Local communities and indigenous peoples are
disproportionately affected by climate change impacts because they rely on
fragile ecosystems for their livelihoods. Indigenous people care for 22% of the
earth’s surface, including “an
estimated 80 percent of the planet’s remaining biodiversity”. The IPCC
recognizes how much we have to learn with and from local communities and
indigenous peoples, the knowledge and practices of which constitute a “major
resource for adapting to climate change”.
The COP23 climate summit in Bonn in November will make a local
communities and indigenous peoples platform operational to catalyze learning,
engagement, and policy coordination that benefits local communities and
indigenous peoples, as well as the international community. The platform was
established in Paris, through decision 1/CP.21 para
135, in order to facilitate “the exchange of
experiences and sharing of best practices on mitigation and adaptation”. In the
era of implementation opened by the signing of the Paris Agreement, the
engagement of non-Party stakeholders, such as local communities and indigenous
peoples, has gained momentum and is strongly supported to scale up climate
action.
Parties have adopted a step-wise approach to operationalizing
the platform, with four main steps in 2017. First, Parties, Indigenous Peoples Organizations
(IPOs) and other organizations provided ideas about the platform’s functions
and procedural mechanisms until March. Second, Parties and IPOs discussed these
ideas during climate talks in May.
A report summarized the main findings from
submissions and this dialogue (“Local communities and indigenous peoples
platform: proposals on operationalization based on the open multi-stakeholder
dialogue and submissions”). This report will now inform the negotiations.
Negotiations will take place under the “local communities and indigenous
peoples platform” agenda item at the 47th meeting of the Subsidiary
Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA 47), in November 2017, with
a view to forwarding recommendations to COP 23.
The multi-stakeholder dialogue and the submissions that
informed it acknowledged that the primary (and interlinked) functions of the
platform should be:
1) Knowledge:
the platform should provide a space for documenting and sharing experience and
best practices, respecting the unique nature of and need to safeguard
indigenous and local community knowledge systems;
2) Climate
change policies and actions: the platform should facilitate the integration
of indigenous and local knowledge systems as well as the engagement of
indigenous peoples and local communities in relevant climate change related actions,
programmes and policies; and
3) Capacity for
engagement: the platform should help to build the capacities of indigenous
peoples and local communities to help enable their engagement in and support
the UNFCCC process, including the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and
other climate - related processes
The relationships between the
functions are shown graphically below:
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Aside from the functions outlined above,
operationalization of the platform should take into account the following
overarching considerations:
1. Flexibility: this
will allow for evolution and growth as experience is gathered;
2. Inclusivity: linkages
with stakeholders and mechanisms both within and outside the UNFCCC processes
should be supported. The working of the platform should embody principles of
gender, age and geographic inclusivity;
3. Constructive
focus: the platform should support constructive, mutually
beneficial dialogue between Parties, indigenous peoples and local communities
4. Appropriate
resources: the platform must be sufficiently resourced, including
for the role of the secretariat.
Operationalizing the platform for indigenous peoples and
local communities is an opportunity to create strategic linkages between the UNFCCC
process, the broader UN system, the sustainable development goals and
vulnerable groups and peoples. IPOs have a long history seeking to engage with
global governance arrangements. The operationalization of this platform provides
an opportunity to strengthen this engagement significantly.
In keeping with the
incremental approach adopted at COP 22, the initial scope of the
operationalization should allow evolution and growth over time. The platform
should enable promotion of adaptation actions in line with the priorities and
needs of indigenous peoples and local communities to care for and protect the
valuable eco-systems and biodiversity on which our planet depends.