Indigenous Education Makes a Difference: Indigenous-Led Education Network named winner of the Inclusive Global Environmental Facility Challenge to save the Rainforest
Originally published on Rutu Foundation website
VANCOUVER, CANADA - At the Seventh Assembly of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) this week, the Indigenous-Led Education Network (ILED), a dynamic collaborative network of indigenous-led education initiatives from across several nations, was one of 23 proud winners of the GEF Inclusive Challenge Program. This acknowledgment continues a wave of international recognition of the valuable role of indigenous communities in looking after our planet’s most vital ecosystems and the importance of support for innovative, grassroots approaches to a more sustainable future.
The GEF Inclusivity Challenge Acknowledges Innovative Action on a Global Stage
The Challenge seeks to support and elevate community-driven climate and nature projects and the unique contributions of indigenous peoples, women, girls, and young people to pressing global environmental challenges.
Indigenous-Led Education Network (ILED): A Beacon of Global Recognition
The establishment of the UN Inclusive GEF Challenge fund and the recognition of ILED's accomplishments is an acknowledgment of the pivotal role that indigenous youth and their knowledge play in safeguarding tropical rainforests and combating climate change. ILED, supported by the Rutu Foundation, is a network of grassroots, indigenous-led organizations across Africa, Latin America and Asia aimed at passing on their environmental wisdom to the next generations.
Sustainable rainforest management depends on indigenous-led education that makes communities, especially children and youth, more resilient for the future. Snehlata Nath of the Keystone Foundation (India), an ILED member, emphasizes the importance of empowering indigenous youth to preserve local knowledge and culture:
“It has to be the agency of the community…it has to be the youth, it needs to be knowledge that is transferred to the children [...] This is the only way that is sustainable in the long run.”
ILED supports a Small Grants Fund and a Youth Fellowship program: initiatives managed by indigenous communities themselves to preserve and revitalize traditional practices and transfer local knowledge that is critical to environmental resilience.These vary from tree-planting efforts by Sengwer women and children in Kenya, to a Mobile Forest School in the Philippines and indigenous leadership programmes weaving together indigenous knowledge and ‘modern’ insights.
In light of the UN International Decade of Indigenous Languages, launched in 2022, the ILED Network is calling on policymakers worldwide to provide greater recognition and support to Indigenous knowledge and languages as a key driver of more resilient communities and ecological preservation in rainforest regions.
Inclusion is Critical for a Resilient Future
While the GEF Assembly indeed marks an important recognition of indigenous leadership and contributions, many believe that more needs to be done to ensure the genuine inclusion of indigenous communities in tackling global environmental issues
"What is really needed is a transformation where Indigenous Peoples fully participate, engage, and shape educational policies and plans that are relevant for them,” says Dr Ellen-Rose Kambel, Director and Founder of the Rutu Foundation, another member of the ILED Network
The recognition of indigenous environmental stewardship is a call to action, inviting us all to honour and amplify the voices of those who have safeguarded our planet's natural heritage for generations.
For more information:
Ellen-Rose Kambel, Rutu Foundation:
ellen-rose@rutufoundation.org
ph. nr..: +31-6-38300886
Paul Wolvekamp, Both ENDS:
p.wolvekamp@bothends.org
ph. nr.: +31-6-45530641
ANNEX
Relevant context and other news
Forest protection victories due to Indigenous Peoples’ activism
In a landmark decision this week, Ecuadorians have voted to stop an oil drilling project in the Yasuni National Park, an Amazon reserve known to be one of the most diverse biospheres in the world. The reserve is also home to the Waorani and Kichwa tribes, and the Tagaeri, Taromenane and Dugakaeri, who are three of the last remaining uncontacted tribes in the world. Touted as one of the first countries in the world to stop oil exploitation “through direct climate democracy”, Ecuador’s historic decision acknowledges the connection between indigenous communities and the climate emergency.[1] The advocacy of local communities in Yasuni has served as a powerful force to save important rainforest habitats.
In Brazil, deforestation rates in the Amazon have experienced a significant drop since President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office. Earlier this month, President Lula met with eight other Amazonian nations in Belém to discuss strategies for protecting and sustainably managing the Amazon. In a ‘pre-summit’ called the Amazon Dialogues, representatives of Indigenous communities met with other civil society actors to “deliver a voice to the People” to the heads of state as they enter the Amazon Summit. Advocates argued for 80% of the Amazon to be protected by 2025, including 100 million hectares of indigenous land.[2]
However, while the commitment of Amazon countries to work together is considered a critical step in the climate debate, many argue that Indigenous people should be more firmly placed at the centre of the discussion. Indigenous guardianship, deeply rooted in traditional wisdom and understanding of nature, can help to steer the rainforests worldwide towards a more sustainable future
The Indigenous-Led Education Network (ILED) recognizes this difficult balance as a recent recipient of the Global Environmental Facility’s (GEF) Inclusivity Challenge Award, in recognition of Indigenous Peoples vital role in protecting forests and climate
1 A joint statement from climate organizations, including Yasunidos and Amazon Frontlines.
About the Global Environmental Facility (GEF)
The Global Environmental Facility is a leading international organization that channels financial support to environmentally significant projects across the globe. GEF recognizes and supports initiatives that drive sustainable development and conservation efforts, aligning with the broader goal of combating climate change and safeguarding our planet's biodiversity
About the ILED Network:
The Indigenous-Led Education (ILED) Network is a global network of Indigenous communities and supporting organizations. It aims to generate support and visibility for educational initiatives and knowledge transfer by Indigenous peoples. The secretariat of the Network is housed at the Dutch Rutu Foundation in Amsterdam
https://www.rutufoundation.org/indigenous-led-education-network/
Contact: iledsecretariat@rutufoundation.org
Publication "Pass it on! Stories of Indigenous-Led Education from the Grassroots":
From 9 August 2022, the International Day of Indigenous Peoples, available here:
Overview
- Resource Type:
- Press Releases
- Publication date:
- 24 August 2023
- Programmes:
- Global Finance