Photo: ProAmazonia
Indigenous Peoples are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change due to our close relationship with the environment and our reliance on natural resources for our livelihoods. Moreover, we have historically faced marginalization and dispossession and our rights to our lands and traditions have been systematically denied, leaving us vulnerable to the unfolding climate crisis.
Some of the climate change impacts we are experiencing are irreversible. They cannot be mitigated or adapted to. Sudden extreme weather events, like hurricanes and floods, or slow-onset changes such as sea-level rise and desertification are profoundly affecting communities worldwide. The concept of loss and damage refers to the societal and environmental costs of these impacts, which can include economic losses, such as damaged infrastructure and reduced agricultural productivity, and non-economic losses, such as loss of life, livelihoods, culture, identity and biodiversity.
Indigenous Peoples are already grappling with different types of loss and damage. From the Caribbean to the Philippines, hurricanes, cyclones, heatwaves and droughts are affecting our communities. And even though we know how to face them, the intensity and frequency of these events are now greater, not giving us space to practice the resilience that for millennia has been the basis of our culture. Our lands are drying out, our forests are burning, our communities are being displaced and our traditions and identities are under threat of extinction.
We were a powerful voice in support of establishing the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FLD) in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement. After many years of advocacy and negotiations, the Fund was finally established at COP27 in Egypt and operationalized one year later, at COP28 in the United Arab Emirates. It aims to provide financial support to communities and countries that are impacted by climate change, particularly those that are most vulnerable. As the policies, procedures and modalities of the Fund are being set up to provide vulnerable countries and communities with direct access to resources, Indigenous Peoples must be able to meaningfully participate due to our first-hand experience with loss and damage, our vulnerability to ongoing climate change impacts and our commitment to human rights-based and community-centered approaches.
Photo: Phil Kabuje / UNDP Tanzania
Photo: UNDP Colombia
As representatives of the Indigenous Peoples Organizations (IPO) constituency under the UNFCCC, we believe certain demands must be met to ensure that the FLD respects the rights and responds to the needs of Indigenous Peoples worldwide.
- The Fund must have inclusive governance structures. To ensure meaningful participation, the governance structures of the Fund must be inclusive. This means having representation from Indigenous Peoples organizations and communities at all levels of decision-making, from the design and planning stages to implementation and evaluation. Creating policies, advisory bodies or committees that include Indigenous Peoples experts and representatives can help achieve this. The participation of Indigenous Peoples in the FLD is a matter of rights and justice. International agreements, such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), affirm the rights of Indigenous Peoples to participate in decision-making processes that affect us. As rights-holders, IPO prioritizes the integration of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) and the guidance of the UNDRIP. The principles of FPIC and recognition of Indigenous rights, as enshrined in UNDRIP, must be integral to the development of FLD guidelines to ensure that Indigenous communities are meaningfully involved in decision-making processes that affect us.
- The Fund must provide capacity-building and support. Many Indigenous Peoples communities may require capacity-building support to effectively engage in FLD processes. This may include training on climate finance, project development and management, and advocacy skills. Providing such support ensures that Indigenous Peoples’ communities can participate on an equal footing and contribute their expertise effectively.
- The Fund must have culturally appropriate mechanisms. The mechanisms for accessing and distributing funds should be culturally appropriate and accessible to Indigenous Peoples. This involves simplifying bureaucratic procedures, providing information in Indigenous Peoples languages, and ensuring that funding criteria recognize and respect Indigenous Peoples livelihoods, ways of life and knowledge systems. Indigenous Peoples possess a wealth of traditional knowledge and sustainable practices that have been developed over centuries and contribute to the solutions of the multiple environmental crises that we face. This knowledge is invaluable in understanding local ecosystems and developing effective strategies for climate resilience. By involving Indigenous Peoples in the FLD, we can leverage this knowledge to create more effective and culturally appropriate solutions to climate impacts.
- The Fund must prioritize long-term, sustainable and predictable funding. It is important that FLD strategies are designed to ensure Indigenous Peoples have access to additional, sustainable and predictable funding over the long term. Mechanisms should be explored that guarantee this support while recognizing the unique needs and rights of Indigenous Peoples. An important aspect of this is the establishment of dedicated Fund support mechanisms that enable direct access for Indigenous Peoples. Simplifying the application and approval processes is essential to ensure efficient and sustainable distribution of these funds to those most in need. For direct access to function effectively, it must be facilitated through modalities as defined with Indigenous Peoples organizations and institutions, either directly through the Fund itself or through national or subnational entities that have significant work with Indigenous Peoples.
- The Fund should adopt specific policies for Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples advocate for the creation and adoption of specific policies within FLD that address the unique concerns and rights of Indigenous Peoples. These policies should reflect the cultural, social and environmental contexts of Indigenous Peoples.
- The Fund should establish an Indigenous Peoples Advisory Group. As part of the Indigenous Peoples Policy, we consider it is important to establish an Indigenous Peoples' Advisory Group (IPAG) within the FLD framework, similar to that of the Green Climate Fund (GCF). This group will provide a dedicated space for Indigenous Peoples representatives to contribute their knowledge, expertise and perspectives to the secretariat, board and other entities in relation to building climate resilience and responding to loss and damage, including non-economic losses and how these should be supported by the Fund.
The Fund for responding to Loss and Damage represents a critical tool in addressing the impacts of climate change on vulnerable communities. For the Fund to be truly effective, the inclusion and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples is essential. Our unique vulnerabilities, traditional knowledge and rights must be recognized and integrated into the Fund’s governance and implementation processes. By ensuring meaningful participation, we can create a more just, equitable and effective response to the global challenge of climate change.
Incorporating our perspective as Indigenous Peoples not only honors our rights and contributions but also enhances the overall resilience and sustainability of climate solutions. As we move forward in the fight against climate change, let us ensure that no voice is left unheard, and no community is left behind.