Press Conference: Local Biodiversity Outlooks 3: How Indigenous Peoples and local communities are implementing the KMGBF, UN Convention on Biodiversity - COP 17

Hello and welcome to this press conference on the launch of Local Biodiversity Outlooks. My name is Frances Jenner, I'm the comms and media officer at Forest Peoples Programme, which is one of the co-publishers of the Local Biodiversity Outlooks 3. We're so happy to have you here for the launch of the report. I'll give a quick introduction to the report and then I'll pass over to our speakers here who will talk in more depth about the case study that they wrote for LBO3 and why it's important for the implementation of the KMGBF. So since 2016, Local Biodiversity Outlooks has been centering the perspectives, the knowledges and experiences of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the Convention on Biological Diversity. And this Local Biodiversity Outlooks 3, the third edition, is an independent report co-created by five organizations, four of whom are Indigenous. It's aligned with the CBD reporting processes, and this third edition focuses on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and looks at what's happened since the KMGBF was agreed, how current biodiversity policy is affecting Indigenous peoples and local communities, and the contributions Indigenous Peoples and local communities are making to the goals and targets of the framework, and also the gap between parties' commitments and what's actually happening on the ground for communities themselves. So it does this through 56 case studies written by Indigenous and local community authors from all of the seven socio-cultural regions. as well as expert analysis, a review of literature published since LBO2 in 2020, and Indigenous data from the Indigenous Navigator. It covers all of the targets of the KMGBF and provides an Indigenous and community perspective on what needs to happen to ensure that the actions of Indigenous peoples and local communities to protect biodiversity are effectively incorporated into the KMGBF. In a moment, I'll hand over to three of our speakers who are case study authors. So I'll just introduce them now. So in the middle, we've got Marit Mickelson, who is an advisor to the Arctic and Environmental Unit at the Sami Council. She's carried out advocacy work with Sami youth and is now working on UN climate and biodiversity conventions and with Sami cross-border initiatives. At the end, we've got Gordon John Thomas, who is a project coordinator at Pakos Trust, an organization in Malaysia working with indigenous communities. His work focuses on promoting indigenous rights and indigenous knowledge, as well as supporting the recognition and sustainable management of indigenous people's lands, territories, and resources. And next to me is Phoebe, who is an indigenous Ogiek woman and the project officer for indigenous knowledge documentation at Chepkitali Indigenous People's Development Project. Phoebe has spent nearly a decade working on issues including land, environmental and human rights, and her passion is ensuring indigenous peoples across East Africa and the world have greater participation in decision making. So I will hand over to Phoebe to talk a bit more about her case study and why it's important for the KMGBF. Over to you.

