Online session, 10 April 2024
UTC-11:00, JST-20:00, CST-19:00, IST-16:30, EAT-14:00, CAT/CET-13:00, EDT- 7:00
Role of Indigenous Peoples in Conservation of Biodiversity
Coordinator & Moderator:
Renee Borges, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, IUBS Secretary General.
Co-Moderator:
Suneetha Subramanian, Biodiversity and Society Programme at UNU-IAS
Invited speakers:
- Siddappa Setty, Centre for Environment and Development Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) Bengaluru, India
“Adivasis and the Central Indian Forests” (video: 12:13)
- Jennifer Tauli Corpuz, lawyer from the Kankana-ey Igorot Indigenous People of northern Philippines
“Indigenous and Traditional Territories: Recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ Governance of Territory as a Distinct and Effective Pathway for Conservation” (video: 33:42)
- Sharachchandra (Sharad) Lele, Centre for Environment and Development Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) Bengaluru, India
“Adivasis and the Central Indian Forests” (video:1:00:15)
Questions addressed during the webinar:
The Webinar and its follow-up will lead to an information document to be presented at the COP in Colombia in 2024 in the Science Forum. It will examine differences in resource governance systems around the world and present original contributions towards maintaining the spotlight on indigenous peoples and their fundamental rights and responsibilities with regards to resource stewardship.
The Webinar will address the following questions with a focus on indigenous peoples:
- What is the variation across Nation States in the access to resources and in benefit sharing from ancestral resources and knowledge systems?
- Are there any unique governance methods that can foster the interests of Nation States and indigenous peoples in an equitable manner?
- Can these governance methods be used as models for Nation States?
- Should similar governance and stewardship methodologies be applied to resources that cross boundaries of Nation States.
- How should freshwater and marine resources with complex boundaries between Nation States be handled?
Report of the session on Indigenous people and biodiversity
Role of Indigenous Peoples in Conservation of Biodiversity
Globally, each Nation State has control of most natural resources, and regulates national and international access to these resources. However, there are natural biodiversity-rich areas where indigenous peoples have been traditional stewards and without whose protection the resources would have been subject to various forms of degradation. The role of indigenous peoples in the conservation of biodiversity was explored in a two-hour IUBS webinar. The speakers at the webinar were: Dr Siddappa Setty, ethnobotanist at the Ashoka Trust for Ecology and Environment (ATREE), Bengaluru, India; Jennifer Tauli Corpuz, Managing Director, Policy, Nia Tero, and based in the Philippines; and Dr Sharachchandra Lele, sociologist and environmentalist at the Ashoka Trust for Ecology and Environment (ATREE), Bengaluru, India.
Some important questions were addressed during the IUBS Webinar
- What is the variation across Nation States in the access to resources and in benefit sharing from ancestral resources and knowledge systems?
- Are there any unique governance methods that can foster the interests of Nation States and indigenous peoples in an equitable manner?
- Can these governance methods be used as models for Nation States?
- Should similar governance and stewardship methodologies be applied to resources that cross boundaries of Nation States.
- How should freshwater and marine resources with complex boundaries between Nation States be handled?
Siddappa Setty talked about the Soliga tribals in the Biligiri Ranganathaswamy Temple (BRT) Tiger Reserve in South India who for generations have integrated the conservation of wild flora and fauna into their ethos. Setty discussed the challenges for the younger generation and the implications of the Tiger Reserve for their traditional livelihoods. Most importantly, he highlighted the insidious spread of the Neotropical weed Lantana camara into the BRT forests. This weed is the most devastating invasive in Indian forests and has taken over the undergrowth. To combat this weed and also to generate new livelihoods for the Soligas, various NGOs have worked to produce garden furniture and also artefacts from Lantana stems. An example of the beautiful handicraft is shown below, in the form of a life-sized elephant, which is one of many that are on display at the Bengaluru airport. Festivals and temples dedicated to the local flora and fauna are features of the Soliga lifestyle which keep their connection with the natural environment.
