Contacts: In the US: Tom Goldtooth, (218) 751-4967 or Jihan Gearon (218) 760-1370
In Canada: Clayton Thomas-Muller, (218) 760-6632
In Bali: Jihan Gearon, +62 81 338998156 and Ben Powless, +613 614 4219

Next Generation of North American Indigenous Youth Attend International Climate Meeting

BALI, Indonesia -- Today marks the end of the 13th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 13) in Bali. Navajo and Mohawk representatives of the Indigenous Environmental Network leave with frustration about the outcomes of COP 13 but also inspiration from Indigenous leaders.

Jihan Gearon, from the Dine’ (Navajo) Nation and Benjamin Powless, from Mohawk, Six Nations, have been participating in the climate conference in Bali for the past two weeks. Though IEN has been participating in these UNFCCC since 1998, Jihan and Ben came to learn about the proceedings so that the next generation of Indigenous youth will be able to participate in the future. They have been working with other Indigenous Peoples and climate justice organizations to advocate for Indigenous Peoples rights and oppose the false solution of carbon trading.

Gearon says, “What scares me most about this COP isn’t that we came out of it with no targets or plan for post-Kyoto. It’s that the atmosphere of the discussions seems to focus less on stopping climate change and more on how money can be made from the climate change problem, at the expense of Indigenous People.”

Industry representatives came to COP 13 in full force, advocating for market-based solutions to climate change, such as international carbon trading markets. Many industry reps pushed for reforestation projects to take a bigger role in worldwide carbon markets.

“Carbon trading schemes have been detrimental to Indigenous Peoples,” says Powless. “And reforestation projects should not be included in them. Because polluting companies need a forest to stay unused in order to pollute elsewhere, they deny Indigenous Peoples access to their own traditional forests. This is a violation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”

Despite their disappointment, both Powless and Gearon agree they have learned a lot and left with one source of inspiration. The Indigenous Peoples Caucus of COP 13 has been pushing for more meaningful inclusion in climate negotiations and both say working with the caucus has been a positive experience for them.

“It’s inspiring to see Indigenous Peoples from every corner of the world not be scared to speak out in their appeals for the rest of the world to include them in this process,” explains Powless. “And even more than just appealing, they’ve been forceful when necessary even to the point where we’ve staged a few protests here about the UNFCCC process keeping us out of the negotiations.”

Gearon adds, “this is really what Indigenous Peoples the world over need to be capable of doing in support of our rights.”

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Forwarded by the Indigenous Environmental Network
who has representatives at Bali ­ mail to: ien@igc.org

PRESS RELEASE

Friends of the Earth International
World Rainforest Movement
Global Forest Coalition

WORLD BANK HANDS OFF FORESTS
December 10, 2007

BALI (INDONESIA), Dec. 10, 2007 Environmental groups at the United Nations climate talks in Bali today urged governments to reject a new World Bank initiative promoting the inclusion of forests in carbon markets.

The World Bank initiative, known as the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) is set to be launched on Tuesday 11th December in Bali as part of the discussions on Reducing Emissions through Deforestation in Developing countriesÂ’ (REDD).

The initiative, which would allow tropical forests to be included in carbon offsetting schemes, fails to combat climate change, the groups said, because it allows industrialised countries and companies to buy their way out of emissions' reductions.

Between 18-20 percent of annual global carbon emissions are caused by deforestation, and Indonesia is the world's third largest greenhouse gas emitter as a result of deforestation.

The World Bank has a particularly appalling track record in relation to funding forests and carbon projects, not least because it provides substantial funding to oil, gas and mining projects; and as a broker, has a vested interest in promoting carbon trading.

Its planned Forest Carbon Partnership Facility would have serious negative social and environmental impacts, the groups said.

Torry Kuswardhono, Energy Campaigner at Friends of the Earth Indonesia (WALHI): said:

"Carbon offsetting is extremely unfair. Forests provide livelihoods for over one billion Indigenous and other forests peoples. Wealthy companies and countries are able to buy the right to continue to pollute, while poor communities in developing countries can find themselves locked into unfavourable, long-term commercial contracts over forest management".

Sandy Gauntlett, Pacific focal point of the Global Forest Coalition and chairman of the Pacific Indigenous Peoples Environment Coalition said:

"Indigenous Peoples and local communities will bear the real costs of forest-related climate mitigation projects based on carbon finance because they will increase the pressure on their lands and territories and undermine land rights claims. With this proposal, the World Bank is violating the principle of Prior Informed Consent, which is enshrined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples should not just be consulted on this facility. Without their full and prior informed consent this facility should be disbanded."

World Rainforest Movement spokesperson Ana Filipini said :

"Carbon finance mechanisms in developing countries result in forests being transferred or sold off to large corporations who hope to acquire profitable ‘carbon credits’ associated with those forests at some point in the future. The current proposals are set to reward logging and palm oil corporations and countries with high deforestation rates whilst undermining Indigenous Peoples' and other forest-dependent communities' rights, in particular those of women."

Some of the genuine and urgent measures needed to address the deforestation problem include:

1) Giving the highest priority to halting the development, production and trade of agrofuels, and suspend all targets and other incentives, including subsidies, carbon offsets and public and private finance related to the development and production of agrofuels.

2) Keeping tropical forests out of carbon finance mechanisms, which are unpredictable, inequitable and discourage the reduction of emissions at source. This includes keeping forests out of the Clean Development Mechanism and all carbon trading initiatives; and rejecting the World BankÂ’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).

3) Redirect the very substantial amounts of public funds, tax exemptions and other forms of subsidies currently provided to the fossil fuel and agrofuels industries, into avoided deforestation assistance funds, the effective promotion of public transport and the development of solar, wind, geothermal, wave and energy efficiency industries.

4) Strengthen weak forest conservation policies and institutions, encouraging bans or moratoria on industrial logging and forest conversion, and addressing corruption and lack of enforcement.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
IN BALI:
Joseph Zacune, Friends of the Earth International climate coordinator, Indonesian mobile number +62.813.3896995 (dec 1-14 only)

Sandy Gauntlett, Oceania focal point, Global Forest Coalition and chairperson of the Pacific Indigenous Peoples Environment Coalition, +62- 813-38938574 or
Email sandyoceania@yahoo.com
Torry Kuswardhono, Energy Campaigner, Friends of the Earth Indonesia (WALHI): +62- 811383270
or email torry@walhi.or.id
Fay, media officer, WALHI (Friends of the Earth Indonesia) , Indonesian mobile number +62 815 8070717

Niccolo' Sarno
Media Coordinator - Friends of the Earth International
Email: niccolo@foei.org Tel: +31-20-6221369 (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Website: http://www.foei.org/media

Global Justice Ecology Project
P.O. Box 412 Hinesburg, VT 05461 U.S.
+1.802.482.2689 ph/fax
http://www.globaljusticeecology.org

The STOP Genetically Engineered Trees Campaign
is a Program of Global Justice Ecology Project
http://www.stopgetrees.org

Global Justice Ecology Project is the
North American Focal Point for Global Forest Coalition
http://www.globalforestcoalition.org
Global Justice Ecology Project Mission Statement:
Building local, national and international alliances with action
to address the root causes of social injustice, economic
domination and environmental destruction.

Tom B.K. Goldtooth
Executive Director Indigenous Environmental Network
PO Box 485 Bemidji, MN 56619 USA
email ien@igc.org Web: www.ienearth.org