A new report by RRI, Forest Peoples Programme, and the ICCA Consortium assessing 30 high-biodiversity countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America finds that while most countries have legal pathways to advance rights-based conservation, in practice, communities’ contributions to national conservation efforts continue to be inadequately recognized or supported.
Have you ever wondered why people experiencing poverty in rural areas of the Global South tend to have insecure land tenure? If you have, you may have rightly concluded that the greed of powerful actors and colonialism are an important part of the story. But this barely begins to describe the forces that have strengthened and weakened tenure security across time for those with little voice and power.
As the fight for climate justice continues, acknowledging the connections between land, water, ecosystems, and human communities is critical for the realization of positive and lasting change.
When I learnt that the Philippine government had accused me of being a terrorist, my immediate reaction was to hug my grandkids, fearing for their safety. Then, I started to speak out. Again.