Indigenous

But instead of waiting for the global climate and conservation funding model to change, Indigenous communities are taking action by starting local funds that ...

[frontlines](https://grist.org/global-indigenous-affairs-desk/we-will-all-die-if-we-continue-like-this-indigenous-people-push-un-for-climate-justice/) of [drought](https://grist.org/drought/indigenous-fight-water-colorado-river-drought-cuts/), storms, and [heatwaves](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-26540-0). “The end of colonialism was meant to be the end of powerful outsiders taking control of resources and using these to expand their control yet further,” the declaration reads. Now, the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities hopes that COP27, which will take place in Egypt in November, will be an opportunity to build on that momentum. [fortress conservation](https://grist.org/article/fortress-conservation-violently-displaces-indigenous-people/) on Indigenous communities. Indigenous women receive less than a third of the global funds that end up with Indigenous-led projects and, according to Chemosop, are less frequently invited to Africa-wide or international meetings. Those efforts, however, have led to the [mass murder of Indigenous people](https://grist.org/indigenous/indigenous-people-are-being-killed-to-protect-a-congolese-park/), land theft, and repeated violations of their rights. [Fundo Podáali](https://fundopodaali.org.br/), a fund led by Indigenous women in the Brazilian Amazon. [research](https://rightsandresources.org/blog/new-research-only-17-of-global-climate-and-conservation-funding-intended-for-indigenous-peoples-and-local-communities-actually-reaches-them-limiting-the-funds-effectiveness-and-inclusivity/) by the [Rights and Resources Initiative](https://rightsandresources.org/) and [Rainforest Foundation Norway](https://www.regnskog.no/en/about-rainforest-foundation-norway)—two nonprofit organizations dedicated to protecting forests and Indigenous rights— only 17 percent of global climate and conservation funding intended for Indigenous and local communities actually goes to projects led by Indigenous people. To organize effectively, Podáali needs more money — money Paye says donors give to more established organizations, like the [Amazon Region Protected Areas Program](https://www.worldwildlife.org/magazine/issues/summer-2014/articles/the-amazon-region-protected-areas-program-is-the-single-largest-tropical-forest-conservation-program-in-history). Indigenous leaders say world leaders must work with them directly and provide better oversight of global funding to fix the issue. In a study of $2.7 billion in global funding provided for Indigenous land tenure and forest management projects from 2011 to 2020, Rainforest Foundation Norway found that over half of the funds were disbursed by five large international organizations: the World Bank, African Development Bank, InterAmerican Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, and the United Nations Development Programme. But instead of waiting for the global climate and conservation funding model to change, Indigenous communities are taking action by starting local funds that support grassroots efforts, as well as larger international platforms and finance mechanisms that can raise and distribute money around the world.