As global leaders, Indigenous Peoples, lobbyists and other stakeholders converge on Belém, at the mouth of the Amazon River, for the 30th Conference of the Parties (‘COP30’), there is much is at stake. The world remains far off track to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, and this “Rainforest COP” comes with expectations of major funding commitments for forests, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities.  

Against this backdrop, RFUK will be there working alongside our Indigenous and civil society partners from the Congo Basin and the Amazon to promote people-centred approaches to forest and climate action.  

Turning commitments to reality for IPLCs 

Major commitments on forests and more direct funding for Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPs and LCs) are being announced at COP including the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment to title 160 million hectares of IP and LC lands by 2030, the Forest and Land Tenure Pledge of USD1.8 billion and the Congo Basin Pledge of USD 2.5 billion. These are significant, but as always the key question remains: how do we turn political and funding commitments into tangible action on the ground. 

More than 20 Congolese civil society and Indigenous organisations have come together to show exactly how this can be done in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), home to the world’s second largest rainforest. In a new briefing, they call for a ramping up of investment in the country’s innovative community forest model to implement these and other pledges as well as the ‘Green Corridor’, one of the world’s largest reserves that was created in January. 

On 18 November in Belém, another Congolese campaign group, Notre Terre Sans Pétrole (NTSP), will launch a white paper outlining how the DRC can truly become a “solutions country” by investing in rights-based models and shifting from extractive industries toward a low-carbon energy transition. 

Will Article 6 negotiations trigger a boom in carbon markets?  

Negotiations on Article 6, a central element of the Paris Agreement that establishes the framework for international cooperation on climate targets (NDCs), are expected to take centre stage at COP30. 

With some predicting that Article 6 negotiations could pave the way for a surge in voluntary carbon markets, our joint policy brief with the Sustainable Development Strategies Group (SDSG) warns against the inclusion of unproven and risky nature-based offsets under this mechanism. Instead, we call for far greater support for non-market approaches, as outlined in Article 6.8. 

The brief also highlights major unresolved issues in the voluntary carbon market - such as carbon ownership, benefit-sharing, and national registries - which risk being entrenched by an expansion of the market. 

 

Here are some of the events that RFUK will be at: 

CARBON MARKETS, FORESTS, AND INDIGENOUS ALTERNATIVES 

Thursday 13th November, 15:00 - 16:30  

Side Event Room 4, Blue Zone 

The event with the Peruvian Indigenous organisations AIDESEP and OPIAC, the Environmental Justice Foundation and the University of Bristol explores the impacts of carbon markets on forests, and the alternative climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies that Indigenous peoples are developing, to reflect on the ways in which climate finance can better support Indigenous rights and development strategies. 

 

RAINFOREST FOUNDATION FAMILY RECEPTION 

Monday 17th November, 18:30 - 20:00  

Rainforest Pavillion, Blue Zone 

This evening reception hosted by Rainforest Foundations UK, Norway, and US will celebrate collective milestones in supporting global rainforests and the people who protect them. Spaces are limited. Please contact Kim Chaix at kchaix@rainforestus.org to express your interest. 

 

TENURE RIGHTS COMMITMENTS – FROM GOALS TO REALITY 

Tuesday 18th November, 10.30 – 11:45 

Rainforest Pavillion, Blue Zone 

This event with RFN and RFUS will recap on the two tenure rights pledges announced at COP, the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment and the Forest and Land Tenure Pledge, to identify strategies, pathways, collaboration opportunities and needs to realize IP and LC tenure rights, areas of collaboration between state and non-state actors, and support needs.  

 

SOLUTIONS COUNTRY PROTECTING FORESTS AND SECURING THE JUST TRANSITION IN THE DRC THROUGH COMMUNITY AND INDIGENOUS-LED APPROACHES 

Tuesday 18th November, 14:00 - 14:55 

Forest Pavillion, Blue Zone 

Organised with Notre Terre Sans Petrole, Corap, Earth Insight and APEM, this event will explore the key challenges and pathways for the just transition in DRC. It aims to amplify the voices of ordinary Congolese citizens and forest-dependent communities, highlight the actions needed by the government to protect forests and unlock the country’s full potential. 

 

Get in touch, we’d love to connect in Belém.