🌱 Why is deforestation a problem?
Logging, illegal mining, and cattle farming are core drivers for deforestation.[i] The deforestation of rainforests is increasing over time, and it often occurs within nature reserves or on Indigenous lands.[ii] A prime example of this issue is the Amazon forest, where the overall deforestation level is currently at 17%. The Amazon forest “is the largest tropical rainforest on Earth” and is considered a “stabilizer of the global climate”. It is also “home to a third of all species on Earth and a large percentage of the world's flowing freshwater”. Moreover, around four hundred different Indigenous Peoples call the Amazon forest home. Yet currently, both “[t]he forest and its inhabitants face serious threats from deforestation, resource theft, land grabbing and destructive development projects”.[iii]
🌱 How does deforestation impact biodiversity and Indigenous groups?
Deforestation negatively impacts biodiversity and Indigenous groups globally. There are currently an estimated 370 million Indigenous People, living across 70 countries globally. [iv] Indigenous Peoples are believed to be the “best stewards” of forests.[v] According to the UN, “Indigenous communities […] help to maintain 80% of the biodiversity left […], and [maintain] some of the world’s most valuable carbon sinks and natural resources.”[vi] Moreover, “[t]he forests of the indigenous and tribal peoples’ territories store about 34,000 million metric tonnes of carbon”.[vii] Deforestation on protected territories in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest increased by 129% between 2013 and 2021, and thereby led to 96 million metric tons of CO2 being released into the atmosphere.[viii]
🌱 Why are Indigenous groups impacted disproportionately by deforestation?
Indigenous communities notably “have profound cultural and historical linkages to their ecosystems of forests”.[ix] For them, deforestation can mean “loss of traditional land, water contamination, air pollution, and threats to cultural identity”.[x] Moreover, deforestation also comes with a number of severe and even lethal risks to Indigenous Peoples – especially those who live in an otherwise “uncontacted, non-contacted or isolated” manner. For example, loggers can bring pathogens and diseases into the forests against which “uncontacted, non-contacted or isolated” peoples may have no immune resistance. In the worst case, this can lead to the death of a whole tribe or even several tribes. There is also always a risk of violence on both sides when loggers enter Indigenous lands.[xi]
🌱 How does deforestation threaten Indigenous ways of life?
Deforestation poses a threat to Indigenous Peoples’ “lifestyles, cultural identities, and physical and mental health”.[xii] In line with this, it is important to note that several groups of Indigenous Peoples in the Amazon rainforest consciously avoid contact with the outside world, as they have “already had negative experiences” in this context – such as having “their ancestral land […] violently taken away from them”.[xiii] The decision to live this way is something that should be respected by governments and companies alike.
This post has been adapted from a newsletter written by Christine Nikander and Heidrun Kordholste-Nikander. The newsletter titled “How can companies protect Indigenous Peoples’ rights by caring for forests?” was originally published in “The Just Transition Newsletter” by Palsa & Pulk.
[i] Gonzales, Jenny: Study confirms surge in deforestation in Indigenous lands under Bolsonaro. https://news.mongabay.com/2023/07/study-confirms-surge-in-deforestation-in-indigenous-lands-under-bolsonaro/ (05.11.2024)
[ii] Westdeutscher Rundfunk: Kein Kontakt zur Außenwelt: Isoliertes Volk in Peru gesichtet. https://www1.wdr.de/unkontaktiertes-volk-in-peru-aufgetaucht-100.html (05.11.2024)
[iii] Amazon Watch: Den Amazonas und unser Klima in Solidarität mit indigenen Völkern schützen. https://amazonwatch.org/de/work (05.11.2024)
[iv] Kanungo, Alokya: The Silent Cry of the Forest: How Deforestation Impacts Indigenous Communities. https://earth.org/the-silent-cry-of-the-forest-how-deforestation-impacts-indigenous-communities/ (05.11.2024)
[v] Amazon Watch: Den Amazonas und unser Klima in Solidarität mit indigenen Völkern schützen. https://amazonwatch.org/de/work (05.11.2024)
[vi] Morton, Adam: Evidence grows of forced labour and slavery in production of solar panels, wind turbines. https://amp-theguardian-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/29/evidence-grows-of-forced-labour-and-slavery-in-production-of-solar-panels-wind-turbines (05.11.2024); Taft, Molly: Over Half the World’s Energy Transition Minerals Are on Indigenous Lands. https://gizmodo.com/over-half-the-worlds-energy-transition-minerals-are-on-1849865104 (05.11.2024); European Federation for Transport and Environment: How Europe can improve the way global extractive companies do business. https://www.transportenvironment.org/discover/how-europe-can-improve-the-way-global-extractive-companies-do-business/ (05.11.2024)
[vii] Kanungo, Alokya: The Silent Cry of the Forest: How Deforestation Impacts Indigenous Communities. https://earth.org/the-silent-cry-of-the-forest-how-deforestation-impacts-indigenous-communities/ (05.11.2024)
[viii] Gonzales, Jenny: Study confirms surge in deforestation in Indigenous lands under Bolsonaro. https://news.mongabay.com/2023/07/study-confirms-surge-in-deforestation-in-indigenous-lands-under-bolsonaro/ (05.11.2024)
[ix] Kanungo, Alokya: The Silent Cry of the Forest: How Deforestation Impacts Indigenous Communities. https://earth.org/the-silent-cry-of-the-forest-how-deforestation-impacts-indigenous-communities/ (05.11.2024)
[x] Kanungo, Alokya: The Silent Cry of the Forest: How Deforestation Impacts Indigenous Communities. https://earth.org/the-silent-cry-of-the-forest-how-deforestation-impacts-indigenous-communities/ (05.11.2024)
[xi] Westdeutscher Rundfunk: Kein Kontakt zur Außenwelt: Isoliertes Volk in Peru gesichtet. https://www1.wdr.de/unkontaktiertes-volk-in-peru-aufgetaucht-100.html (05.11.2024)
[xii] [xii] Kanungo, Alokya: The Silent Cry of the Forest: How Deforestation Impacts Indigenous Communities. https://earth.org/the-silent-cry-of-the-forest-how-deforestation-impacts-indigenous-communities/ (05.11.2024)
[xiii] Westdeutscher Rundfunk: Kein Kontakt zur Außenwelt: Isoliertes Volk in Peru gesichtet. https://www1.wdr.de/unkontaktiertes-volk-in-peru-aufgetaucht-100.html (05.11.2024)