Good afternoon, brothers and sisters. So happy to have you today. As you've heard, my name is Phoebe Njema, and I come from Ogiek people of Montella, Gonchep, Kitale, that is in Kenya. And today I'm going to highlight why our case, which has been featured in LBO, is really important to the KMGF discussion. And oftenly when we speak about issues of CBD and KMGF, what rings in our minds mostly minds of most experts is international discussion such as this one. But today I just want to highlight that for attainment or for realization of the KEMGBF, the Vision 2030 to be realized, efforts by the local communities is a crucial thing and it plays a key role. And today I'm representing the voices of those local communities who could not in one way or another get a point to be here, but they really play a key role in achievement of certain targets. It might mean not all of them, but most of them. And our case study is actually titled conservation approaches rooted in traditional knowledge. The title has a very crucial meaning to us as OGEIC because when we talk about conservation, it's not an issue that is coerce or compromise from outside, but it's something that it is our responsibility. And before the KEMGBF discussion reaches the ground, people themselves know that it is our responsibility to conserve. Why we do this conservation is because our land is akin to us, and as akin, it feeds us. We have principles. The source of food, source of shelter, source of medicine is from the land. And that's why we have a responsibility to take care of it. And this particular LBO highlighted those key factors. And it is majorly a process that is consultative. The way it's done, It's done by everyone in the community. There is no isolation of probably gender perspective because a woman today, an Ogiek woman like myself and others at home, when the land is destroyed, it means that they will also be vulnerable. They will lack food, they will lack medicine, they will lack shelter. So that's why this process is very consultative and it involves everyone in the community. And I find that How we did this is we developed a community-led approaches to conservation, which is called the Ogiek community-based monitoring system. And it has priority areas that the community themselves identified, like what are we going to monitor? And it looked majorly in complementing, like having the scientific methods to come and complement the traditional way that we do our things, because majorly, the world today, even here in a COP discussion, people base or dwell a lot in published reports, statistics, and most of the time for us indigenous communities, we know our information like using traditional knowledge. So that's why we appreciate, for example, the modern science way of doing things. They come and help us to document these things. And for us, that's a key thing. But also another thing that the report highlights more is the aspect of data sovereignty. Most of the issues that are covered in biodiversity monitoring that we do is sensitive or cultural and play a very important role to us as OGEK. So when it comes to choosing the methodologies that we want to using documenting our information. The first key thing that comes in play is the data sovereignty aspect. That's why we were very keen and we chose the tools that have been highlighted in this LBO3 case that really takes care of the needs of OGEK. We have the Comapeo tool which we use and we chose this particular tool because we've co-created it and It's easy to use. Even an elder in my community can use that tool, and we interpreted it in Ogeek. So that's one of the key things. And also, in terms of how we store this information, we really look, where does it end to? Does it expose us to some knowledge harvesting? We don't want to be a subject of just being informers, but we are key right holders when it comes to our information collection process. And if you look at that story, if you read our LBO, it has brought a very big impact. As much as the people in OGEK don't understand what is happening in COP or CBD processes, one thing that I'm going to assure you today is they really contribute. For example, if you look at target one on the spatial planning processes and identifying areas of importance, OGEK people, through the biodiversity monitoring process, they identify key areas that wild animals pass. Those are the corridors and that is a very major way that we contribute to that particular target. And then also target three on 30 by 30 ambition. You find that as we've developed our own special plan on how we utilize the land and how we conserve it. Uh as much as they don't know that there is a lot that is written on this target. But that is a very key also way of them contributing to that. And then also if you look at target 22 on the participatory way of decision-making processes, you find that the way we've structured our community-based biodiversity monitoring ways, It's men, women, youth and elders take a key role. And for me, that is one thing that needs to be documented. And Target 23 on gender perspective, we have young women in the community taking part in biodiversity monitoring processes and old women taking part in validation committee and the elders ensuring that the information is correct. So those are some of the ways that as Ogiek indigenous people, who haven't had to participate in the process of CBD, contribute majorly on those targets. And I'm just here to highlight a key point that there is need of coming up with more processes of documenting such key issues, not just from the OGEIG themselves, but other indigenous people who are doing amazing work but cannot reach such platforms. And one thing, especially to the parties, especially those who lead the NB sub processes at national level, there's need of devolving the discussion to ensure that they go up to grassroot level for us to have accurate information on how to capture all the good work that are contributing to KEMGBF process. And then lastly, is also to urge that if there is need of devolving the direct funding mechanism, because for example, the process of biodiversity monitoring is a continuous process. Therefore, for example, if you have a project that covers funding models that covers two years, Biodiversity monitoring doesn't end in two years and it needs a lot of technology, a lot of resources to do that. So therefore, there is a really need of ensuring that devolution of funds is done and funded to community level so that this good work continues and it reflect in global level. Thank you so much.

