Tested, Cost-effective, and Practical: Secure Community Land Rights Can Help Protect the Earth and Prevent the Climate Crisis

WASHINGTON – Research shows that Indigenous Peoples and local communities are the best guardians of their customary lands and forests. For generations, these communities have managed and conserved the resources on which we all depend, yet they enjoy legal recognition to just one-fifth of what is rightfully theirs, according to research from the Rights and Resources Initiative. The insecurity of indigenous and community tenure rights poses a significant threat to global efforts to combat climate change: at least one-tenth of the carbon stored in the world’s tropical forests is in community lands that lack formal, legal recognition, leaving them vulnerable to land grabs, deforestation, and exploitation. Land-grabs for agriculture, infrastructure, or extraction projects are not only devastating for communities, but can also have disastrous environmental consequences. Read original article here