César David Martinez

Brazil

Deforestation is a driver of climate change, reducing smallholders’ productivity and their earnings.

  • Location: The Amazon
  • Threat: Consequences for indigenous territories that play a crucial role in curbing deforestation.
  • Causes: Livestock farming, agriculture, mining, infrastructure expansion, logging, and land grabbing.

The Amazon’s vital role under threat

The Amazon landscape contains 1.4 billion acres of dense forests, half of the planet's remaining tropical forests. The 3,977-mile-long Amazon River is the second-longest river on Earth after the Nile. The Amazon is not only a crucial habitat for biodiversity and indigenous communities but also plays a vital role in global climate regulation. It covers vast areas and contains a significant portion of Earth's known species, as well as storing immense amounts of carbon and releasing large quantities of water into the atmosphere. This is now under threat due to deforestation.

Read more about the landscape (PDF).

Nicolas Villaume / WWF-US

What is the situation?

Deforestation in the Amazon is a pressing issue driven by economic factors such as livestock farming, agriculture, mining, infrastructure expansion, logging, and land grabbing. The rate of deforestation reached record levels in 2021, with significant consequences for climate change and the indigenous territories that have historically played a crucial role in curbing deforestation. In the context of climate change and the climate crisis scenario there is a need for local climate solutions that support both mitigation and adaptation efforts.

How can VCA support local partners?

The focus is on supporting local partners and environmental defenders in protecting their territories and cultures. The Voices for Just Climate Action (VCA) network emphasizes the importance of empowering youth and women activists who face various obstacles due to social, economic, and environmental injustices. The aim is to foster a collaborative approach that respects local knowledge, cultures, and contexts while strengthening the agendas and resilience of local communities.

The VCA network consists of a diversity of local organizations in Brazil.

WWF_VCA_Map local partners_Brazil.jpg

 

ANMIGA
The National Articulation of Indigenous Women Ancestrality Warriors
“ANMIGA is part of one of the coalitions supported by WWF to strengthen capacities and to support the visibility of indigenous women's narratives on climate justice.”

Updates

May Meet Up 2024

Watch the aftermovie of the May 2024 meetup of Voices for Just Climate Action
Meer info
Christian Braga / WWF-Brazil

A Voice for Just Climate Action: True guardians

6.000 indigenous people from more than 200 peoples protested in Brazil for the right to life during Free Land Camp 2023. The largest mobilization of indigenous peoples resulted in an important step towards nature conservation, facing the climate crisis and social justice.
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Carlos Eduardo Fragoso / WWF-Brazil

Overview local partners Brazil

In the Amazon landscape (Brazil), VCA has 18 local partners. They employed their own approach to collaborate with their respective local partners to give even more communities a voice. Through this mechanism VCA-Brazil has connected to 72 local partners.
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Ranjan Ramchandani / WWF

WWF-Brazil condemns passing bill that harms indigenous rights and environment

The recent developments in Brazil regarding the approval of Bill 490/2007 have raised grave concerns for indigenous rights and the environment. WWF-Brazil strongly condemns the passing of this bill by the Chamber of Deputies and urges the Senate to take immediate action to prevent further harm to indigenous communities and the natural world.
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Christian Braga / WWF-Brazil

Raising local voices to resist reduction Resex's territory

Organizations from the Voices for Just Climate Action network (VCA), particularly the 'Youth Communicative Network' supported by WWF, successfully mobilized civil society and politicians to resist and advocate against social and environmental setbacks, with a specific focus on defending the Extractive Reserve (Resex) Chico Mendes. Their efforts led to the blocking of Bill 6024/2019, which aimed to reduce the territory of the Resex.
Meer info