Amazon Awakening

This year's United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil, has been eagerly awaited worldwide. A COP in the Amazon raises expectations for all those who recognize the urgency of climate change and its impact on our lives and environment. That is why Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silvais calling this the "COP of Truth.

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As co-hosts for this COP, the Indigenous peoples and local communities of Brazil's Amazon region understand what is at stake. We are among those who suffer the most from climate change, since our lives and livelihoods are directly connected to the natural ecosystems and biodiversity that global warming threatens. We are also among those who can provide some of the most powerful responses to the problem. For example, territories managed by Indigenous peoples and local communities have deforestation rates up to 50% lower than other areas.

This is no accident. We are spiritually connected to nature; by relying on traditional knowledge to safeguard our territories, we also protect crucial carbon sinks and ecosystem services that benefit everyone.

To meet the urgent goals enshrined in the Paris climate agreement, everyone must recognize the contributions of Indigenous peoples in formulating climate policies. That means recognizing territorial protection and land-tenure policies as inherently effective climate measures.

Such recognition also highlights another issue. Historically, Indigenous peoples have received the fewest resources in the flow of climate and environmental finance: less than 1% of all funding actually reaches these territories, which is both inefficient and unjust. That is why the Brazilian government, working closely with other countries and Indigenous organizations, has gone to great lengths to ensure that COP30 benefits those who protect forests.