Rights in Landscapes: the importance of rights-based approaches

5 Mar 2019

In 2019 the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) will focus the world’s attention on the transformative role of rights-based approaches in securing a more just, sustainable and prosperous future for all. Together with the Youth in Landscapes Initiative (YIL), GLF will host a 1-2 day workshop aimed at empowering and training young leaders to adopt rights-based approaches in climate action

Indigenous peoples and local communities are suffering some of the worst impacts of global warming and unsustainable development, despite their landscapes being among the best conserved.

The contribution of indigenous peoples, local communities, women and youth to reach global goals depends on whether their rights are recognised and respected, allowing them to continue to sustainably manage territories, while their knowledge and experience are replicated and scaled up. It is only by granting respect to them and to traditional knowledge, that we can better cope with devastating environmental threats, and it is therefore a social, economic and environmental priority to strengthen their ability to play a role in the sustainable use and governance of the world’s landscapes.

The GLF aims to make this year a turning point for how rights, traditional knowledge and proposed solutions from the ground are respected, considered and implemented in policy, action and investment cycles globally.

 

GLF Statement on Rights:

Addressing the world’s environmental crises demands we first acknowledge and promote the rights of people who, throughout their daily lives, are already laying the essential groundwork to preserve the globe’s landscapes. GLF – which aims to reach a billion people – in 2019 is promoting the rights to community and private land, to safe water and sustainable natural resource ownership, transparent decision-making and accountability for Indigenous Peoples, local and rural communities, women and youth. Only by granting respect to their work and their traditional knowledge, as a foundation of productive, prosperous, equitable and resilient landscapes, can we better cope with the devastating environmental threats, such as climate change.

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