ICCA Global Support Initiative – Legal Support

Natural Justice is proud to announce that it will be coordinating the ICCA Global Support Initiative’s work on legal and policy change. The work is a follow up to the 2012 Legal Reviews also coordinated by Natural Justice. The overall object is to ensure greater recognition of and support for territories and areas conserved by Indigenous peoples and communities (ICCAs) through appropriate legal/policy reforms at national, regional and global levels in order to enhance local livelihoods and conservation effectiveness. Activities will include: the development of up to 20 national legal reviews, an international review and a synthesis report; submission of insights from the national level reviews to regional and international legal and policy processes; production of a number of policy briefs on important and emerging issues, such as ‘other effective area-based conservation measures;’ and the facilitation of policy platforms and in-country processes. Natural Justice looks forward to working with the Secretariat of the ICCA Consortium and its members, the GEF-Small Grant Program, IUCN and other partners in this important endeavor. More information and updates will be posted to this blog and on the consortium’s website: www.iccaconsortium.org

New Publication: South Africa Legal Review

Supported by Ford Foundation Southern Africa, Natural Justice has coordinated a series of legal reviews in Southern Africa, examining the national laws and policies that support or undermine indigenous peoples and local communities. The second of these legal reviews focuses on the legal and policy frameworks in South Africa, examining human rights, land and freshwater, protected areas and sacred natural sites, natural resources and extraction.

This is the second of a series of legal reviews for Southern Africa. You can find the South African legal review here.

New Publication: Zimbabwe Legal Review

Supported by Ford Foundation Southern Africa, Natural Justice has coordinated a series of legal reviews in Southern Africa, examining the national laws and policies that support or undermine indigenous peoples and local communities. The first of these legal reviews,  focuses on the legal and policy frameworks in Zimbabwe, examining human rights, land and freshwater, protected areas and sacred natural sites, natural resources and extraction.

This is the first of a series of legal reviews for Southern Africa. You can find the Zimbabwe legal review here.

ICCA meeting for Southern and East Africa discusses ICCA examples from the region

On 8 November Natural Justice and the ICCA Consortium co-convened a meeting near Cape Town, South Africa, on Indigenous Peoples and Local Community Controlled Territories and Conserved Areas (ICCAs) in Southern and East Africa, to identify examples and best practices from the region. 

Following a comprehensive introduction to ICCAs and their recognition under relevant international law by Natural Justice, two expert panels introduced and discussed ten individual examples of ICCAs in the region. 

On the basis of experiences from Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania, the 25 participants from the region discussed various strategies and best practices for communities to protect their ICCAs. The discussions revolved around management of ICCAs, documentation of ICCAs, and strategic litigation. 

ICCA Toolkit Now Available

The UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has recently released a new resource entitled "A Toolkit to Support Conservation by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities: Building capacity and sharing knowledge for Indigenous Peoples’ and Community Conserved Territories and Areas (ICCAs)". The toolkit documents sixteen case studies and a diverse set of innovative tools and approaches developed to help Indigenous peoples and local communities address critical challenges that affect their natural and cultural resources. The resources are organised around five key themes: documentation, management planning, monitoring and evaluation, communication, and finance and values. It also sets out tools to support the effectiveness and viability of ICCAs as governance structures for the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems. Our review of international law and jurisprudence, the Convention on Biological Diversity's Technical Series No. 64 on recognising and supporting ICCAs, and the toolkit and website on biocultural community protocols are highlighted as tools for legal empowerment and securing legal recognition.

In addition to UNEP-WCMC, the toolkit was developed with the support of and in collaboration with the UN Development Programme, the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme, the Government of Norway, the German Agency for International Cooperation, and the ICCA Consortium. It is available for download in English here.

