclamos territoriales indígenas a las poblaciones que habitaran regiones en litigio antes de 1988. Y aunque el pasado 21 de septiembre la Corte Suprema de Brasil bloqueó los esfuerzos para restringir los derechos territoriales de los indígenas y, en una decisión histórica 9 de los 11 miembros del tribunal votaron en contra de lo que grupos de derechos humanos habían denominado el “truco del marco temporal”, la aplicación de la sentencia sobre el terrero será muy complicada dado el enorme poder de los terratenientes que ocupan muchas de esas tierras indígenas.

“Si esto continúa, se alcanzará un irreversible punto de inflexión que no permitirá recuperar los ecosistemas, sumideros de carbono y conocimientos de los pueblos indígenas”, enfatizó el Grupo de Trabajo Internacional para Asuntos Indígenas (Iwigia, por sus siglas en inglés). Y a pesar de las reducciones logradas durante el primer año del nuevo gobierno de Lula da Silva, se trata solo de avances porcentuales: mientras tanto, el proceso sigue.

Combinados, estos hechos implican una disminución de la biodiversidad y los servicios ecosistémicos, así como alteraciones en el régimen de lluvias y un aumento acelerado de la temperatura promedio.

El caso Ecuador: ¿Cuestión de Estado?

La organización Global Forest Watch identificó un proceso similar al de Brasil en Ecuador, que en los últimos veinte años (2000-2022) ha perdido casi 230 mil hectáreas de bosque primario húmedo. En realidad, en su mayor parte, esa superficie boscosa fue destruida por la deforestación vinculada con actividades agrícolas (monocultivos de palma aceitera, cacao, café y ganadería extensiva, entre otras) y extractivas, la imprevisión y la falta de control estatal.

En gran medida, la pérdida de bosque se debe a que el Estado ecuatoriano no ha mantenido una política ambiental clara, coherente y comprometida con la defensa de los derechos humanos, comunitarios y de la naturaleza. De hecho, en su informe 2022-2023, Amnistía Internacional cuestionó la “actuación deficiente” de la gestión presidencial de Guillermo Lasso, en relación con la actual “crisis climática”.

Falencia que también evidenciaron sus predecesores en el cargo, Lenín Moreno y Rafael Correa, a pesar de que, en lo formal, la Constitución de 2008 convirtió a Ecuador – firmante asimismo de convenios ambientales internacionales como el Acuerdo de París y el Protocolo de Kioto – en el primer país que considera a la naturaleza como sujeto de derechos.

Además, la Constitución establece (Art. 74) que los servicios ambientales “no serán susceptibles de apropiación; su producción, prestación, uso y aprovechamiento serán regulados por el Estado”, al tiempo que reconoce la condición pluricultural y multiétnica de su población, junto con mecanismos de protección de sus derechos territoriales y comunitarios.

Aunque dos de los últimos tres gobiernos ecuatorianos presentaron sendos planes integrales de manejo del cambio climático (en julio de 2012 y febrero de 2023), esto no significa que su desempeño sea siempre congruente con esas políticas o con la Carta Magna.

“Según las Contribuciones Determinadas a Nivel Nacional (NDC, por sus siglas en inglés) presentadas en 2019, las metas son bastante bajas: el gobierno solamente se plantea reducir las emisiones de carbono un 9% en los sectores de energía, agricultura, procesos industriales y residuos, si no cuenta con apoyo externo, o un 20,9% si lo consigue; y en cuestión de Uso de Suelos, Cambios en el Uso de Suelos y Silvicultura (USCUSS), un 4 o un 6% respectivamente”, resumió Natalia Greene, vicepresidenta de la Coordinadora Ecuatoriana de Organizaciones para la Defensa de la Naturaleza y el Medio Ambiente (CEDENMA).

La activista señaló además las contradicciones del Ministerio del Ambiente que, en su opinión, muestra menos agilidad para enfrentar las problemáticas derivadas de la emisión de gases de efecto invernadero o los riesgos de la deforestación impulsada por los cambios en el uso de suelos, que para autorizar la operación de empresas extractivas.

Opciones, contradicciones, y los fondos internacionales

La preocupación de los pueblos y nacionalidades indígenas ecuatorianos por el cambio climático es de larga data. Y también más consistente que las políticas oficiales en la materia, lo que les expone a la ironía de proteger aquello que el propio Estado descuida: en 2010, apenas dos años después de promulgada la actual Constitución Nacional, la Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador (Conaie) organizó su “Primer Taller sobre Derechos, Cambio Climático y Bosques”.

Aquello impulsó una incesante serie de actividades similares, que llega hasta el curso “Cambio Climático, Financiamiento y Gestión de Proyectos”, convocado en agosto pasado por la Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas de la Amazonía Ecuatoriana (Confeniae). De estos espacios surgieron diversas alternativas de manejo de la crisis ambiental y también posibilidades de articulación con organizaciones nacionales e internacionales para concretarlas.

Desde el Estado, en cambio, las contradicciones son la regla. Poco después de firmar los Acuerdos de París, se aprobaron en Ecuador varias normas relacionadas con la conservación de la naturaleza, que los pueblos originarios consideran potencialmente lesivas de sus derechos. Como el Código Orgánico de Ambiente (2018) y su Reglamento (2019), que establecen la obligatoriedad de asignar territorios indígenas al sistema nacional de áreas protegidas, gratuitamente, pero sin fijar “un procedimiento claro, expedito para garantizar la seguridad jurídica de la posesión ancestral”, indica el libro Vulneración de Derechos Colectivos de los Pueblos Indígenas en Ecuador.

Otro tanto sucede con el “mercado de carbono”, que por diferentes razones despierta casi tanto interés como escepticismo entre las poblaciones originarias. En particular porque, como se ha subrayado desde el Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID), si bien las políticas de descarbonización son necesarias, de no aplicarse “medidas de compensación adecuadas” algunas de ellas “pueden tener impactos sociales negativos”. Uno de los más evidentes es la destrucción de empleos en sectores con una alta informalidad laboral, como el agropecuario o el transportista.

En regiones como la Amazonía abundan los servicios ecosistémicos que el planeta necesita para sostener la vida

“Para los pueblos indígenas, esto no puede reducirse a una transacción entre carbono y dinero: se trata de nuestra vida y del lugar donde habitan también los seres no humanos, espirituales, con los que nuestros abuelos tienen que hacer la interlocución para autorizar ese proceso”, observó Justino Piaguaje, dirigente de territorio de la nación Siekopai, en la provincia de Sucumbíos.

En línea con los postulados de Confeniae, de “apoyar a la gobernanza colectiva de la biodiversidad”, Piaguaje opinó que la decisión sobre un acuerdo de reducción de emisiones de carbono en territorios ancestrales (o cualquier medida que implique restricciones en la movilidad o el uso que les den sus habitantes) no puede ser potestad exclusiva del Estado ecuatoriano. “Los pueblos y nacionalidades tenemos que contar con autonomía para decidir”, remarcó. Y si bien rescató lo positivo del aporte de recursos económicos por servicios ambientales, “como el programa SocioBosque”, exigió reciprocidad en el intercambio. “Es importante analizar qué tipo de relación tendríamos, por cuánto tiempo sería, qué se protegerá y qué actividades estarán limitadas”, apuntó.

Acceder a fondos internacionales de apoyo a la conservación ambiental, o a las iniciativas productivas respetuosas de la naturaleza, es un objetivo central en muchas áreas rurales e indígenas del Ecuador, donde es limitado el acceso a empleo e ingresos regulares. En especial, al cruzar la variable étnica con la de género, que desnuda las afectaciones específicas del cambio climático sobre las mujeres, en estas zonas del país, “el 61,3% de mujeres” realizan actividades agropecuarias de alto valor cultural, mediante “la protección y conservación de semillas nativas” y “la producción ancestral libre de agroquímicos”. Pero al tratarse de cultivos de subsistencia, son también más vulnerables a eventos climáticos extremos o irregulares.

Pese a todo, en regiones como la Amazonía abundan los servicios ecosistémicos que el planeta necesita para sostener la vida, existen donantes a nivel internacional que pretenden enfocar su trabajo en los territorios y en relación directa con las comunidades. Pero, opina José Proaño, muchas veces esa relación se limita a una consulta, sin ninguna participación o incidencia real de los Pueblos Indígenas: “Lo que pretendemos nosotros es que las comunidades incidan directamente en las decisiones y reciban los debidos beneficios. Es hora de reconocer la importancia de los Pueblos Indígenas y el papel crucial que juegan, en todo el planeta, en la lucha contra el Cambio Climático.

El cargo LOS PUEBLOS INDÍGENAS, AGENTES EN LA LUCHA CONTRA LA CRISIS CLIMÁTICA apareció primero en Land Is Life.

