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Land and resource rights

Land and resource rights (often referred to as ‘rights to lands, territories and resources’) are fundamental to the well-being of indigenous peoples and for the conservation of biodiversity. Securing rights to lands and resources addresses issues such as exclusionary conservation by recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples to own, manage, and use their traditional lands and resources. 

This project supports indigenous peoples’ rights to own and manage their lands according to sustainable practices, and so intends to enable a far more sustainable form of conservation. In countries such as Kenya, this work will feed into the ongoing implementation of the Community Land Act through helping communities to secure community title so that they can sustainably manage and govern their lands. 

Zoraida Tinco Maldonado (40 years old), of the Quechua people, harvests corn on her farm at the end of June. Community of Hualla, Hualla district, Victor Fajardo province, Ayacucho region, Peru. Photo: Luisenrrique Becerra Velarde / CHIRAPAQ.
Zoraida Tinco Maldonado (40 years old), of the Quechua people, harvests corn on her farm at the end of June. Community of Hualla, Hualla district, Victor Fajardo province, Ayacucho region, Peru. Photo by Luisenrrique Becerra Velarde / CHIRAPAQ.

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Video

Indigenous Voices in the Philippines: Youth Storytelling Through Film

In the heart of the Philippines, indigenous youth are reclaiming their narratives through film. The Indigenous Voices training initiative led by LifeMosaic aims to equip young indigenous leaders with storytelling and filmmaking skills to amplify their communities’ voices and efforts in biodiversity conservation and cultural…
14.03.25
Blog

Revitalising Indigenous Food Systems of the Payew people of Besao, Mt. Province

Blog by Florence Daguitan Up to the 1980’s, food production of the Payew people has been sufficient and diverse. They even exported some of their surplus banana and rice. Their food comes mainly from their cultivated farms: the baangan and payew. Baangan are located within…
17.12.24
Article

Tohmle Statement

This statement was developed at the 4th Indigenous Knowledge and Peoples of Asia (IKPA) Conference on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights, Biodiversity, and Climate Change, held on October 1-4, 2024, in Pokhara, Nepal  Asia is a region of high biological and cultural diversity, where Indigenous Peoples, play…
16.12.24
Article

Community-based monitoring of ancestral land and resources in an urban setting

The experience of the Ibaloy community of Muyot, Happy Hallow, Baguio City The community of Muyot in Barangay Happy Hallow, Baguio City, has been home to the indigenous Ibaloys for generations. The original inhabitants and their descendants cared for the land, forests, and pasturelands for…
16.12.24
Video

Sharing knowledge on biodiversity: Meeting of the Yanesha and Shipibo peoples

On 26 November 2024, a meeting on traditional knowledge on biodiversity took place between the Yanesha and Shipibo peoples in the community of Unión de la Selva, territory of the Yanesha people in the region of Pasco, Peru.Unión de la Selva is a community that…
26.11.24

Conservation and Human Rights: An Introduction

This guidance is intended as a resource for conservation professionals who are interested to learn more about the relationship between conservation and human rights, especially the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities. A huge amount has been written on this topic over the past…
30.10.24

Further info

Indigenous peoples often face discrimination and exclusion from decision-making processes related to the management of their traditional lands and resources. This has led to the degradation of ecosystems and the loss of cultural heritage and underpins many of the significant challenges facing indigenous peoples across the globe. Securing rights to lands and resources addresses these issues by recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples to own, manage, and use their traditional lands and resources and pushing for the recognition of these rights by other actors. This includes the right to free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) over any activities that may affect their lands and resources. 

In this project, activities include workshops and trainings at the community level to define land-use planning, sustainable livelihood options and participatory mapping. The support of community level initiatives is expected to lead to strengthened actions by indigenous peoples and local communities, such as community-based monitoring systems, and the collection and use of biodiversity data on their lands. 

By demonstrating the valuable contributions that these communities and their territories make to national biodiversity priorities, this project makes the case for increasing security of land tenure over the longer-term.   

Khun Tee explains about the dividing of arable areas in each section. Photo by Sunaree, PASD
Khun Tee explains about the dividing of arable areas in each section. Photo by Sunaree/PASD