Conservation and Land Grabbing

Salamander in the
reptile house at London Zoo
(Courtesy of Harry Jonas)

Harry Jonas (Natural Justice) attended a workshop in London (26-27 March) entitled: “Conservation and Land Grabbing: Part of the Problem or Part of the Solution?” The meeting was hosted by IIED, the International Land Coalition, Maliasili Initiatives and the Zoological Society of London and was held at the London Zoo. Harry Jonas presented on the ICCA Legal Review and the Living Convention on Biocultural Diversity. Other presenters included: Lorenzo Cotula (IIED), Fiona Flintan (ILC), Guy Counga (CISDL), and Dorothy Nyingi (National Museums of Kenya). The workshop concluded with a number of tentative conclusions and ways forwards. Harry thanks the organizers for the opportunity to present and looks forward to contributing to the Poverty and Conservation Learning Group.

ICCA Studies Featured in Stockholm Resilience Centre Research News

Indigenous rangers in Australia are increasingly gaining

recognition for "caring for country", including through the
Indigenous Protected Area programme. Photo courtesy:
Craig Wheeler, Mapoon Ranger

Two studies focusing on Indigenous peoples' and community conserved territories and areas (ICCAs) have been featured in the Stockholm Resilience Centre's Research News in an article entitled "The Invisible Guardians: Enforcing legal mechanisms can highlight Indigenous peoples' importance in natural resource governance".

The first study, coordinated by Kalpavriksh and co-edited by Natural Justice, focuses more on non-legal aspects and is published as Volume 64 of the Convention on Biological Diversity Technical Series along with 19 country studies. The second, coordinated by Natural Justice, focuses more on legal and institutional aspects and includes 15 national and three regional reviews and a review of international law and jurisprudence (all available here). The synthesis report (available in English, Spanish and French) argues that while there are a number of positive developments in the way ICCAs are recognized and supported at the international and national levels, Indigenous peoples and local communities are still often discriminated against in practice, including in ways that undermine the integrity and resilience of their territories, areas and natural resources.

The article on the Stockholm Resilience Centre's Research News also includes a video interview with Joji Carino (Indigenous Peoples' International Centre for Policy Research and Education, Tebtebba).

Overview of Key CBD COP11 Events

Harry Jonas (Natural Justice) launching the study on legal
and institutional aspects of ICCAs. Photo via IISD-RS.

Natural Justice was recently in India for the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), which took place from 8-19 October in Hyderabad. With a range of civil society, network, government, and intergovernmental partners, we co-organised, presented at and/or attended the following key meetings and events:

• 6-7 October: CBD Alliance preparatory meeting;
• 8 October: side event on the legal weight and implementation of the CBD;
• 9 October: workshop on Indigenous peoples' and local community conserved territories and areas (ICCAs) in South Asia, organised by Kalpavriksh and others;
• 9 October: side event to launch the joint study on Legal and Institutional Aspects of Recognising and Supporting Conservation by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (full list of reports available here);
• 9 October: informal meeting with India-based partners in the Asia Regional Initiative on Biocultural Community Protocols, with particular emphasis on Livestock Keepers' Rights in the context of the 2006 Forest Rights Act;

CBD Secretariat Hosts Colloquium on ICCAs and Aichi Targets

Participants of national conference on ICCAs in the 

Philippines, which took place in March 2012. Photo via

iccaforum.org.

According to a notification of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), Indigenous peoples’ and local community conserved territories and areas (ICCAs) provide multiple ecological, cultural and biodiversity values, contribute greatly to food and water security and other ecosystem processes, and help achieve the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and Aichi Biodiversity Targets. ICCAs play a critical role in ensuring access and respecting rights to customary sustainable use and facilitating inter-generational communication of traditional environmental knowledge, innovations and practices. The Secretariat continues by noting that ICCAs are increasingly recognised as the living embodiment of both Articles 8(j) and 10(c) of the CBD.

In an effort to support implementation of these Articles and several past CBD decisions, on 13 October at the 11th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP11), the CBD Secretariat co-hosted a one-day colloquium on the role of ICCAs in achieving the 2011-2020 Aichi Biodiversity Targets, along with the governments of Brazil, India, Mexico, the Philippines, Senegal, and South Africa, the ICCA Consortium, the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity, and Conservation International.