ARC

What the world needs now is an Alliance for Rights-based Conservation (ARC), a multi-stakeholder network that brings together indigenous peoples, local communities, social-entrepreneurs, businesses, conservation organizations, policymakers, researchers and funders to promote conservation approaches that uphold human rights and social justice. ARC would recognize that, as well as being just, rights-based conservation strengthens the integrity of protected areas, ensuring the survival of keystone species, preserving biocultural diversity, and mitigating the impact of global warming.

          Traditional conservation models, usually rooted in exclusionary practices, have too often displaced communities, violated human rights, and failed to deliver long-term sustainability. ARC would seek to change this paradigm by centring conservation efforts on justice, equity and indigenous leadership.

          Conservation cannot succeed without people. Indigenous peoples and local communities have been the stewards of biodiverse landscapes for generations. Protected areas can be a rich and sustainable source of traditional medicine and food security and often comprise ancestral lands and totems of profound cultural importance.

          Indigenous rights do not conflict with conservation goals. It stands to reason that the people who live closest to a protected area have the most to gain from its preservation. Studies show that conservation efforts that integrate both cultural and biological elements — biocultural diversity — tend to be more effective, sustainable and have better conservation outcomes than state-run protected areas.

          Biocultural diversity refers to the interconnected and interdependent diversity of life in all its forms — biological, cultural, and linguistic. It recognizes that human cultures, languages, and ways of life are deeply intertwined with the ecosystems they inhabit, influencing and being influenced by biodiversity. It highlights the importance of preserving not just species and ecosystems but also the traditional knowledge, practices, and languages that contribute to their stewardship. Biocultural diversity is crucial for resilience, as cultural traditions often contain valuable ecological knowledge that helps communities adapt to environmental changes.

          With legal rights and adequate resources and instruments to enforce them — good science, technology, frequent monitoring, and initiatives to curb encroachment — indigenous peoples and communities posses the means to lead the stewardship of protected areas. 


The ’30 by 30′ Target
In 2022 at COP15 in Montreal, governments and international NGOs set a goal to protect 30 percent of the planet’s land and ocean ecosystems by 2030. While there have been setbacks, the ’30 by 30′ target has recently been gaining momentum, inspiring a new wave of biophilia.

          Currently, the world’s 303,313 protected areas — national parks, reserves and conservancies — constitute about 24 million square kilometres (17%) of land and inland water ecosystems, and 28 million square kilometres (8%) of coastal waters and oceans. Meanwhile, 80 percent of the planet’s biodiversity is found on 20 percent of land that remains under indigenous stewardship.

          Protecting 30 percent of Earth’s land and oceans by the end of the decade is undoubtedly a worthwhile aim but if protected areas are designed without proper consultation and implemented badly, and if the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities are overlooked, they will fail to deliver protection and make matters worse for people, endangered species and the planet.

         “Fortress conservation”, a holdover from the colonial era, seeks to evict people from land that’s been home to indigenous peoples or local communities for generations. This is ethically problematic and has had dire consequences in Africa, Asia and the Americas. If countries are to protect their biocultural diversity, fight inequality and attain their climate goals, ineffective and outmoded conservation models must be discarded in favour of rights-based conservation.

          At the World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa in 2003, delegates from 154 countries formalized a commitment to rights-based conservation. The new paradigm recognized the centrality of ancestral lands to indigenous groups and included them “in the management of protected areas on a fair and equitable basis in full respect of their human and social rights.”

          In 2007, the United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which enshrined the right of native peoples to own and control “the lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired.” Subsequently, a growing number of the major conservation groups have declared their commitment to the legal role and rights of forest peoples. And in British Columbia, indigenous rights to manage the conservation of indigenous lands was recently enshrined into law.

          Putting funds in the hands of Indigenous Peoples to manage their territories – as they have since time immemorial – is a key solution to address biodiversity loss. This is because Indigenous Peoples hold time-tested knowledge about the lands and waters around them that are rooted in values of kinship and reciprocity. A report by Rainforest Foundation Norway shows that less than 1 percent of global climate finance goes to Indigenous Peoples.

          Overall, rights-based conservation ensures that conservation does not lead to injustices but instead empowers people as stewards of nature, fostering both biodiversity protection and human dignity.

          ARC’s vision would be a world where conservation is just, inclusive, and community-led, ensuring both environmental sustainability and the protection of human rights. ARC’s mission would be to transform conservation by advocating for rights-based approaches, supporting indigenous and local stewardship, influencing global policies, and ensuring that conservation efforts empower rather than displace communities.

 

Systems Change
The only way to achieve these outcomes is through systems change. Systems change aims to alter, shift and transform behavioural structures, customs, mindsets, power dynamics, and rules, with the intent of solving societal problems – with lasting effects locally, nationally and globally.

          In recent years, a growing number of funders in Europe and North America have begun to invest in systems change. The pandemic highlighted the need to invest in deeper systemic shifts rather than just treating symptoms. Systems funders have moved away from short-term solutions, or immediate relief, to focus on structural transformation and long-term change. The trend has shifted to multi-year funding, collaboration across sectors (public, private and non-profit), and adaptive funding models that allow for innovation and experimentation.

          Addressing the root causes of environmental degradation and social injustice, rather than just the symptoms, requires transforming the structures, policies, and mindsets that govern conservation to ensure it is both effective and equitable. Here are 21 ways ARC would apply a systems change approach to promoting rights-based conservation:

  •  Recognize indigenous and local communities as equal partners in conservation, not just stakeholders.
  • Decentralize decision-making and grant legal land rights to those who have traditionally managed ecosystems.
  • Support community-led governance models such as Indigenous and Community Conserved Areas (ICCAs).
  • Shift from a fortress conservation approach (which excludes people) to an inclusive model that respects human rights.
  • Strengthen legal frameworks to integrate Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) in conservation projects.
  • Align conservation policies with international human rights agreements like UNDRIP.
  • Recognize and integrate traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) in conservation planning.
  • Support co-management of protected areas with indigenous and local communities.
  • Invest in community-led biodiversity monitoring programs.
  • Shift funding from top-down conservation projects to community-driven initiatives.
  • Promote sustainable livelihoods (e.g., ecotourism, agroecology, and non-timber forest products) to reduce reliance on extractive industries.
  • Redirect conservation finance to support locally managed conservation areas.
  • Move away from the narrative that humans and nature must be separated to conserve biodiversity.
  • Promote the understanding that cultural and biological diversity are interdependent (biocultural diversity).
  • Highlight success stories of indigenous-led conservation efforts to shift global conservation discourse.
  • Foster partnerships between governments, NGOs, businesses, and communities to ensure long-term support.
  • Integrate conservation into broader social justice movements, recognizing that environmental and human rights issues are interconnected.
  • Encourage cross-sectoral approaches that link climate action, conservation, and human rights.
  • Establish monitoring mechanisms to prevent human rights abuses in conservation.
  • Ensure corporations and conservation organizations are held accountable for respecting indigenous rights.
  • Support community-led data collection and participatory impact assessments.

 

A Movement Worth Joining
ARC would facilitate knowledge exchange between indigenous and local communities, conservationists, and policymakers and help connect local conservation leaders with international allies and funding opportunities.

          Conservation should not come at the cost of human rights. The future of conservation is inclusive, just, and rights-based. An Alliance for Rights-based Conservation would help create a new conservation model that prioritizes both people and nature, and build a world where nature is protected not through exclusion, but through empowerment. It would be a transformative alliance that puts people and nature first.