Surui Tribe Launches Carbon Fund

As I return from the United Nations Climate Conference (COP16), I'm happy to share that there is some good news coming out of Cancún despite all the media headlines of stalled conversations. ACT is working on very concrete projects that will have a direct impact on the implementation of policies regarding the reduction of carbon emissions in the rainforests of South America.

ACT has taken the lead in creating coalitions of NGOs and indigenous peoples to design and implement effective land management solutions, and now is working with its partners to ensure that these solutions can be applied broadly - both on the ground, and also to positively impact the policy negotiations and implementation of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) and REDD+. ACT is an integral part of the discussions surrounding the design of these methods where the results generated on the ground will help to shape how these solutions can potentially be implemented on an international scale.

I joined Chief Almir of the Surui Tribe in Brazil at COP16 in his announcement of the launch of the Surui Carbon Fund. The Fund-created by the Surui with help from the Brazilian Biodiversity Fund (FUNBIO)-will enable the indigenous community to manage the funds derived from the marketing of their carbon credits. The Surui will be responsible for fund financial management as well as implementation of their self-created management plan for their 600,000-acre reserve in Rondônia, Brazil.

The Surui Carbon Project is an initiative led by the Surui and involves expert NGOs including Kanindé, Forest Trends, FUNBIO, and the Institute for Conservation and Sustainable Development in the Amazon. The project uses two forms of carbon offset: avoided deforestation and conservation through carbon stocks, as measured through the REDD mechanism; and carbon sequestration through reforestation. The impact of the project will go far beyond the Surui and will bring new alternatives in the management of indigenous lands to other indigenous groups worldwide. 

Vasco van Roosmalen

Director, Amazon Conservation Team Brazil

Brazilian Drought Continues to Impact Amazonian People

You may have recently read some of the articles in the news about the major drought occurring in the Brazilian Amazon.  Disasters like this make it more challenging for our indigenous partners to protect their ancestral lands.  This months-long drought has eliminated food supplies, basic building materials, and plant-based medicines upon which many of the indigenous groups in the northern and western Amazon depend.

For fifteen years, ACT has been pointing out the clear and unbreakable link between healthy forests and human well-being. In the Amazon, the destruction of the forest itself precipitates both major droughts and fires, with associated human misery and deep economic costs for tens of millions of people.

Despite this news, we continue our innovative community-based approach to conservation--in true partnership with our indigenous colleagues--which not only addresses global issues like climate change, but also helps alleviate poverty and find lasting solutions that work at the local level.

Mark J. Plotkin, Ph.D. 
President, Amazon Conservation Team