COP 20: Indigenous peoples call to prioritize community adaptation in climate agreements

- Adaptation is essential to prevent and addressing the vulnerable populations to climate change.

Servindi, 17 December 2014.- The Unity Pact of Indigenous Organizations of Peru called on COP 20 negotiators to adopt clear and transparent commitments to promote community adaptation programs that incorporate indigenous peoples as allies in the fight against climate change.

While industrialized countries are only interested in closing deals on mitigation measures, indigenous community coalition stressed that climate adaptation aims to address vulnerable populations using their organizational and supportive capacities.

"Indigenous peoples and communities have demonstrated their ability and wisdom to adapt to climate variability, generating knowledge, developing technologies and forms of social organization that determine the collective management of the territory" said about Antolin Huascar.

The Unity Pact Coordinator and member of the Political Committee organizer of the People's Summit said that the National Programme for Community Climate Adaptation (PRONACC) is a suitable and realistic alternative that puts communities and indigenous people as true allies combating climate change.

Cusco Quechua leader remarked that to achieve efficiency, the program should be implemented "with full participation of indigenous peoples, on its own budget and setting measurable indicators for compliance".

Comprehensive solutions

Gladis Vila Pihue, spokeswoman of the Unity Pact and president of the national organization of indigenous women ONAMIAP, said that the proposed program responds to the need of formulating a comprehensive solution addressing climate change.

"There is a proven ecosystem and social interplay between the highlands and the Amazon", so that not only mitigation measures are needed, but also to adapt to cater and mobilize vulnerable populations.

The proposed program responds to the urgency of building and developing policies with consistent, planning and management instruments, and articulated away from the unilateral, improvised and centralist bias of the measures proposed by the government to wash its face before the international community.

"A National Programme of Community Adaptation, well thought out and designed, will channel actions and funds that meet the needs of Peru" concluded the Quechua leader of the Huancavelica region.

Components of the program

The PRONACC has two essential components: territorial security and food sovereignty. The territorial security includes titling and ownership of ancestral territories. Food sovereignty is divided into farming, fishing and water.

Four basic approaches are proposed: rights, gender, interculturality and governance.

Implementation

For implementation, two instances are proposed: one of interagency coordination and another with an executive role.

The instance of interagency coordination will be the National Commission on Climate Change, which shall coordinate and articulate with public entities of the three levels of government, the private sector and civil society actions related to climate change management.

A number of changes are proposed to the commission, in order to incorporate the business sector and adding six indigenous representatives, two from each of the geographical areas in which the country is divided: coast, mountains and forests.

The Executive Unit shall be physically located in regions prioritized for implementation of actions to adapt to climate change, because of their high vulnerability. Initially in Huancavelica, Apurimac, Huanuco, Cajamarca and Amazonas.

The PRONACC proposal was formally adopted at the Third Meeting of the Unity Pact held on 8th and 9th December, as part of the People's Summit on Climate Change.

It has been prepared by the Unity Pact with the technical support of Derecho, Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (DAR).

The Unity Pact is a strategic articulation of national indigenous organizations whose purpose is to strengthen the indigenous movement and build joint proposals on the way to the exercise of self-determination, Buen Vivir and full life of the indigenous peoples and communities of Peru.

Derecho, Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (DAR) is a non-profit organization committed to the construction of governance, sustainable development and promotion of indigenous rights in the Amazon.

Access the advocacy document of the proposal on the following link: