Indigenous People as a
Means of Conservation
Katie Jorgenson
Caitlin Kelly
Background
 Amazon
rainforest covers 4.1 million
square km of land
 The Amazon is also home to extreme
biodiversity
 One third of the world’s species can be
found in the Amazon rainforest
 Extremely humid with a rainfall exceeding
2,000 millimeters per year
World Bank. "Brazilian Amazon Rain Forest Fact Sheet". 2005.
http://web.worldbank.org (8 March 2006).
Photo: http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0403/feature1/zoom2.html
Deforestation
 Began
in the early 1970’s
 Linked to the strength of the economy

Large businesses are mostly large cattle
ranchers and agriculture, if they thrive
deforestation rates increase
 One
of the greatest threats to the Amazon
rainforest is soy bean production

lot of investment into the farming of soy beans
because they are in demand
Fearnside, PM. 2005. "Deforestation in Brazilian Amazonia: History, Rates, and Consequences". Conservation Biology 19 (3):680-688.
Deforestation cont’d

Increase in deforestation and logging leads to an
increase in forest fires


Fragmented forests dry out easier making it easier to
reach conditions that cause forest fires
Causes exploitation of environmental resources

Loss of habitat to animals
and plants
 Creates soil erosion
 Changes the water cycle


Devastating for hydropower
Disturbs river ecosystems
Fearnside, PM. 2005. "Deforestation in Brazilian Amazonia: History, Rates, and Consequences". Conservation Biology 19 (3):680-688.
How Reserves Conserve

In 1988, Brazil amended its constitution to
protect the lands of indigenous to preserve the
environmental and economic stability of the land
that ensures reproduction of indigenous culture.
 The federally-owned lands traditionally occupied
by indigenous peoples are unregulated for
“resource extraction by third parties” allowing for
environmental degradation of these protected
lands from foreign influences

Illegal mahogany trade, gold mining, ranchers, and
road construction
Schwartzman, S., and Zimmerman, B. 2005. "Conservation Alliances with Indigenous Peoples of the Amazon". Conservation Biology. 19 (3): 721-727.
How Reserves Conserve cont’d
Without “resources for surveillance and
enforcement,” the impending pressures of
invasive activities risk both the rich biodiversity
of indigenous reserves and the vulnerable
traditional cultures inhabiting them.
 A study from the Jackson Hole Research Center
concluded that indigenous reserves can inhibit
deforestation despite strong forces around them


33 of the 38 indigenous reserves studied exhibited
.75% deforestation or less while surrounded by areas
that are deforested at a rate of 1.5% annually.
Nepstad, D., Schwartzman, S., Bamberger, B., Santilli, M., Ray, D., Schlisinger, P., Lefebvre, P., Alencar, A., Prinz, E., Fiske, Greg, and Rolla, Alicia.
2006. “Inhibition of Amazon Deforestation and Fire by Parks and Indigenous Lands”. Conservation Biology 20 (1): 65-73.
Indigenous Reserves and Areas of
Active Forest Fires

The state of the Brazilian
Amazon from GOES
satellite in 1998: (a) natural
distubrances in the Brazilian
Amazon, gray lines indicate
highways, while the
Indigenous Reserve, labeled
“Ka” represents the Kayapo
reserve; (b) Red indicates
active fires detected by the
GOES satellite during 1998.
(Nepstad et al. 2005)
Benefits of Communal
Conservation Efforts
From Forest Trends and Ecoagricultural Partners







A commitment of resident peoples to biodiversity conservation and a
willingness to invest over the long-term, reducing the costs of
conservation.
Income generated to reduce poverty, sustain livelihoods and reduce
pressures.
A wider range of ecosystems and biodiversity protected across
biological corridors and political boundaries.
An approach consistent with movements for Indigenous Peoples’
greater land rights and an asset for creation among the poor.
An approach that facilitates the application of indigenous ecological
knowledge to management and protection.
More local employment and expertise created for biodiversity
conservation, complementing expertise in parks and forest agencies
and reducing the dependency on top-down initiatives.
More financial resources mobilized, increasing the available funds
for ecologically critical protected areas.
Molnar, Augusta, Scherr, Sara J., and Khare, Arvind. “Who Conserves the World’s Forests? A New Assessment of Conservation and Trends”. Forest Trends
and Ecoagricultural Partners: Washington DC, 2004. 12-14, 48-50.
Kayapó Case Study

