Statement on our role in the RRI coalition

In response to the recent news and new direction in the governance of the Rights and Resources Initiative, FPP has decided not to continue its membership of the Coalition.

We have been an active, committed member of the RRI coalition for many years, and continue to work for the rights of customary landowners. We are equally committed to ensuring that we do not take up space that Indigenous Peoples’, Afro-Descendant and local community representative organisations should be taking. Forest Peoples Programme fully supports the envisaged change in RRI’s direction that opens up space for Indigenous Peoples, Afro-Descendant and local communities to lead in the governance of the coalition; we fully support an approach that strengthens collective impact across the coalition; we fully support a transition to new leadership and a review of the secretariat’s organisational culture.

We continue to strongly believe in the promise and ambition of the coalition and look forward to it strengthening to be able to meet the many challenges facing our partners and collaborators in the coming years. To achieve this, we strongly encourage recruitment of a new Coordinator with lived experience of indigenous or customary land issues in order to help move the coalition to a positive new chapter.

We are open to re-joining the RRI Coalition when the much-needed transitions come into effect and on the invitation of representative organisations.