Foto door Mariel Cabero, IUCN NL
Safeguarding the Amazon rainforest
As half of the planet’s rainforests have already disappeared, the Amazon is the most important remaining ecosystem. 35% of the Colombian territory is part of the Amazon.
Together with Colombian nature organisations FCDS and Ambiente y Sociedad and news platform Mongabay, we worked on tackling forest crime in the Amazon forests of Colombia and improving the territorial rights and livelihoods of Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Because these people are the forest’s best guardians.
Contributing to ending forest crime and to improving the territorial rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities contributes to protecting the Amazon’s rich biodiversity. Protecting this vital ecosystem is an important prerequisite for meeting the 1.5 degree climate goal, as well as achieving sustainable development.
Communities are the forests’ best guardians
Many valuable forests worldwide are managed and protected by Indigenous peoples and other local communities. Research shows that management by communities is a highly effective form of conservation. The deforestation rate in areas where Indigenous communities live is much lower[1]Fa, J. E., Watson, J. E., Leiper, I., Potapov, P., Evans, T. D., Burgess, N. D., & Garnett, S. T. (2020). Importance of Indigenous Peoples’ lands for the conservation of Intact Forest … Continue reading and the greatest successes for conservation and well-being are achieved when Indigenous and local communities are in charge[2]Dawson, N., Coolsaet, B., Sterling, E., Loveridge, R., Nicole, D., Wongbusarakum, S., & Rosado-May, F. (2021). The role of Indigenous peoples and local communities in effective and equitable … Continue reading
How do we protect the Amazon rainforest in Colombia?
- Better information – We ensured that Indigenous and local communities, civil society organisations, and local authorities have access to relevant information, for example through the Amazon Observatory. This enabled them to better monitor, report and combat forest crime effectively.
- Better law enforcement – We shared the results of in-depth investigations on forest crime dynamics with law enforcement agencies and consumer countries. Actionable intelligence and insight in the impacts of forest crime allows them to combat forest crime more effectively.
- Stronger legal position – We provided Indigenous Peoples and local communities, civil society organisations, and Environmental Human Rights Defenders with instruments and adviced by legal clinics to protect and restore their rights effectively.
- Access to national and global platforms – Through capacity building and the use of technology, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and civil society organisations are able to alert on socio-environmental conflicts related to forest crime and human rights with special emphasis on reporting the effects of forest crime within national and global platforms. Organisations like Interpol and the United Nations can influence governments, both in Colombia and consumer countries.
- Increased security – Through reports and media productions, we exposed forest crimes and threats faced by Environmental Human Rights Defenders. With this exposure, we intended to reduce victimization, enhance security for Indigenous peoples, local communities and environmental human rights defenders at risk, and contributed to reducing and reversing the loss of tropical forests.
Report: Women in a degraded Amazon
Hoe hangt gender samen met ontbossing, milieuvervuiling, territoriale kwesties en geweld in het Amazonegebied? Onderwerpen als ontbossing en milieuvervuiling in het Amazonegebied zijn veelbesproken. Wat echter nog niet grondig aan de orde is gekomen, zijn de verschillende gevolgen die deze kwesties hebben voor vrouwen.
In this report, available in English and Spanish, IUCN NL analysed gender dynamics in the Peruvian and Colombian Amazon. ‘Extractive activities and gender-based violence are deeply intertwined: illegal mining and agricultural expansion have turned the Amazon into a high-risk territory for women,’ says Mariel Cabero, Expert Environmental Justice at IUCN NL.
Drivers of deforestation
What are the drivers of deforestation in the Colombian Amazon? Which actors are involved? And what are the consequences for nature and the people who live there? In our series ‘Drivers of deforestation in the Colombian Amazon’ we analysed the drivers of deforestation in the region.
Read the articles:
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Index
| ↑1 | Fa, J. E., Watson, J. E., Leiper, I., Potapov, P., Evans, T. D., Burgess, N. D., & Garnett, S. T. (2020). Importance of Indigenous Peoples’ lands for the conservation of Intact Forest Landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 18(3), 135-140. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2148 |
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| ↑2 | Dawson, N., Coolsaet, B., Sterling, E., Loveridge, R., Nicole, D., Wongbusarakum, S., & Rosado-May, F. (2021). The role of Indigenous peoples and local communities in effective and equitable conservation. Ecology and Society, 26(3). https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol26/iss3/art19/ |