In Brasília, 16 indigenous ethnic groups met to discuss policies and strategies for managing their territories, along with ISPN and government representatives.
“How will we ensure that our children and grandchildren have what we had in our childhood?” Cleidiane Tremembé came from Ceará and joined 16 other indigenous ethnic groups for the Seminar on Challenges of Territorial and Environmental Management of Indigenous Lands in the Cerrado and Caatinga. Held in Brasília between September 25 and 27, the meeting promoted reflection on the importance of Environmental and Territorial Management Plans (PGTAs) for guaranteeing the quality of life of indigenous peoples, intimately linked to the conservation of the biodiversity in which they live. Debates on the impacts of climate change on the production, life and culture of these peoples also took place at the Seminar, an initiative of ISPN in partnership with FUNAI and the Ministry of the Environment (MMA).
At the event, 18 PGTA (Territorial and Environmental Management Plan) experiences were discussed, focusing on the development of the plans and the situation of the communities in relation to territorial protection, environmental conservation, cultural manifestations, among other issues. The impacts of climate change on the territories, observed during the development of the PGTAs, were also discussed. According to Magno Amaldo (Bakairi – MT), the causes of the environmental changes are visible. “The more deforestation and burning, the more carbon, which alters the climate and our ways of life,” he pointed out.
The diagnostic processes involved in the development of the Territorial and Environmental Management Plans (PGTAs) were also discussed, especially in relation to youth. “I learned more about our land, our rivers, and how to respect them more and more, expanding knowledge to our village,” said Ana Paula, from the Tremembé people (Ceará). Through the PGTAs, the presence of indigenous people in the biomes and their needs for public policies for their territories in the face of climate change were also highlighted. “We took advantage of this workshop with experiences from the Cerrado and Caatinga biomes to reaffirm the importance of the PGTAs in this context of change,” pointed out Rodrigo Medeiros, representative of the Secretariat of Extractive Activities and Sustainable Rural Development of the Ministry of the Environment (MMA).
According to Rodrigo Paranhos, Director of the Directorate for the Promotion of Sustainable Development at FUNAI (National Indian Foundation), the PGTAs (Territorial and Environmental Management Plans) are also strategic for indigenous empowerment. “I am convinced that indigenous peoples are capable of managing their territories, both in terms of cosmology and wisdom, but the PGTA serves to provide visibility and be an instrument of struggle. It is a tool that expresses what indigenous people want, and some even use it to access resources,” he commented.
The strengthening of the National Policy for Territorial and Environmental Management of Indigenous Lands (PNGATI), an achievement of the indigenous movement, was also cited as an instrument that is strengthened through the PGTAs, even contributing to the pressure for the demarcation of lands. “Territories such as those of the Kaxixó (MG), Kapinawá (PE) and Tremambé (CE) are still undergoing land regularization processes, and the PGTAs, by qualifying and identifying territorial and environmental information, strategically support and strengthen the struggle for the territorial demarcation of these and other peoples,” explains Isabella Ferreira, technical advisor at ISPN.
Gathering 
the results of the days of debate, A letter/document was prepared.which also reinforced the need for the PGTAs to have financing mechanisms and political support so that the actions developed can be implemented in the villages.
And closing the two days of debates, four PGTAs were launched – from the Kapinawáe Pankararu (PE), Tremembé do Córrego João Pereira and Queimadas (CE) and Kaxixó (MG) peoples.
“The seminar fulfilled its objective of promoting reflection on the importance of territorial and environmental management instruments for improving the quality of life and well-being of indigenous peoples,” commented João Guilherme Nunes Cruz, coordinator of the Indigenous Peoples Program at ISPN.
Access here the Letter from the Indigenous Peoples of the Cerrado and Caatinga – Challenges for the Environmental and Territorial Management of Indigenous Lands