Guide on Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples

CDM was set up, carbon sequestration or carbon offset projects wereundertaken by the voluntary market which have led to the criminalizationof indigenous peoples’ traditional livelihoods (See Box 1), displacementfrom their traditional territories (See Box 2), or appropriation of theirlands by the State or private interests.• The upsurge in the building of large-scale hydro-electric dam projects inmany developing countries is another factor causing the displacementof indigenous peoples from their traditionalterritories. Their free, prior and informed consenthas not been obtained by the State when suchprojects were established in their communities.• The pursuit of biofuels as alternative energysources has resulted to indigenous peoples’ landsbeing used or eyed as the production areas forBox 1Carbon Offset Projectin the WesternHighlands ofGuatemala 7The first carbon offset project wasorganized in the US in 1989 whenApplied Energy Services (AES)decided to build a 183 megawattcoal-fired power station, approvedpartly due to its pioneering offset,which involved planting 50 milliontrees in the impoverished WesternHighlands of Guatemala. Thisinitial project was beset by manyof the problems that have plaguedoffset projects ever since. Thenon-native trees that were plantedinitially were inappropriate for thelocal ecosystem and caused landdegradation. The indigenouspeoples from those areas,the Maya, had their habitualsubsistence activities, such asgathering fuel wood, criminalized.Ten years on from the start of theproject, evaluators concluded thatthe offset target was far from beingreached.biofuels (oil palm,corn, sugar cane,soya, jatropha,etc.). Massiveland grabs arehappening or willtake place because of the expansion ofland areas planted to biofuels. Reportsalso have shown that the production ofbiofuels, such as ethanol from corn, endup consuming more energy than what itcan save. Thus, these are false mitigationsolutions.BIOFUEL - a renewable fuel that isderived from biological matter, e.g.,biodiesel, biogas, and methane.40% - increase in food prices,according to latest FAO (Food andAgricultural Organization) reports,partly due to the competition betweenthe use of agricultural crops for foodor for biofuels.PART III: Climate Change Mitigation Measures: Impacts on Indigenous Peoples 29http://www.fontplay.com/freephotos/