Yes, hello, everyone. My name is Marek Mikkelsen. I'm a Sami person, and I'm here with the Sami Council. I have been part of coordinating the submission of three case studies from Sapmi, the ancestral homelands of the Sami people in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. And I assisted in writing a case study called "Birgi Opmi: Revitalizing Indigenous Sea Sami Practices of Seal Hunting and Craftsmanship." So this case study, it's about revitalizing indigenous people's practices and knowledge as a way of sustainably managing our resources, relating to target 21 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Biddujokmi is a North Sami word. It roughly translates to ways of managing. It embodies the principle of taking only what you need, not exploiting nature's resources, and ensuring the ability to harvest again in the future. It connects to the Sami way of understanding well-being, self-sufficiency, and community. In the Birkiupmi project, as a much larger project, this is only one of many events. I'll talk more about it. It's one of many projects within a much larger project. It aims to strengthen community engagement, indigenous people's knowledge, and environmental decision making in the Arctic coastal regions in Sapmi, but also in Kalaallit Nunaat in Greenland. So this case study, you can read that over the past 40 to 50 years, the sea Sami self-management of our marine resources, such as marine mammals and fish, have been heavily restricted by Norwegian authorities, thus leading to imbalances in the ecosystems. So in this case, the restrictions of seal hunting meant that traditional craftsmanship of sealskin, which has traditionally been a very important and useful material in the cold and harsh coastal regions of Sapmi, it was not being practiced anymore. Thus, the project group invited two Inuit knowledge holders from Qalualitluq, Nunat, to hold a course on seal slaughtering, sealskin preparations and sewing, as well as meat preparation and cooking. And the course was a way of learning about seals as a vital cultural and ecological resource. Moreover, it relates to something much more serious. That the locals in this fjord in Porsanger, Northern Norway, had noticed that there were too many seals and that the seal health was deteriorating. And the Inuit knowledge holders, they were shocked when they saw these seals. They noticed that the seals had much thinner blubber than they had in Greenland, and this was the same seals. and the seals, because they get very thin when they can't find enough food. The overpopulation of seals, combined with other factors, has caused ecological disruptions, including the disappearance of fish from the seabed. So this case study of sea Sami seal hunting underscores the importance of safeguarding Indigenous people's knowledge, the practices of the Sami people and the resource management, because it connects to healthy ecosystems and sustainable stewardship of its resources. I am a sea Sami person myself. I come from the coastal region, and I very often grieve the knowledge and culture that has been forcefully taken away from my people. and the destruction of the ecosystems and nature in my homelands. And this case study. It's a serious example of what can happen to biodiversity when our practices are forced to stop. But it is also a best case example of what can happen when we collaborate with other Indigenous peoples and how we can elevate revitalization efforts of Indigenous peoples' knowledge. So for me, this is a hopeful case study, and it should be read as a case study in solidarity with other Indigenous peoples. The case study is this case study is one of many examples in the LBO three that indigenous peoples. We do not wait for states to straighten, strengthen their biodiversity efforts. We are already making crucial efforts and we're being creative, which is needed. If we're going to have a chance, we did reaching the guard goals and the targets towards 2030. But what I hope that your main takeaway from this is that safeguarding indigenous people's rights to managing their own resources is protecting biodiversity. Respecting indigenous people's rights, it's not optional, it is needed to safeguard the world's biodiversity. And to be very honest with you, I cannot believe that we must still advocate very strongly that states must uphold the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples almost 20 years after it was adopted. And we have to remind ourselves and the states that the UNDRIP establishes the minimum standards of Indigenous peoples' dignity, well-being, and survival. And states need to do better than minimum standards. And we as Indigenous peoples have to remind ourselves about that. And most importantly, we need to continue reminding the parties that make decisions that affect us. So that was my main message. I would also like to say that what is needed is supporting Indigenous people in their capacity building so that we can elevate these contributions and strengthen efforts. And that includes securing financial mechanisms so that we can continue making LBOs, that we can continue supporting the important work that is being done by Indigenous peoples globally. And we are fortunate that this Birgibmi project is a EU Horizon project. But we know that there are many examples from other parts of the world where indigenous people experience great challenging in accessing funding for these kinds of cases. So revitalizing our practices, it is incredibly rewarding. It is incredibly rewarding both to our communities and to nature, to biodiversity. But it is hard work and it is not without costs.

