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Implementation of the COP26 declaration to halt forest loss must safeguard and include Indigenous people

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 6, pages 235–236 (2022)Cite this article

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To the Editor — World and industry leaders at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), held in Glasgow in November 2021, asserted in their declaration on forest and land use a commitment to “halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030”1. Nothing less than decisive and coordinated global action is required as we near an apocalyptic future of environmental degradation, species extinction and catastrophic climate change. With the recent acceleration in newly created global commitments and successes, such as the achievement of Aichi Target 11 in 20212, we should nonetheless pause and reflect about the implications of such top-down pledges to conserve forests for Indigenous peoples worldwide.

The COP26 declaration, signed by 141 parties, explicitly recognizes the important role of forest-dwelling Indigenous peoples who “depend on forests for their livelihoods and have a key role in their stewardship”1. A group of high-income governments and private organizations pledged in parallel US$1.7 billion in financial support for Indigenous and local communities3. Although these developments acknowledge the role of Indigenous people in forest conservation, the true costs of this conservation remain elusive and Indigenous groups have already critiqued their limited inclusion in the COP26 deliberations4,5,6.

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Fig. 1: Misdirected policies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Global Sustainable Development, School of Cross-Faculty Studies, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

    Marco J. Haenssgen

  2. Monash University Indonesia, Bumi Serpong Damai City, Banten, Indonesia

    Alex M. Lechner

  3. Université d’Antananarivo, Ambohitsaina, Antananarivo, Madagascar

    Sarobidy Rakotonarivo

  4. Department of Social Science and Development, Chiang Mai University, T. Suthep, Muang, Chiang Mai, Thailand

    Prasit Leepreecha, Mukdawan Sakboon & Ta-Wei Chu

  5. Department of Geography, CY Cergy Paris Université, Cergy, France

    Elizabeth Auclair

  6. Warwick Business School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

    Ivo Vlaev

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Correspondence to Marco J. Haenssgen.

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P.L. is a board member of the Indigenous Peoples’ Foundation for Education and Environment. The authors declare no further competing interests.

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Haenssgen, M.J., Lechner, A.M., Rakotonarivo, S. et al. Implementation of the COP26 declaration to halt forest loss must safeguard and include Indigenous people. Nat Ecol Evol 6, 235–236 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01650-6

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