From October 28-30, Harry Jonas and Holly Shrumm (Natural Justice) attended this workshop on Indigenous peoples’ and community conserved areas (ICCAs) at the Shirakawa-Go Eco Institute in Japan, in conjunction with the 10th Conference of the Parties (COP10) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The workshop, entitled “Building Capacities and Generating Support for the Sustainable Future of ICCAs”, consisted of 55 participants, including representatives of Indigenous peoples and local communities, NGOs, the ICCA Consortium, governments, cooperation agencies, and international organizations.
The purpose of the workshop was to provide a focused opportunity for assessing the current state of ICCAs as well as relevant initiatives and resources that could build collective capacity for securing ICCAs’ future. It was anticipated that this gathering could generate a long-term process and actions necessary to support ICCAs and build capacities to respond to specific needs, especially with regards to decisions made at COP10. The workshop brought up a range of key discussion topics, including the challenges and opportunities that need to be met for ICCAs and a framework for a collective ICCA vision. Harry and Holly compiled the workshop report, which can now be downloaded in medium resolution or in low resolution. We look forward to continuing the discussions and furthering the work plan with like-minded colleagues around the world.