Sharachchandra Lele talked about the ‘adivasis’ of Central India. Adivasi means original inhabitants of local areas. Lele emphasised the difficulty in determining who should be classified within this definition. This is especially because the Government of India has certain definitions for what are termed Scheduled Tribes. Lele also highlighted the plight of the adivasis of Central India since their habitations also coincide with the richest areas in India for ores and minerals. Therefore, conflicts between mining corporations and local inhabitants are inevitable. The problems of development versus conservation of local and traditional lifestyles were highlighted.
Jennifer Corpuz highlighted the Millenium Development Goals and the commitment as well as difficulty towards meeting them with regards to the local traditional groups within the Philippines. She focussed on how local governance of local territories was required for effective governance and provided examples of case studies from the Philippines.
In the discussion session after the three presentations, the problems of cross-nation conservation of biomes and also of migratory species that are essential to the livelihood of traditional peoples were highlighted. Examples that were specifically discussed were the Sami and their reindeer, and the livelihood of local fisherfolk.
Clearly, one developmental or governance system will not be suitable and while keeping the SDGs in mind, suitable solutions must be obtained within local contexts that will also have global impact.
Image above: Elephant crafted from Lantana camara stems and on display at the International Airport in Bengaluru, India. Picture credit: Renee M. Borges
Learn more about the panelists:
Renee Borges, is currently a Professor at the Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. Her lab studies the mechanisms and the consequences of mutualism and parasitism in iconic symbiotic model systems such as fig and fig interactions, ant and ant-plant interactions and in fungus-farming termites. She also collaborates with physicists to understand soil-based architecture by animals such as termites, potter wasps and mud dauber wasps. She has investigated chemical and visual mimicry in spiders and the visual ecology of nocturnal bees.
Sharachchandra Lele is an interdisciplinary environmental researcher, keenly interested in the concepts of sustainability and sustainable and equitable development and their practical translation in the forest, water and energy sectors. He has worked on sustainable forest management and forest governance, forest hydrology and farmer linkages, landuse change, watershed development, water governance, urban water management and pollution regulation, and environmental regulation of energy and infrastructure projects. This research has been published in a variety of interdisciplinary journals. Sharad has worked extensively to promote interdisciplinary and socially relevant environmental research at the national and international level. He has been a Board Member of the International Society for Ecological Economics, is an Associate Editor of Ecological Economics, a Founder-Member and past President of the Indian Society for Ecological Economics, and serves or has served on the editorial boards of several other journals.
Siddappa Setty R. Dr. Setty is a Senior Fellow and Centre Convener under the centre for environment and development in ATREE. He is basically an ethnobotanist, holds a PhD from the University of Mysore, India. He is a committed researcher-practitioner, who has bridged science, policy, and practice to achieve sustainable development goals in the tribal areas of Western Ghats, India. With around 30 years of career, he has made tremendous contributions to the sustainable use of forest resources and livelihood enhancement in tribal landscapes. Facilitated land and forest resource tenure for around 30,000 Soliga tribal and other forest-dependent communities. He has built two Community Conservation Centres in Western Ghats, his work generated around 30 million rupees (INR) cash income to the forest dependent communities through invasive species and non-timber forest products-based enterprises. He was a Fulbright Nehru Fellow in 2009 to visit Oregon State University, USA. And received iF social impact award for the project “Weeds to Wealth”. He has published around 35 peer-reviewed research papers and manuals.
Suneetha Subramanian, has more than 15 years of experience in international and sub-national research and capacity building activities relating to biodiversity and human well-being with a focus on equity; traditional knowledge; linking policy goals to local priorities and community well-being; assessment of changes to ecosystems and human well-being; socio-ecological resilience; and joint implementation of policies and actions on health and biodiversity at the community level. Dr. Subramanian has been involved as a coordinating lead author in various assessments of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).
