By Gustavo Sanchez, Fermin Chimatani Tayori, Elcio Manchineri, and Basiru Isa

One of the most debated issues on the climate agenda is that of carbon markets, and recently the credibility of carbon credits from the forestry sector has been affected by questions of some projects. Among organisations of Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities, Afro-descendants and other collectivities, there is no unified position on this issue because each country and region has specific conditions and different regulations, among other reasons. One of the factors that will most determine how communities view these markets is whether they recognise local rights to land, forests, and ecosystem services, as well as the way in which the communities can benefit. To succeed, REDD+ should focus on what Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) value.

In general, Indigenous and Community organisations agree that carbon markets must respect basic rights and guarantee the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in decisions that have to do with their territories. We also agree that the obsession of these markets with carbon misses the bigger picture. This approach overlooks other ecosystem services in a territory, as well as the contributions of communities to their care and protection. The sole focus on carbon also misses the conservation and rescue of ancestral knowledge, and the sustainable management and use of nature, among other aspects.

Our approach has been to fight for respect for community rights, full and effective participation, and fair and equitable benefit sharing. We are convinced that carbon markets will only be effective if they consider the priorities of Indigenous Peoples and Local communities.

This is why a group of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities’ organisations from Brazil, Peru, Mexico and the Congo Basin have initiated a collaboration with the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) programme to build, in a participatory manner, a certification to recognise additional benefits resulting from the care and community management of a territory through the implementation of programmes that respect the rights of the people, taking their priorities into account.

This additional certification is for ART’s TREES, a standard for REDD+ initiatives at the jurisdictional level– either national or subnational. The latest version, released in 2021 (which will be reviewed again in 2024), included High Forest Cover and Low Deforestation territories, known as HFLD, so that markets could recognise and support those conserving their forests as well. This was a demand of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. This was a positive step in the right direction, and our work now is to help write the next chapter.

What are we talking about when we refer to additional carbon benefits or co-benefits?

If a jurisdictional REDD+ initiative respects the Cancun Safeguards – and specifically complies with the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in its design, implementation, and evaluation, considering their proposals, needs, forms of organization, governance structures and visions – it can generate a series of benefits that go far beyond climate change mitigation alone.

For example, REDD+ can have benefits for Indigenous and Community economies and their sustainability; for developing capacities and enabling conditions for IPLCs’ participation in public decisions; for territorial rights; for territorial governance; and for the recognition and recovery of ancestral knowledge and cultural identity.

The new certification for TREES will have objective criteria for jurisdictions to report on various types of additional benefits that are important for IPLCs, identifying the state of affairs at the beginning of a REDD+ initiative and its subsequent evolution in both qualitative and quantitative terms. Also, the reported benefits will have to be validated and verified by an independent body using the same process as for TREES, including collecting evidence from and interviewing a wide variety of stakeholders.

This certification will make it possible to place ART-certified carbon credits on the market that provide certainty about the reduction of carbon emissions from deforestation and degradation, and that also guarantee that safeguards have been respected and a series of social and cultural benefits have been generated for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, along with co-benefits for biodiversity and the environment. In the long run, this will be fundamental for the conservation of forests and jungles and for the well-being of the people.

Why is it important for Indigenous Peoples’ organisations and Local Communities to participate in this initiative? 

Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities demand full and effective participation in REDD+ processes from the beginning, as partners and not beneficiaries. This point is very important and is the basis of the strategic alliance with ART for the formation of the technical committee. These strategic alliances between Indigenous and Local Community Organizations and carbon standards ensure that the voices of forest owners and those who have demonstrated over the years sustainable conservation and management are heard.

The standards should not only include technical and scientific aspects developed in the Global North, but also contributions and experiences of the inhabitants of the same territories where these standards will be implemented. If methodologies do not consider the realities of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities and do not show their contributions and their concerns and defend their interests, it will be impossible to fight against deforestation and forest degradation and to conserve biodiversity and other ecosystem services beyond carbon.

The proposals of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities have always stressed that we look beyond carbon from our own cultures and with a holistic approach that demands the conservation of carbon stocks alongside other ecosystem services such as water, biodiversity, and culture. In addition, the IPLCs expect REDD+ initiatives to generate concrete benefits for the people in the territories. We do not want REDD+ to fight climate change at the expense of our rights. We need REDD+ to also generate improvements in our livelihoods, strengthening of our governance structures, opportunities for public policy advocacy and recognition of our rights. Without that, a REDD+ initiative is incomplete.

So far REDD+ carbon credit certifications have failed to capture these elements that matter to us, IPLCs. The certifications have been focused on what countries in the Global North value.

Lessons learned

The Technical Committee of Indigenous Organizations and Local Communities agreed with ART to work in a participatory manner from the beginning of the process in the design of this new certification. This experience of effective participation, in which indigenous and local community organisations have been protagonists and not just invited at the end to review a document prepared by technicians, should set the tone for working with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities so that we have a role as partners and not only beneficiaries in carbon markets.

We hope that lessons can be learned from this initiative to generate processes where there are equal conditions for participation. And we hope to reach clear consensus to ensure that the methodologies and programs aimed at combating climate change have the contributions and the vision of the people who live IN and OF the forest.

Gustavo Sanchez is President of the Mexican Network of Rural Forestry Organizations (Red MOCAF), a network of Indigenous and Local Community forestry organisations in Mexico.   

Fermin Chimatani Tayori is leader of the Harakbutpeople of Madre de Dios, Peru, and president of ANECAP. His organisation brings together the Executors of Administration Contracts of the Communal Reserves of Peru, who manage 5 million hectares of forests between protected natural areas and communal territories. 

Elcio Manchineri is from the Manchineri people of Acre; he is the current general coordinator of the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB).

Basiru Isa is a young indigenous leader from Cameroon. He is the regional Secretary General of REPALEAC (Indigenous Peoples’ Network for the Sustainable Management of Forest Ecosystems in Central Africa) and he heads the network’s Program Department. 

Any opinions published in this commentary reflect the views of the author and not of Carbon Pulse.