1. ORMACC is implementing the initiative Advancing towards effective conservation and territorial management with a rights-based approach: strengthening indigenous regional cooperation in Latin America (VOICES). This is a US$ 6 M project that has as an objective that organizations, IP leaders and environmental defenders in Latin America with greater empowerment and capacity for cooperation to prevent and address threats to their territorial management with a focus on rights, gender inclusion and environmental justice.
2. As part of the implementation of Voices, the IUCN Regional Office for Mexico/Central America and the Caribbean held a workshop with members of the Commission for the Protection of the Environment and Natural Resources. The workshop was also attended by Sean Southey, Chair of the Commission on Education and Communication (CEC), and Mayte González, Head of Human Rights in Conservation at the IUCN Centre for Society and Governance. During the workshop, an exchange took place with the VOCES project "Protecting Rights, Conserving Territories", to which both Commissions are advisors.
During the working session, possible synergies and concrete actions for the expansion of spaces for advocacy and promotion of the rights of environmental defenders were analysed.
In this context, a joint proposal for the development of policy briefs, in collaboration with the Science Team, is being worked on, with the aim of analysing evidence to facilitate and design effective actions to prevent and respond to threats to the rights of indigenous peoples and environmental defenders.
Similarly, the collaboration of the Education and Communication Commission will be sought for the development of knowledge products for the sensitisation of different audiences on the rights of indigenous peoples and environmental defenders.
3. In addition, as part of the implementation of the Voices project, the scientific team, led by Dr. Thomas Brooks, IUCN Principal Scientist, and the Regional Office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean held a workshop to plan joint actions for the systematisation and analysis of evidence that will facilitate the design of effective actions to prevent and address threats to the rights of indigenous peoples and environmental defenders. In a first phase of analysis, the products described below will be developed for the territory of Central America:
- Estimated STAR reports in the territories of indigenous peoples (IUCN, 2016) to identify the contribution of indigenous peoples to the conservation of species. It consists of the integration of information from the Map of Indigenous Peoples of Central America (IUCN, 2016) and the estimated STAR reports, which will be used to measure the opportunities to reduce the impact of the occurrence of threats to improve the survival of species at risk of extinction.
- Spatial occurrence of threats to the rights of defenders registered by verified sources in the territories of indigenous peoples (IUCN, 2016). The objective of the analysis will be the spatial identification of the relationship between the occurrence of threats to the rights of environmental defenders, represented by the threats reported and published in international reports, and the territories of indigenous peoples, assuming the highest occurrence. of threats to the rights of environmental defenders located in the territories represented on the map of indigenous peoples (IUCN 2016), with respect to those environmental defenders located outside these territories.
In order to formalise the arrangements for joint work, an internal agreement is currently being drawn up with a validity period of one year.
4. Finally, as part of the implementation of the Voices Project, between 13 and 16 June 2023, the IUCN Regional Office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean and the Human Rights in Conservation Leader of the IUCN Centre for Society and Governance, Mayte González, for the joint implementation of actions of the Voices Project, in line with the mandate of the Centre for Society and Governance, creating an opportunity for collaboration between the Regional Office of ORMACC and the HRC Unit.
- Agendas/advocacy plans and financing plans with national and regional IP organisations for negotiation in regional and international dialogues.
- Facilitate support to spokespersons/negotiators with key messages, proposals and guidelines for negotiations/communication (with emphasis on women and youth).
- Organise a regional dialogue (LA) on human rights and environmental governance - including the protection of indigenous peoples and environmental defenders - with the support of IUCN experts and high authorities. The aim is to strengthen the exchange of information, the capacity of legal systems (judges, courts, tribunals, judicial officers, judicial training institutions) and representatives of indigenous peoples - with a focus on women's networks - and to define agreements and measures for the prevention and resolution of cases and disputes within the framework of regional and international agreements.
- Organisation and development, in partnership with international bodies and organisations (Judicial Institute of the Environment, International Association of Thursday, University of Geneva / GEDT) and IUCN commissions. and IUCN Commissions), an international forum on IP, human rights and the environment, in order to promote agreements and actions on governance and conservation issues, with the direct participation of representatives/spokespersons of leading IP organisations, in particular women's and youth networks.
5. The 8th of August 2023, the Director of ORMACC held a first working meeting with Mr. Carlos de Miguel, Secretary of the Escazú Agreement, to analyse possible lines of collaboration between IUCN and ECLAC - the organisation that holds the secretariat of the Agreement. The last four months of 2023 are expected to formulate and negotiate an MoU to formalise cooperation.