Jennifer Tauli Corpuz is a lawyer from the Kankana-ey Igorot Indigenous People of northern Philippines, and is Managing Director, Policy for Nia Tero, a US-based foundation that works with Indigenous Peoples to protect their collective teeritory and culture worldwide.
Abstracts of the talks:
Speaker: Sharachchandra Lele
Title: Adivasis and the Central Indian Forests
Abstract: Of the different socio-ecological regions inhabited by Adivasis (Indigenous Peoples) in India, the central Indian forest belt is perhaps the most contested. It represents the classic case of convergence between forest and mineral wealth, indigenous community presence, and poverty/marginalization. I shall briefly outline the history of the region, the historical injustices faced by Adivasis during colonial and post-colonial rule, and the scope for redressal of injustices and restructuring of forest and other governance offered by recent legislations. The region offers tremendous potential for a re-convergence of forest conservation and Adivasi well-being, and potentially a new vision for a rights-based ,ecologically sound, democratic, well-being focused model of development.
Speaker: Siddappa Setty
Title: “Soliga tribal community, livelihood and conservation under the Forest Rights Act in Western Ghats, India”
Abstract: Over the last few decades, many countries around the globe have tried different ways to incorporate local communities into forest management and conservation activities. Protected areas in India have had significant impacts on local communities, primarily through the physical removal of people. The indigenous Soliga tribal community has been living in the forest for centuries, and they are known as the people of the bamboo. In the case of Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Tiger Reserve (BRT) a protected area where Soligas reside and are dependent on the forest for livelihood and subsistence needs. Efforts to integrate local communities in the management and enhance community benefits from the forests have been undertaken, including participatory resource monitoring, value addition for forest products, and co-management under the policy Forest Rights Act.
The Forest Rights Act (FRA) of 2006 was used to empower forest dependent communities with rights to access forests for their wellbeing. Our work has facilitated the provisioning of forest rights to 77 Gram Sabhas which include 83 villages and 5433 families with 21,732 members. These two accomplishments are important milestones under the protected area regime. To develop an inclusive co-management plan, seven community meetings have been conducted, in which around 1000 community members participated. Meetings were focused on encouraging the community to develop community lead co-management plans for conservation and livelihood enhancements under FRA.
They felt that Lantana (invasive species) spread was a major problem for the forest. It won’t allow other native species to grow/regenerate. Lantana furniture making is one of the solutions to controlling the weed. Control of traditional forest fires is contributing to canopy fires, and we need to think about litter fires that do not damage the forest. The community felt that they need strengthen Grama sabha (decentralised community governance system) at the village level under the FRA. They felt that they needed awareness about forest management, cooperation, and support from the forest department and other stakeholders.
Speaker: Jennifer Tauli Corpuz
Title: “Indigenous and Traditional Territories: Recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ Governance of Territory as a Distinct and Effective Pathway for Conservation”
Abstract: Indigenous Peoples play a crucial role in conservation due to their traditional knowledge systems and sustainable practices. Their deep understanding of their local ecosystems has led them to develop ways of managing resources that are both sustainable and respectful of the natural world. Indigenous peoples often have a strong spiritual connection to the land and its resources, and their traditional practices, beliefs, and worldviews reflect this. As such, they are often at the forefront of efforts to protect and conserve the environment, a fact that was confirmed by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) in its 2019 Global Assessment Report.
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted by almost 200 Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2022, recognizes the roles, rights, and contributions of Indigenous Peoples to biodiversity conservation. In target 3 of the Framework, “Indigenous and traditional territories” is recognized alongside protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures. This presentation explores the different ways that Indigenous Peoples protect and conserve their ecosystems in accordance with their Indigenous laws and customary laws, and identifies potential policy pathways to count Indigenous and traditional territories towards the quantitative commitment in target 3, while ensuring respect for the right to self-determination and associated rights of Indigenous Peoples.