Thank you. Very good afternoon, everyone. My name is Gordon. I'm from Borneo, which is in Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia. So I'm going to share a little bit about how we as an indigenous people in Sabah map of our area. I recall when I met one of the uncles, they were saying that, I was asking them, where are your territory? And they use, as a Sabahan, as a indigenous people in Sabah, we always use this word, like, Sana. The longer the word, the further the area. But yes, so I was like, huh, that's going to be very far. And if he say, like, Sana, it's very near. So this is how they define where are the area. But nevertheless, they always have this challenge where they don't have clear boundary. They don't have clear boundary. It always been overlap. Their boundary or their territory always been overlap by the protected area or concessions like logging, companies like oil palm. And this is something that it's a challenge for them. And here from our transformative pathway program with support from the International Climate Initiative, They support us to do maps, to do mapping on our customary territory. And when talking about customary territory, we don't say that we don't have names. They have names. Our indigenous traditional territory, we have the terms of ourself. for the Muru. I forgot,. Also, it's an area for them. And not only that, we have also zonings, zones of the area. It's not only talking about the boundary, but the zones of the area, our sacred area, our watershed. We have using sacred area, such as as a sacred area, as a communal area. So all of this is very important for us. And this is where we are proactively map our area. So we are using not only indigenous knowledge, but also modern technology. And from there, usually the boundary they will know. They will know it's through the ridge, sometimes through the river. And we map the area. We map the area. We map where are the sacred area. And we put on a digital map. But mapping is not only that. It's beyond mapping. So we also want to know what are the things, what are the resources, or the biological resources in our area. So that's where we do monitoring. I know our sister here, they use the Mapio. We are using Cobo, Cobo Map. So we use Cobo to do the inventories. So we look for the quality of the water, our watershed. We also identify if we have animal tracks, the type of the trees, the non-timber forest products, the resources that we use for our handicraft, medicines, all of that. And also, not only that, we also develop our protocols, our governing system. So this is where we have the rules, the do and don'ts, and using our customs, our wisdoms here, it led us to guide how we can respond if there's any threats or if there's any disturbance in our area. So all of this, if we talk about the contribution of Indigenous people in Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and talking about tiger trees, like I was mentioning just now, we do have our area, we do have our territory, yeah, like I was mentioning just now, in our, our, our, all of that. And all of this is, it's definitely, I believe it contribute to our well-being of our earth, mother earth, yeah? And not only that, we also This is also can bringing the bridging or bridging the data gap. Yeah. There's a lot of challenge where the state, our state also have a challenge where they're not sure where are our location, where are our boundary territories. And also at the same time, the land use planning, state planning and also community planning. also lacking and this is also bringing up the gap. And it also increase our capacity in term of monitoring at at the same time also upholding our data. Uh like our sister here. Data is very powerful and we have to protect it. And all of this, what I can see, there's a lot of changes going on. There's a lot of changes going on. There's more negotiation, there's more discussion with the state. Community have more empowered, I mean, empowered, they know where are the area, they can just like, you know, oh, this is our map, instead of like, pointing their area, now they have maps. But still, there's a lot of support that we need, yeah? One, I think it's not only from our Indigenous people, but also our brother and sister, our customary territory. We need to be recognized, our customary territory. It's very important. It's very crucial. Other than that, data, data sovereignty, it's a must. We have to protect our data. But here I really want to emphasize the integration of customary law and the local enforcement, because we are the front liner in our territory. We are the front liner of our resources. Without us, encroachers, loggers will come in. So we really need to emphasize that we have our set of rules, and we have the rights to enforce and protect our area. And lastly, also like our sisters here also mentioned fundings, continuous fundings is very crucial and direct funding is crucial to to continue this initiative. But like I was mentioned also, I also want to raise here, it's not about projects, it's not about the projects, it's about support. I think that's most important because conservation is already as a part of life. It's not about, you know, you have this project and you only do it among the project timeline. No, it's not like that. But we still need a continuous support to bring people, to bring our people, our community to go here, like here in COP. It's not easy, it's expensive. So we need, we need funds. Yeah. So I think I think I have to stop now. Yeah, so thank you.

Thank you so much, Gordon, Marit, and Phoebe. We've got a few minutes at the end if there are any questions for any of the speakers. Yep. Do we have a microphone?

Thank you for a really interesting panel.

Tom Cox, Carbon Pulse.

I just wanted to ask, does the report?

Support biodiversity credits as a financing mechanism, or does it believe that the risks currently outweigh the benefits? Do you have an opinion on this? Thank you.

First of all, I arguably believe that probably there is no a win-win situation when it comes to credits and biodiversity. One has to suffer and probably it's biodiversity. So there might be benefits, but everything comes with a trade off. So it's about what are you willing to give for you to get the benefits. So I might not personally, I might not say that There is a benefit when there's biodiversity credit aspect of it, but then I might not also confidently or declare that there is a loss on that. So it's about trade off and how to balance that and depends with entry approaches to especially to our communities who own those biodiversity, depends on how they view those things here.

Thank you.

Good morning everyone. I'm Ruth Spencer from the Caribbean island of Antigua and Barbuda. Thanks for the sharing. And I'd like to recommend as the next step that in your projects you begin to build synergies with the other conventions. That only happens at the local level. I find talking with you know other people, global things, it's hard for them to understand. But at the local level, we see it happening and I've started to document a lot of case studies. I have a case study also submitted in the LBO and I'm trying to show that because it's very cost effective and It leads to all of society because in your countries you have different convention processes taking place. And it also builds the whole of government because when you're working with mercury, you're going to connect with a different focal point when you're working with climate. So it's very important that we be proactive, not waiting for things to happen. You start to do it and thanks for your presentations.

Thank you so much. I think we need to wrap up for today. I just wanted to show you that this is the printed version of the report. It is live now online. Please come and find me afterwards. We have some postcards. They've got QR codes on the back so you can access the report. And for journalists who want to speak to any of our panelists, we'll just be just outside the room if you'd like to speak a bit more to them. Thank you so much for your time.