Indigenous communities demand end to Conservation groups’ Land control
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Sixty representatives from sixteen countries signed the Nairobi Declaration, condemning large environmental organizations for seizing indigenous lands in the name of conservation.
The declaration, presented after the Our Land Our Nature meeting, accuses these groups of displacing communities to create national parks, wildlife reserves, and hunting grounds without consent. Survival International reports that at least 1.1 billion hectares of indigenous lands have been taken for environmental protection, impacting three million people in Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
The declaration details how these lands are then used for profit through carbon markets and biodiversity credits, while also being exploited for mining, plantations, and tourism. The document identifies twelve organizations, including WWF, Conservation International, and UNESCO, as being complicit in this “colonial” conservation model, alongside governments, multinational corporations, and financial institutions. It details instances of intimidation, violence, and forced displacement experienced by indigenous communities defending their territories, citing the recent arrest of Indian activist Mising Pranab Doley.
The declaration asks for the return of ancestral lands, legal recognition of communities, and an end to projects imposed on indigenous territories. The signatories propose an alternative model based on indigenous self-governance and traditional land management practices, emphasizing that conservation should be led by those with inherent knowledge of the ecosystems. They reject financial instruments like carbon credits and advocate for a system where land is not commodified and animals are not treated as assets.
A newly formed Indigenous Land Alliance will coordinate these territorial claims globally, uniting communities from countries including Bolivia, Thailand, and Kenya.
