Indigenous voices in climate, conservation and carbon negotiations

It is critical for Indigenous voices to be integrated into high-integrity carbon markets. As the global community advances efforts to address climate change and biodiversity loss, it is increasingly important to formally recognize and amplify Indigenous voices.

A landmark agreement at the 16 th Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has formalized mechanisms to ensure greater participation of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) and local communities (LCs) in CBD decision making processes. This formal recognition of IPs and LCs in global biodiversity governance sets a strong precedent. This milestone is more than symbolic and provides a foundation for IPs and LCs to influence policies and standards that impact their lands, resources and livelihoods directly.

At RECOFTC, our programmatic approach on enhancing climate change adaptation and mitigation is closely linked to working with IPs and LCs and ensuring their land and resource rights are upheld. In my role as a programme officer, I often collaborate with IPs and LCs from the Asia-Pacific region. I am also engaged in advocating for fair and effective inclusion of IPs and LCs in the global carbon market sphere as an Asia regional member of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum at the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market.

IP and LC engagement in conservation and carbon markets

RECOFTC co-organized an IP, LC and carbon market-focused regional knowledge exchange with Tebtebba and UN-REDD – UNDP from 16 to 19 September 2024 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. At the event, I led a session on the role of IPs in shaping carbon market standards.

The knowledge exchange facilitated dialogue on carbon markets, highlighting the need for inclusive decision-making and capacity building to protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities. The objective was to equip participants with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate carbon markets effectively.

IP representatives from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam participated. They all had varying levels of knowledge and experience of the carbon market. Many of the participants approached the topic with caution, seeking to better understand the risks and opportunities.

In many ways, our knowledge exchange served as a response to the call by Indigenous participants at the Asia Pacific Climate Week (organized in September 2023 in Johor, Malaysia) for a moratorium on carbon markets until Indigenous rights are fully respected.

We provided participants practical information to help them critically assess the integrity of carbon projects. We also provided support in developing strategies for capacity building and exploring potential partnerships between IPs and support groups.

Equipping Indigenous leaders for roles in carbon markets

One of the highlights of the knowledge exchange was a session on high-integrity carbon markets, facilitated by Celina (Kin Yi) Yong, regional stakeholder engagement specialist UN-REDD. Young spoke about the need to maintain social, environmental and cultural integrity within carbon markets. Indigenous leaders then shared their perspectives, stressing the importance of strong safeguards and benefit-sharing mechanisms to ensure equitable participation and prevent exploitation.

I led a session on the role of IPs in shaping carbon market standards, outlining the immediate priority of incorporating Indigenous voices into the development of high-integrity carbon markets. Among other things I wanted to highlight that with organizations such as the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market, IPs have strong platforms on which to make their concerns heard.

In another session, Colin Moore, Regional Carbon Advisor for Southeast Asia, Wildlife Conservation Society and Kasturi Navalkar, Partnerships Manager at VNV Advisory shared real-world cases led by their organizations. This facilitated direct interaction between IPs and private sector players. Participants were able to ask questions, address concerns and gain a deeper understanding of the carbon market landscape.

There was also a field visit – to the Huoy Bong Community Forest in Huay Bong, a village in Ta Neu Sub-district, Mae-On district of Chiang Mai – that gave participants the opportunity to engage with local community members. The villagers at Huay Bong shared the firsthand challenges and real-life lessons they have faced when participating in carbon projects.

Perspectives from the Asia-Pacific region

While carbon markets offer financial potential tied to forest conservation, they also raise concerns about equity, cultural integrity and meaningful participation. There is a need to build capacity and strengthen networks.

IPs and LCs often lack the technical and legal expertise needed to negotiate fair benefit-sharing agreements in carbon projects. It is imperative to put these support systems in place. At our knowledge exchange, the diversity of perspectives among Indigenous leaders revealed varying levels of skepticism and openness to engagement.

Renuka Pradabphuthong, a representative of the Network of Indigenous Peoples in Thailand, voiced strong reservations about carbon credits. “Carbon credits seem to have more negative impacts than positive ones for Indigenous communities. They are not a sustainable solution.”

On the other hand, Pasang Dolma Sherpa from the Center for Indigenous Peoples’ Research and Development, Nepal, said that it was too early to decide. “There’s still so much to learn. Even to say no to future engagement with carbon projects, we need to know more.”

Addressing the disconnect between carbon policies and lived realities 

Minnie Degawan, an Indigenous leader from the Philippines, offered a critical perspective on current carbon market safeguards and standards, noting that they are often developed far from the forests they aim to protect. “All these safeguards and standards are developed at a global scale, in places where forests are not located. They are not designed for Indigenous peoples. They are designed for buyers,” she observed.

Another key issue raised by IP representatives was the need for inclusive participation and recognition of IPs as active players in forest conservation. Rukmini Paata, from the Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago in Indonesia, stressed, “Stakeholders and relevant actors need to know more about how carbon markets work so that we are not only part of the audience but are also participants.” She added, “Indigenous Peoples have been protecting forests for generations, and we must have a say in these decisions.”

A similar sentiment was echoed by Asami Segundo, an Indigenous youth leader from the Philippines, who spoke about the exclusion of Indigenous voices from decision-making processes. “It’s not enough for us to know our rights as Indigenous peoples. Policymakers need to include us in decision-making processes.”

Their comments highlighted the disconnect between global carbon policies and the lived realities of Indigenous communities, reinforcing the need for tailored approaches that prioritize Indigenous rights and knowledge.

A path forward

A shared priority across countries in the Asia-Pacific region is the development of legal frameworks that recognize and protect IP rights, alongside initiatives to educate and engage Indigenous leaders in carbon market governance, carbon accounting and policy development.

At the knowledge exchange, IP representatives stressed the importance of capacity-building, Indigenous-led monitoring and grievance mechanisms to ensure transparency and safeguard IP rights. Multi-stakeholder approaches involving governments, IPs and civil society organizations were highlighted as essential for addressing these issues.

There is some work being done with these priorities in mind. In the Philippines, for instance, Indigenous organizations want to document Indigenous experiences through workshops. Thailand is prioritizing the enhancement of understanding around the Community Forest Act and carbon markets through training sessions with support from RECOFTC and UNDP. In Indonesia, Indigenous groups aim to integrate women and youth into capacity-building programmes, create a database of carbon project developers, and focus on peat swamp forest management. In Nepal, efforts centre on dialogues that incorporate Indigenous perspectives into environmental policymaking. Cambodia has prioritized the importance of documenting traditional ecological knowledge to integrate it into national policies. And in Myanmar, partnerships between Indigenous groups and local authorities are being fostered to strengthen IP participation in carbon markets.

Presently, RECOFTC, Tebteba and UN-REDD – UNDP are working on developing a carbon market toolkit for IPs and LCs that builds on the outcomes of the knowledge exchange event. This toolkit will offer high-level concepts and modules to help IPs and LCs better understand and evaluate carbon market processes. We are also working on a series of FAQ-format knowledge products that will offer clear, unbiased answers to help IPs and LCs make informed decisions about engaging in carbon projects.

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Mamta Lama is programme officer – Enhanced climate change adaption and mitigation at RECOFTC.

RECOFTC’s work is made possible with the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Government of Sweden.