Stolen Forests and Silenced Voices: Indigenous Communities and Deforestation

Often called the "lungs of the Earth," forests are essential to the continued survival and persistence of the planet. Covering nearly a third of the entire Earth, forests provide for nearly 1.6 billion people and are home to around 80% of terrestrial species. Deforestation is the second-largest source of global carbon emissions, contributing greatly to the ongoing climate crisis issue.

Estimates say that nearly 370 million Indigenous people live in 70 countries across the world, and despite accounting for only 5% of the global population, they manage around 20-25% of the Earth's land. Indigenous communities historically have links to the forests around them, both culturally and spiritually. The impacts of deforestation on these communities are vast and include loss of traditional land, water contamination, air pollution, and threats to cultural identity.

Having lived on and cared for their native lands for generation upon generation, Indigenous people tend to depend on the forests for livelihoods such as food and economic needs. Activities such as mining, logging, and farming are taking over these lands and robbing the Indigenous communities of their ways of life.

Forests are places where spiritual and traditional practices occur for these communities and have for centuries. When deforestation occurs on these native lands, sacred sites, rituals, and connections with nature are effectively destroyed for these Indigenous communities. This continued loss will effectively hurt Indigenous generations to come.

Forests serve as a natural barrier of sorts from diseases for these communities, due to providing medicinal plants and controlling microclimates. When these forests are lost due to deforestation, Indigenous communities are also losing their makeshift healthcare systems, making them more susceptible to disease. One proposed solution is REDD+, a UN initiative that stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in countries of the South, employs financial strategies to maintain and increase forest cover.