What was achieved for Indigenous peoples at COP30?

After two weeks of negotiations in Belém, Brazil, the COP30 U.N. climate summit delivered mixed outcomes, Indigenous delegates say. The event saw the largest Indigenous participation in COP history and landmark pledges made, but also heated protests and last-minute disappointments. “The summit was historic for Indigenous peoples, and this is the result of the Indigenous struggle working to be at this COP not only in numbers but also in quality of participation,” said Kleber Karipuna, executive coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB), one of the main Indigenous organizations in Brazil. “Not everything has been won as we expected — much more Indigenous lands [still need] to be demarcated.” Promises on securing land rights A major outcome of the summit was the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment (ILTC), a historic pledge to recognize Indigenous land tenure rights over 160 million hectares (395 million acres) — an area the size of Iran — across tropical forest countries, including Brazil, Colombia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, by 2030. “It is one of the most positive outcomes we hoped to achieve at COP30,” Kleber said. “In Brazil alone, 63 million hectares [156 million acres] of Indigenous lands are pledged for protection, management, and land ownership.” In addition, the Forest Tenure Funders Group (FTFG) announced a renewed pledge, totaling $1.8 billion, to support Indigenous peoples, local and Afro-descendant communities in securing land rights over the next five years. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also signed decrees for 28 quilombos…This article was originally published on Mongabay