Fear of more coronavirus-like pandemics as land rights ‘under siege’
Nairobi, Kenya Thomson Reuters Foundation Governments’ failure to recognise the land rights of indigenous communities and their role in protecting biodiversity could lead to more coronavirus-like pandemics, researchers said on Tuesday. A study of more than 40 countries found many local people’s land claims were being ignored, amid increasing deforestation and wildlife exploitation, which may […]
Privatisation “wave” hurts poor as pandemic heightens risks
Bangkok, Thailand Thomson Reuters Foundation A push to privatise land and other resources in countries from Ukraine to Papua New Guinea is hurting Indigenous people and the rural poor, while increasing the risks linked to climate change, researchers at a US-based thinktank said on Tuesday. From a rise in deforestation in the Amazon rainforest, a […]
Indonesia: With forest rights, Indigenous peoples stave off mining and palm oil plantations
RINA CHANDRAN, reporting for the Thomson Reuters Foundation, writes about how Indigenous people on the Indonesian island of Sumatra are looking to assert land rights to preserve forests…
Fight climate change by granting indigenous rights to forests – report
Thomson Reuters Foundation Granting forest dwellers legal rights to their traditional lands helps fight deforestation and climate change, but the vast majority of the world’s forests remain under government control with limited access for communities, researchers said. Only about 14 per cent of forests, or about 527 million hectares, were legally owned or designated for […]
First global funding pact launched to secure indigenous land rights
Thomson Reuters Foundation Indigenous people under threat from companies seeking to develop their land for agriculture, mining and energy projects will be supported with money and practical help through a major global partnership backed by philanthropic and government funding. The International Land and Forest Tenure Facility is the first initiative to provide grants to advance […]