Guide on Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples

integrated with other strategies such as disasterpreparation, land-use planning, environmentalconservation and national plans for sustainabledevelopment. Further, long-term adaptation toclimate change requires anticipatory actions,which would require considerable investment ofcapital, labor, and time and in many indigenousregions of the world, there are alreadyconstraints on resources and a lack of access totechnology (UNPFII, 2008).• Migration, irrigation, water conservationtechniques, land reclamation, changing whereand at what elevation plants are cultivated,livelihood adaptation are only among the manytechniques that indigenous peoples employlocally to fight the double battle of biodiversityloss and adapting to climate change.NOTE: Pleaserefer to ChapterIV: Adapting toClimate Change:IndigenousPeoples Showthe Way forshort-termadaptationmeasuresundertakenby indigenouspeoples8How can biodiversity be used asa solution for climate change?• Protecting biodiversity should be seen as an essential component ofadaptation to climate change. 6• Reducing deforestation and other forms of land use change can lead tothe reduction of GHG emissions.• It provides a “safety net” of genetic resources for adaptation.• It provides protection (bioshields) against the negative impacts ofclimate change.9How can solutions to climate changeaffect biodiversity? What should be doneto conserve biodiversity while mitigatingclimate change?• Better land management and the use of marineprotected areas may be possible to prevent andeven reverse the bleaching caused by rising seatemperatures. It could bolster the livelihoods ofmillions in the Caribbean, Pacific and Indian Oceans,who depend on the reefs for tourism income,seafood, and physical protection from storms andwaves.• Better protection of native vegetation in dry lands104 <strong>Guide</strong> on Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples