| In this edition: Exciting updates on the latest work from our Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative. |
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| INTRODUCTION: INDIGENOUS LEADERSHIP AND THE FUTURE OF CLIMATE FINANCE
Dear friends,
While Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPs & LCs) are widely recognized as essential stewards of forests and biodiversity, the climate and conservation finance that reaches them remains only a fraction of what is needed. Our newly published State of Climate and Conservation Finance for IPs & LCs report underscores both the progress and the persistent challenges in this realm. After all, closing this gap is not just a matter of justice but of effectiveness. Without direct and equitable finance, the world cannot meet its climate and biodiversity goals, especially since Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities manage more than 50% of the world’s land and over one-third of intact forests.
Progress is happening. We heard this firsthand at New York Climate Week and during our recent webinar with the Natural Climate Solutions Alliance, where Indigenous leaders from Pará and Amapá spoke about the importance of building finance systems with communities, not for them. The momentum is growing around a simple truth: climate and conservation finance must be designed and led by communities themselves, with support from governments and the private sector.
How do we unlock direct finance? Through practical tools and partnerships. We have begun a historic project with Brazil’s Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and GreenData, supporting territorial governance and climate finance through a series of workshops with Indigenous leaders across all of Brazil’s different biomes, including the first one in Brasília last month. Our new Understanding Climate Finance series is designed to demystify complex financial mechanisms so communities can navigate and influence the systems that affect their territories and rights. In that same vein, our recently launched Indigenous Peoples & Local Communities Resources Center serves as a living hub of knowledge and tools for communities worldwide.
Recognition for community leadership is expanding. Brazil’s new resolution on Indigenous rights and forest governance, for instance, offers a concrete step toward aligning national policy with community priorities.
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| Forest Trends team, partners, and Minister Sonia Guajajara with her team from Brazil’s Ministry of Indigenous People during the launch of the Strengthening Indigenous Territories: Governance, Climate Finance, and Biodiversity Value Chains project. Photo Credit: Levi Tapuia
At a more local scale, one of our longstanding Mesoamerican partners, ADINA, was recently selected for Ashden’s Thriving Forests program, which highlights grassroots innovation that protects forests and strengthens livelihoods. This recognition is one of our goals with the Territorial Governance Mechanism, an initiative in which we work side-by-side with the Mesoamerican Alliance for Peoples and Forests and other partners.
Our Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative’s mission has always been to bridge worlds: between finance and community realities, and between policy frameworks and lived experience. The recent State of Climate and Conservation Finance report reminds us how far we still have to go. At the same time, new partnerships, policy advances, and the growing recognition of Indigenous leadership point clearly to what is possible.
As we look ahead to COP30 in Belém, we are energized by the opportunity to put these issues at the center of the global agenda. Not only will we be participating in the COP itself, but we are formal supporters of the Indigenous Village COP (Aldeia COP), welcoming up to 3,000 Indigenous people from around the world to discuss and advocate for priorities that build meaningful impact for their communities and culture. The road to Belém, and then Australia for COP31, is a unique chance to build the finance, policies, and partnerships that will match the ambitions of Indigenous- and community-led solutions. We remain committed to this work with humility, persistence, and hope.
Warm Regards,
Michael Jenkins |
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ALDEIA COP
“THE INDIGENOUS VILLAGE COP” |
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Forest Trends is proud to support the Indigenous Village COP, the central hub for Indigenous participation at COP30 in Belém this November. Together with Brazil’s Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and GreenData, we are helping bring up to 3,000 Indigenous leaders from Brazil and around the world to shape climate negotiations, policy, and governance. The Village will feature workshops on climate finance and REDD+, a Bioeconomy Fair, and cultural programming highlighting Indigenous art, rituals, and innovation. This is a global stage created and led by Indigenous Peoples, ensuring that their presence is not merely one of resistance, but of meaningful impact.
Partners and funders are invited to contribute to making the Indigenous Village COP a global landmark for Indigenous participation and climate justice. If interested, please reach out to Debora Batista at dbatista@nullforest-trends.org.
Photo Credit: Brazil’s Ministry of Indigenous Peoples |
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| A STEP FORWARD FOR INDIGENOUS RIGHTS AND FOREST GOVERNANCE |
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| For generations, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities have safeguarded the world’s forests—sustaining biodiversity, storing carbon, and carrying cultural knowledge that benefits all of humanity. They manage more than 50% of the world’s land and over one-third of intact forests, yet they historically have received less than 1% of global climate finance directly. This injustice has limited their ability to lead in climate solutions, despite their proven record of stewardship.
The recent approval of Resolution No. 19/2025 by Brazil’s National REDD+ Commission (CONAREDD+) represents a significant step toward correcting this imbalance. The Resolution sets clear requirements for jurisdictional programs and private carbon projects in public and collective lands. It mandates alignment with territorial management plans, prohibits restrictions on traditional land use, requires free, prior, and informed consultation, guarantees independent technical and legal support for communities, and establishes protections for human rights defenders along with community-led grievance mechanisms.
[Read the full blog post.] |
STATE OF CLIMATE AND CONSERVATION
FINANCE FOR IPs & LCs |
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| TRUST, TENURE AND TRANSPARENCYLess than 5% of multilateral climate finance reaches IPs & LCs directly. Without structural reforms, the world risks repeating the mistakes of the past decade—channeling billions of dollars into mechanisms that may tick boxes but fail to deliver real impact on the ground.
The State of Climate and Conservation Finance for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities 2025 is the latest global analysis that brings together data on both climate and conservation finance flows directed to IPs & LCs. The report highlights both barriers and success stories, pointing to reforms urgently needed as the landmark USD $1.7 billion Forest Tenure Funders Group pledge ends in 2025.
Our recommendations include:
- Require carbon standards and funds to mandate equitable participation and revenue sharing.
- Support Indigenous- and community-led organizations’ interests on the ground, while ensuring intermediaries act as facilitators, not competitors, for access to funding.
- Strengthen innovative Indigenous-centered models, like impact bonds, biodiversity credits, and Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES), that actively reflect local values and that provide additional funding sources beyond credits and carbon.
- Recognize the importance of non-monetary benefits, including tenure security and political empowerment.
[Read the full report.] |
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| From August 11 to 14, we hosted the “Climate Policies, Climate Finance, and PES in Indigenous Lands” workshop in Brasília. The training brought together 33 professionals from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples and the National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (FUNAI) to deepen understanding of how climate policy and finance intersect with Indigenous rights and governance. Participants explored the challenges and opportunities of the climate crisis, environmental finance mechanisms, and strategies for building inclusive climate governance that centers the collective rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The event was part of the “Strengthening Indigenous Territories: Governance, Climate Finance, and Biodiversity Value Chains” project, implemented by the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples (MPI), Forest Trends’ Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative, and Greendata, with support from the Embassy of Australia in Brazil.
[Explore our climate finance training resources for communities.] |
| Understanding Climate Finance is a series of educational brochures designed to make complex climate finance concepts more accessible. It focuses on opportunities and challenges for IPs & LCs, while providing real-world examples to illustrate how these mechanisms work in practice. Find it in English, Portuguese, and Spanish. |
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| The Resource Center provides a comprehensive library of reports, videos, guidance documents and more—all tailored to help communities effectively engage with climate and conservation finance and leverage financial tools to protect their lands, cultures, and livelihoods. Visit it HERE. |
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