Indigenous Peoples Are the World’s Best Conservationists. Climate Funders Must Recognize That

Though we only comprise 6% of the world’s population, Indigenous Peoples speak over 95% percent of human languages, and we manage over one quarter of the global land surface. Our territories are not just massive in scale, they are also vibrant. Conservative estimates show that the territories of Indigenous Peoples contain about 40% of the large intact ecosystems scientists say we cannot lose if we want Earth and its natural systems to continue to support life as we know it.

This is not a coincidence. And it’s not simply because we Indigenous Peoples do not live as lavishly as our non-Indigenous brothers and sisters. It is because we are the world’s best conservationists.

A rapidly growing body of scientific research confirms that Indigenous Peoples are the most effective stewards of their forests and the massive stores of carbon and biodiversity within them. For example,

Researchers recently concluded that Amazonian forests managed by Indigenous Peoples are strong “carbon sinks,” removing 340 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year—while forests outside the Amazon’s Indigenous lands release more carbon dioxide than they absorb.

The common denominator among nearly all Indigenous Peoples is that we have a deep, spiritual, reciprocal connection with the Earth. We look at the way other cultures lay waste to land and forest and waterways, and it’s literally unfathomable to us. It’s harming one’s own mother. One’s children. One’s ancestors. Oneself.

Many governments and donors are now waking up to the reality that we must transition away from our current path of self-destruction. They are allocating significant sums for “natural climate solutions,” including $1.7B in financing to “support the advancement of Indigenous Peoples’ and local communities’ forest tenure rights and greater recognition of their role as guardians of forest and nature.”

The problem is that less than one percent of climate and biodiversity funding goes directly to Indigenous Peoples, according to a recent report from Rainforest Foundation Norway.

In my new role as chair of the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, I have three priorities. First, I am committed to increasing the level of transparency on international climate and biodiversity funding, given the fact that donors have been intentionally opaque about where their money is going. Second, my colleagues and I will be working to increase pressure on donors to seat Indigenous leaders in “the room where it happens.” In line with our mantra, “nothing about us without us,” we need those climate and biodiversity funders to make room for Indigenous Peoples on their boards. Third, we will be working to raise the percentage of funds going directly to Indigenous Peoples’ organizations rather than to “intermediaries.” Our goal: By 2030, 40% of funds for natural climate solutions should go directly to Indigenous organizations.

I know that this goal is achievable. A small group of funders are already giving the vast majority of their funds directly to Indigenous organizations—in ways that provide donors with appropriate accountability while honoring our rights, traditions, and knowledge systems. These funders’ practices demonstrate that giving directly to us is not only morally right and anti-colonialist in spirit but also more efficient and effective.

Nia Tero, a global organization focused on advancing Indigenous guardianship, is a great example. I had a chance to observe its practices up close, during a fellowship with the organization in 2023. Nia Tero calls itself an “ally” and a “bridging organization.” But to me it is an Indigenous organization because of how it is structured and the values that guide its operations on the ground. Its board is two thirds Indigenous, including two women I regard as personal heroes: Vicky Tauli-Corpuz (Kankanaey Igorot, Philippines) and Myrna Cunningham Kain (Miskito, Nicaragua). Its staff, many of whom are Indigenous, are steeped in the cultures they aim to support. As a result, Nia Tero provides large grants directly to us. They listen to us. They honor our environmental expertise. They engage in the spirit of reciprocity—not hierarchy. In brief, they are partners in more than name only.

We need more groups and funders like Nia Tero, The Tenure Facility, Pawanka Fund, and the Christensen Fund, to mention a few others with similar approaches, who are willing to listen and engage with our efforts.

So here is my call to action for funders who are open to providing direct funding to our organizations but have not yet invested in learning how. Make your funding practices transparent with criteria adapted to Indigenous Peoples. Be responsive to our needs and be ready for change. Share decision-making power with Indigenous Peoples. Invite us in multiples onto your boards. Demonstrate trust by giving scalable, substantial, unrestricted funding directly to Indigenous Peoples.

In addition to speaking four world languages (English, Arabic, French, and Spanish), I also speak my mother tongue, Fulfulde, and five other local languages from my home country of Chad. In all of the African tongues, there is a version of this famous expression: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” But I honestly believe it is possible to do both.

We Indigenous land guardians bring millennia of forest expertise and, frankly, values that are far more in tune with what the planet needs in this season of crisis. Funders bring material wealth that can deploy to strengthen our organizations, advocate for national policies that value Indigenous guardianship, and keep our communities safe. With true partnerships rooted in reciprocity, I believe we can go fast and far at the same time.