6. On the 22nd of August 2023, will take place the side event "Environmental human rights defenders: opportunities from international instruments to protect peoples and the environment" at this 7th GEF Assembly, organised by FARN, Eco Maxei, IUCN NL, IUCN ORMACC (Project Voices Sida-IUCN), IUCN HRCT. Environmental human rights defenders (EHRD) are on the frontline of protecting biodiversity, demanding climate action, combating desertification and tackling pollution. Many are attacked and killed every year. There is a critical need for increased safety and access to justice for EHRD, especially women defenders who are considered particularly vulnerable to threats due to gendered forms of violence. The killings disproportionately affect lower-income countries and Indigenous communities. International policy frameworks, in line with human rights-based approaches, are of the utmost importance to achieve a sustainable and just world, with full recognition and respect of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities’ rights over lands, territories, resources and traditional knowledge, and protection of EHRD.
7. IUCN ORMACC is currently assisting the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) in preparing a Proposal for Action for the European Initiative for the Five Great Forests of Mesoamerica and the Trifinio Region (TEI Five Greats Forest), related to the Priority Area Environmental Rights and Defenders, to be funded by a European Union allocation of 2 million euros and a Swedish Government counterpart of 15 million Swedish kronor. If the proposal is approved, ORMACC will extend the scope of the VOCES project to indigenous peoples and environmental defenders in the Five Great Forests of Mesoamerica and the Trifinio region, in order to strengthen the systematisation of evidence on the nexus between conservation and rights, the analysis of jurisprudence and mechanisms for the protection of the rights of environmental defenders, the design of a monitoring tool for the application of the principles of the Escazú Agreement, and the articulation of agendas in advocacy spaces for environmental defenders and indigenous peoples in Central America.
8. NWC continues to promote the resolution and substance in a variety of fora including in preparation for the 10th UCCAC COSP to be hosted by the US in Atlanta, Georgia in December. NWC is also promoting it in the UNTOC context. NWC is going to an IUCN USNC hybrid event on whistleblowers. Whistleblowers were addressed at the IACC hosted by the USG and Transparency International. NWC has promoted whistleblowers in providing input to the US State Department on international deforestation and to USAID on countering nature crime. NWC has worked to incorporate whistleblowers in anti-corruption work.
9. NWC has had regular communications with the IUCN human rights and conservation team lead and sought to engage CEC, CEESP and with little success at least on whistleblowers. NWC raises the issue at any relevant IUCN meetings/ NWC provided comments on the last Council agenda and has not received a reply. NWC also wrote the PPC human rights task force (now truth and reconciliation) on the relevance of Res 115 and whistleblowers and has not heard back.
10. NWC submitted comments on the draft 109ty Council agenda also endorsed by Earth league International requesting per the IUCN Program, Marseilles Resolutions and some Commission Mandates that Council address IUCN and combating natural resource crime and corruption and promoting and supporting whistleblowers including through resolution 115. It noted the growing convergence among the conservation/environment, human rights and crime and corruption communities that IUCN is not a part of. It further suggested that as part of its international positioning agenda item that it consider the 10th UNCAC COSP the USG will host in December which will include natural resource crime, human rights and whistleblowers. There has not been a response as of this submission.
11. The HRCT in collaboration with CEEP and with the funding of the international policy center develop a policy brief on the Post 2020 Goblal Biodiversity Framework and Environmental Human Rights Defenders to encourage parties to increase safety and access to justice for EHRD, to include the right to a clean and healthy environment in their constitutions or national legislations, the recognition and respect of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities’ rights to their territories and resources and women’s rights. Finally, to respond and prevent Gender Based violence that impact women environmental human rights defenders. The side event explored the issues of Environmental Human Rights defenders took place on CBD COP15 where the new brief on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and Environmental Human Rights Defenders was launched.
12. In 2023, IUCN HRCT issued a grant under the Resilient, Inclusive, and Sustainable Environments (RISE) grants challenge to the Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP). Under this two-year grant, AIPP is partnering with the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA), the Persekutan Perempuan Adat Nusantara (PEREMPUAN AMAN) in Indonesia, and the Network of Indigenous Women BAI in the Philippines tto empower and elevate the voices of Indigenous women environmental human rights defenders to self-determine their priorities, voices, and strategies to end gender-based violence as a barrier to their defense of the environment. At the time of reporting, IUCN has issued the first disbursement and AIPP and its partners have been working to finalize partnership agreements and on-boarded consultants to begin baseline research work.
HRCT also supported the representative from PEREMPUAN AMAN to engage with the GEF, State Department, White House, WWFUS, and USAID on the importance of protecting women defenders. For example, IUCN HRCT facilitated a consultation session with the US State Department on how it can improve its recently updated United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally 2022 where PEREMPUAN AMAN provided advice on working with Indigenous women to concretely build their own path and own advocacy -- accepting the evidence base they generate as accepted robust science and to help advance the recognition of Indigenous women's collective rights, particularly at a time where largescale extractivism, climate change, and the exclusion of Indigenous peoples rights and non-conformation to FPIC has been driving child marriage in communities as a coping mechanism. IUCN is also collaborating with PEREMPUAN AMAN to amplify its RISE work at the GEF Assembly to champion a GEF-8 that promotes the safety of indigenous women environmental human rights defenders to lead environmental action.