Climate change is a major issue everywhere, but for Indigenous Peoples, many of whom depend on the local environments for their livelihood, the stakes are even higher. In many African countries the issue is critical. In Burkina Faso, for example, where approximately 90% of the population makes its living through subsistence agriculture and livestock, rising temperatures will place a huge burden on those already on the margins of sustainability. Indigenous Peoples and women are particularly at risk. In the more arid northern regions of this land-locked country, where the Peul and Tuareg peoples live, water scarcity has been magnified by the severe drought of 2022, and even a slight rise in temperature could be mortal; while in the south, flooding has wreaked havoc with crops and drinking water supply, even in the capital, Ouagadougou. Subsistence agriculture and livestock are crucial for the country’s Indigenous Peoples, and rising temperatures will no doubt lead to more displacement, poverty, and migration to already overburdened cities.

The major question is how to tackle the problem at a national and regional level. Given the context of violence, the recent military Coups D’état of 2022, and other in the region (Mali, Niger and now Gabón), in Burkina Faso it’s not really feasible to expect the national government to take the lead, says Saoudata Wallet, an indigenous Tuareg woman and Secretary General of the Burkina Faso and Mali Tin Hinane Association. In her country, she adds, it is really up to the people, particularly women’s organizations, to keep up the pressure, but even here, the regional violence, which also includes attacks by Islamic extremists, has affected people’s ability to mobilize.

One opportunity to make the concerns of indigenous peoples heard, is Africa Climate Week (ACW), which will take place from the 4^th to the 8^th of September in Nairobi, Kenya, in parallel with the first Africa Climate Summit (ACS) which will also take place in that city between September 4^th and 6^th. The Summit is co-hosted by The Kenyan government and the African Union, and as of mid-August, 15 African Heads of State and government had confirmed their participation. The events are part of the run up to the 28^th UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28), to be held between the 30^th of November and the 12^th of December in Dubai, capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and will provide regional contributions to the first Global Stocktake, seen as fundamental in fulfilling the Paris Agreement goals.

Although Wallet agrees most international conferences are forums for declarations rather than actions, she is convinced the presence of women and Indigenous Peoples is crucial for both the Africa Climate Summit and the parallel climate week events. “We have to be there to demand that our voices be heard”, she says, while recognizing that actually getting to the conferences can be a problem given the difficulties some experience in obtaining visas and financing in order to travel. And as she points out, it’s a long way from Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, to Nairobi. So walking is evidently not an option.

