Indigenous Peoples have nurtured – and been nurtured by – the lands they have called home for centuries or millennia. They are the custodians of valuable knowledge, and experts when it comes to keeping ecological and climatic systems balanced and healthy, even in the face of immense pressure and exploitation. After centuries of neglect, their voices should be listened to and acted on, and Indigenous Communities should receive the credit they deserve for their long-standing environmental contribution.

Ensuring that Indigenous Peoples have control over the lands they call home supports their rights as a people. Indigenous Peoples' Tenure also helps protect ecosystems from being ill managed in ways that would release more greenhouse gasses and/or sequester less greenhouse gasses, both of which contribute to climate change.

Indigenous Peoples’ ability to manage their lands remains threatened by extraction and those who would profit from it, but committing to acknowledge and protect historic landholders’ rights is not only the right thing to do, it’s the climate-smart thing to do as well.

When you take this action, add 1 Tree token to the board if you have 3–4 Ecology tags in this card's stack or add 2 Tree tokens to the board if you have 5 or more Ecology tags in this card's stack.
You may take this action once per round.

• Indigenous Peoples’ Forest Tenure (Project Drawdown)

• 📄 The role of Indigenous peoples in combating climate change by Linda Etchart 

• The use of Indigenous traditional knowledge in climate change strategies (Wilson Center)

• Support efforts to protect the rights of Indigenous people to traditional lands.

• As you pursue climate solutions, consider other ways of knowing besides Western science.

• When making purchases, favor products that support Indigenous peoples’ efforts to protect the environment.