Indigenous peoples as trustees of forests: a bio-socio-cultural approach to international law

Abstract

Forests are an essential part of Mother Earth within the Earth system. Deforestation is a widespread practice due to systematic land-use change. The international community is concerned, but no instrument explicitly protects forests, which are essential to avoid overshooting planetary boundaries and protect planetary health. Indigenous peoples (IP) and forests have a long-standing relationship, and both are affected by deforestation and biodiversity loss. The intrinsic and existential relation of some IP with forests needs recognition and the establishment of mechanisms to protect their rights, society, and culture, to address the disappearance of these ecosystems. The role of IP in forest governance has been mainly assessed outside international law, from multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary fields. The multidimensional nature of the interaction between IP and forests could explain this phenomenon. This article uses a bio-socio-cultural approach to assess whether protecting the bio-socio-cultural rights of IP, which are intertwined with their ecosystems and territories, is a way to protect forests, and whether this view is consistent with international law. The article presents a multidisciplinary narrative literature review and identifies the main gaps in international law and policy on the protection of forests and IP. It makes three contributions. First, it shows the convergence of scientific evidence that IP are undoubtedly essential actors in the conservation of the ecosystems in which they live. Second, it discusses how this empirical evidence on the pluralist view of forests implies a transnational approach to involving peoples in the governance of their natural resources. This is, IP views on forests should be considered when addressing governance gaps of the Earth system. Third, it assesses how states need to recognise the plurality of their peoples and the need to prioritise the protection of key ecosystems and IP. In the same week that the Conference of the Parties to the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD-COP16) acknowledged the multi-ethnic nature of the world's populations and recognised people of African descent and IP as key stewards in conservation efforts, this article was accepted for publication. Without this recognition of plural visions, Mother Earth will collapse.