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Land is Life’s Latin America Program Assistant, Majo Andrade Cerda, attended the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm el-Sheikh over the past two weeks. Along with coordinating our side event on the rights of Indigenous Peoples Living in Voluntary Isolation, Majo attended many discussions alongside Indigenous leaders of movements around the world. Here, she shares her reflections on Indigenous participation at the climate discussions. My name is Majo Andrade Cerda, and I am an Indigenous woman from the Kichwa community of Serena, in the Ecuadorian Amazon. I was one of the many Indigenous participants who had the opportunity to attend COP27 this month. As a young leader of my community, who belongs to the first Indigenous guard led by women in the Napo province of Ecuador, I feel it’s important to share my reflections on the conference’s achievements and failures. Although there were many meaningful side events and discussions in the Indigenous pavilion, negotiations were still held by government representatives, backed by industries, with Indigenous peoples pushed aside. I believe that the United Nations has to adjust their structures so that we, the Indigenous peoples, can share our experiences within our territories directly with those representatives who are making the decisions, and then take collective action. Although we had our own pavilion with multiple side events, space was very limited. It wasn’t a space where we could really be involved in the decision-making process. We can only send reports and hold informal consultations and dialogues. We need to keep working with state representatives to gain mutual understanding of what we need to do as a global society. As a response to being left out, we as young Indigenous peoples are increasingly more involved in fighting for our rights. Movements led by Indigenous youth are growing, as we are constantly finding ways to open more spaces to have our voices heard. However, as the next generation of Indigenous leaders, we don’t have the capacity to bring people from all around the world to hear us; we have to seek out international platforms. In those platforms, however, we are experiencing more barriers, such as language. Our brothers and sisters, delegates from Brazil’s youth for example, are not able to participate fully, due to lack of translation, as Portuguese is not an official UN language. But it’s not just about speeches on the stage — it’s about supporting Indigenous communities and respecting our ways of life. We have to be made visible to the world to say: “We are here, we exist, and we are protecting the environment for everyone, not just for us.” We have the solutions. If you respect our rights, you’re respecting the rights of nature. Failures of COP27 One key failure of COP27 discussions, in my opinion, was that government leaders did not consider the devastating impacts of mining that are hidden behind the rhetoric of a sustainable future. My river, the Napo River, is going to be contaminated by mining because the Ecuadorian government is working towards an energy transition in order to fulfill its climate targets. This will affect all peoples along its path, through the Amazon, into Brazil, because we are all interconnected with one flow of the river, flowing all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. When we talk about climate justice, we need to highlight social justice and Indigenous peoples’ rights. Another failure was that carbon markets were not considered a severe threat. Conservation organizations are seeking funds for climate adaptation, and now for loss and damage, but they don’t consider the origin of these funds. COP27 didn’t manage to have a strategy for that. Carbon markets are false solutions. They keep seeing the Amazon and other tropical forests as commodities. People are buying themselves a good conscience, without having to change their extractive and polluting ways of life. COP27 failed to stop the use of fossil fuels and the consequences will heavily impact Indigenous communities. Lessons learned There are many takeaways from my time at the Sharm el-Sheikh climate discussions. Among them was the understanding that networking among Indigenous peoples is one of the keys to strengthening the movements. We are united now, more than ever before, with Indigenous peoples from the Fiji islands and Malaysia, and we are going to strengthen our bonds with our sisters from Brazil. There’s a lot of struggle in our communities — but we know we are not alone. If something happens to us, I know there are a lot of people who would react. I am more aware than ever before of the important role of women and youth in the movement, both on the front lines as well as the daily life in Indigenous communities. It’s time we realize that women have an important role inside the programs and projects we are developing to support Indigenous communities, because sometimes our voices as Indigenous women and youth are silenced and not taken into account. We have to work daily toward supporting each other. As young Indigenous women, we particularly know how to do this, because we work daily in our communities. The future of Indigenous participation After COP27, I am committed to advocating for a paradigm shift, where the environment and the communities cannot be considered separately. Proposals and projects need to come from the communities themselves, and be led by Indigenous peoples, women, and the youth. We are told that funds need to be sent to intermediary organizations as we, as Indigenous peoples, are not capable of managing them. This needs to change. Our parents and grandparents have been working hard for our education, even though it has made us face discrimination and almost lose our languages. But here we are now, as young women, capable of leading and administering our own projects, benefiting not only our communities but also the whole world. I’ve come to realize that most people in cities don’t know how important Indigenous peoples are. I recall talking with many people in Sharm el-Sheikh who came to COP and asked for pictures of us as Indigenous peoples, just as they did the year before. And I keep responding, “You can take a picture of us, but listen first to what we have to say.” I’m tired of solely being an object of photos in a situation where we are not welcome into these spaces of power. What we genuinely need is being invited to the negotiations – not only at the UN but also on local, regional, and national levels. In aspects of our rights, if people don’t know who we are and what we are, they are not going to understand our fight.

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Lack of rain across East Africa has caused one of the most severe droughts in recent history. People are currently experiencing the fifth failed rainy season in a row, with critical and long-lasting consequences.

Pastoralist communities, such as the Indigenous Maasai in Kenya, have had to give up their nomadic way of life as all pastures have dried out. They have already lost millions of cattle because of lack of feed, and the remaining are starving. Besides hunger, the situation is causing depression among the Maasai, to whom the cattle are the backbone of their identity, culture, and livelihoods. They love their cattle and are hesitant to let them go.

“In order to eat we need to let our cattle go, and take care of our children. Otherwise our children will have nothing to eat.“ – Maasai senior community leader

Earlier this month, to respond to the drastic situation, Enkishon Indigenous Initiative, a community organization dedicated to supporting Maasai women and children in Kajiado County, Southern Kenya, organized a truckload of food delivered to the Maasai community of Eluanata. The delivery, supported by Land is Life, does not solve the tragedy but provides temporary relief to the community.

In response to the long-term effects of drought, Jemimah Kerenge, Maasai woman and Land is Life’s Indigenous-Led Grantmaking Program Director thinks that combining the pastoralist way of life with small-scale farming, based on principles of agroecology, while reducing the sizes of the herds, could be an option. It would reduce the pastoralists’ dependence on cattle as the sole source of livelihoods and provide other potentially self-sustaining food sources.

The prolonged drought is just one of the numerous impacts of climate change that we are currently witnessing. The ones who have least contributed to climate change, are the most vulnerable to it, and the first to be impacted. As world leaders are working on policies to accelerate a green shift, Land is Life would like to remind them of the importance of placing the rights of Indigenous Peoples at the core of these efforts. Too often are projects that are intended to be sustainable, lead to rights violations of Indigenous Peoples. Last week, Land is Life was one of the more than 200 signatories of an open letter asking the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and State parties to put human rights at the center of the energy transition at COP27. You can read the letter here.

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