CNPCT delivers to MDA a proposed draft decree for the titling of traditional lands and presses for a territorial recognition policy; Ministry establishes partnership with Tô No Mapa.
Representatives of the National Council of Traditional Peoples and Communities (CNPCT) delivered to the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Agrarian Development (MDA), Fernanda Machiaveli, a proposal for a draft presidential decree aimed at titling traditional lands, during the 1st Workshop for the Construction of the National Plan for the Sustainable Development of Traditional Peoples and Communities.
The initiative, held on Tuesday, June 3, highlights the urgency of protecting traditional territories, guaranteeing the rights of these communities amid growing socio-environmental challenges, such as the advancement in the National Congress of Bill 2.159/2021, known as the Devastation Bill, which dismantles the environmental licensing process, the main instrument for protecting the environment in the face of the development of projects with potential risks to nature and populations.
The committee expects that the proposed draft will guide the Federal Government in the recognition and titling of land.
“This decree is an urgent priority to guarantee the protection of the peoples who preserve the biodiversity essential to us all. Without territorial justice, there is no climate justice.” highlights Samuel Caetano, president of CNPCT.
Patrícia Silva, Advocacy Advisor at ISPN, who attended the meeting, affirms that the CNPCT has the legitimacy to "demand from the government the implementation of its rights, especially territorial rights."
"Traditional peoples and communities are responsible for conserving natural resources, but they remain invisible in public policies. Existing legal instruments to guarantee territorial rights, such as Extractive Reserves, environmentally differentiated settlements, and sustainable development reserves, are insufficient to guarantee access to legal security for their territories," explains Patrícia Silva, adding that land titling "is essential for socio-environmental conservation and as a strategy to combat climate change."
According to Maria Alaides, coordinator of the Interstate Movement of Babaçu Coconut Breakers, “the land title is not just a right, it is a milestone in the struggle we wage every day to protect our ways of life and our territories. With this achievement, we will take a clear message to COP 30: Brazil needs to respect those who protect nature and life.”
Marina Antunes, legal advisor at Terra de Direitos, believes that, as host of COP30, Brazil needs to advance in the territorial protection of traditional peoples and communities. "The preservation of biomes and biodiversity by traditional peoples has historically been a concrete measure to confront the climate crisis."
The event included the participation of representatives from traditional peoples and communities, ministries, civil society organizations, universities, experts, and institutional partners involved in the agenda of rights and sustainable development of traditional peoples and communities.
The National Sustainable Development Plan for PCTs should outline actions, budget sources, and goals to be achieved in the coming years regarding ensuring territorial protection and access to natural resources, social inclusion, infrastructure, promoting sustainable production, and addressing human rights violations. The final document is also expected to be presented at the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in November in Belém, Pará.
I'm on the map
Also during the meeting, on Tuesday, the 3rd, the Tô No Mapa Initiative signed a Technical Cooperation Agreement (ACT) with the MDA to enable a partnership with the federal government for the exchange of knowledge and experiences in order to improve public policies related to the recognition of traditional territories.
"The objective of this ACT is to support the MDA in its agenda for regularizing traditional territories. We have nearly 400 traditional territories with validated registrations in the Tô No Mapa app, and this is invaluable data, as data sources on traditional territories are often scarce. And to develop any public policy for traditional territories, whether regularization or recognition, the first requirement is information: who they are, how many there are, and where they are. With Tô No Mapa, we can help answer these questions," explains André Moraes, the initiative's executive coordinator and technical advisor at ISPN.
Tô No Mapa is a mobile application developed for Brazilian peoples, traditional communities, and family farmers to self-map their territories. It's an accessible and free tool, built through dialogue between diverse communities and social organizations.
This initiative is the result of a partnership between the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), the Institute for Society, Population and Nature (ISPN), the Cerrado Network, and the Cerrados Institute. Learn more. here.
Text by Camila Araujo/ISPN Communication Office, with information from Fernanda Silva/Rede Cerrado.