Conservation International in Brazil forged an
alliance with the Kayapó people in 1992
 Their territories contain more than thirteen
million hectares of Amazonian forest within the
Parà and Mata Grosso states
 The alliance aimed to curb
the allure of contracts that
cause reserve destruction,
such as mahogany logging
and gold mining, which
provide the Kayapó people
with income to further
protect their lands.
Zimmerman, B., Peres, C.A., Malcolm, J.R., and Turner, T. 2001. “Conservation
and Development Alliances with the Kayapo of South-Eastern Amazonia, a
Tropical Indigenous People”. Environmental Conservation 28 (1): 10-22.
Photo: http://gruppen.greenpeace.de/aachen/wald-fotos-indianer.html
Kayapó Case Study cont’d

The project also strove to empower the
indigenous leaders’ development decisions by
providing them with research information.
 Protect broadleaf mahogany populations from
harvest, ensuring the biological diversity of the
reserve.
 The alliance created the Pinkaiti ecological
research station that would attract researchers
to the reserve.
Zimmerman, B., Peres, C.A., Malcolm, J.R., and Turner, T. 2001. “Conservation and Development Alliances with the Kayapo of South-Eastern Amazonia, a
Tropical Indigenous People”. Environmental Conservation 28 (1): 10-22.
Kayapó Reserve: A Success Story

The benefits of increased research opportunities
from research station include






Preserving indigenous knowledge within research
studies
Sustain the local economy by creating employment
positions at the ecological research station
Continuing to validate the Kayapó people from
mutually advantageous relationships with outside
influences
The infrastructure created for research stations may
accrue other occasions for economic growth of the
Kayapó people
Non-invasive ecotourism
Producing other non-timber goods, such as brazil
nuts
Zimmerman, B., Peres, C.A., Malcolm, J.R., and Turner, T. 2001. “Conservation and Development Alliances with the Kayapo of South-Eastern Amazonia, a
Tropical Indigenous People”. Environmental Conservation 28 (1): 10-22.
Amazon Conservation Team
 Mission
statement: “to work in partnership
with indigenous people in conserving
biodiversity, health, and culture in tropical
America"
 Believes that biodiversity conservation is
most obvious where indigenous cultures
thrive
 ACT provides indigenous people with the
means to conserve their land
“About ACT". 2006 http://amazonteam.org/about.html (4 March 2006).
Mapping Projects
 Brought
together 14 of the tribes of the
Xingu
 Indigenous people create their own maps
with guidance from ACT members
 Maps are used to guide future planning,
risk assessment, and the assessment of
areas that are in need of protection
 Maps have help protect the borders from
illegal activities
"ACT Projects". 2006 http://amazonteam.org/projects.html (4 March 2006).
Photo: http://amazonteam.org/northeast.html
Mapping cont’d
 Provided
strategic placement of new
villages on borders
 Brazil’s environmental protection agency
has teamed up with tribes to manage the
parks natural resources
 Signed agreements have been made to
introduce protection activities into other
territories that are in need of
environmental protection
"ACT Projects". 2006 http://amazonteam.org/projects.html (4 March 2006).
Shamans and Apprentices Program
 Keep
culture and traditional values of the
indigenous people alive
 Elder teaches a younger member in the
tribe traditional medicine
 Thousands of years of
knowledge is passed on
 ACT establishes new healthcare
programs

Provides traditional healing and western
medicine
"ACT Projects". 2006 http://amazonteam.org/projects.html (4 March 2006).
Photo: http://amazonteam.org/northeast.html