Peru’s Indigenous-led conservation: a model for protecting the Amazon

17 April 2025

While vast stretches of Peru’s Amazon remain vulnerable to deforestation, illegal mining and land grabs, 821,000 hectares of Indigenous-managed forests stand as a testament to the power of community-led conservation. These territories, safeguarded by the Indigenous organisations FENAMAD and CARE with support from RFUK, are significantly better protected than surrounding areas where illegal activities often go unchecked. The success lies in a combination of Indigenous land rights, real-time forest monitoring and legal action – an approach that RFUK is deepening in 2025 through renewed commitments to our partners.

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FENAMAD: expanding rights-based climate solutions

In the Madre de Dios region, one of the most biodiverse yet threatened parts of the Amazon, the Federación Nativa del Río Madre de Dios y Afluentes (FENAMAD) represents 38 communities at the forefront of territorial defence. Through its partnership with RFUK, FENAMAD uses cutting-edge technology like ForestLink, our real-time forest monitoring system, to detect and report illegal activities that threaten their lands.

In contrast to neighbouring areas where deforestation and land grabs often go unchallenged, FENAMAD communities have successfully combined technology with legal strategies to deter environmental crime.

Shipitiare community and outside deforestation
The forests managed by FENAMAD and CARE are far better preserved than many surrounding areas, where deforestation rates are higher due to weak governance and external exploitation. Indigenous stewardship has proven to be one of the most effective conservation strategies, with legally titled lands acting as a strong deterrent to illegal logging, mining and land grabs.

In 2025, RFUK’s partnership with FENAMAD will scale up these efforts by:

  • expanding community-led monitoring by increasing the use of ForestLink from 18 to 35 FENAMAD communities, doubling their ability to monitor and protect their forests;
  • strengthening legal action against deforestation by using RFUK’s ForestEye satellite technology, enabling communities to gather and present stronger evidence of deforestation events to support state-led efforts against environmental crimes.
CARE: strengthening Indigenous leadership and livelihoods

In the central Peruvian Amazon, the Central Asháninka del Río Ene (CARE) represents 20 communities and 35 smaller settlements historically tied to these communities, working to reclaim their lands and livelihoods after decades of violent conflict between the Peruvian government and insurgent groups, including the Shining Path. This long history of displacement has made securing territorial rights critical for the Asháninka people.

Since 2008, RFUK and CARE have collaborated to restore Indigenous autonomy and promote sustainable forest-based livelihoods. In 2025, our priorities working with CARE include:

  • supporting Indigenous women by continuing to work on CARE’s gender agenda to promote greater female participation in leadership and decision-making;
  • reinforcing land rights: FENAMAD and CARE have achieved a remarkable milestone – nearly 100% of the local communities they represent have their territories titled under their name. However, continued efforts such as georeferencing, the precise mapping of Indigenous territories, are essential. This process strengthens legal claims and prevents encroachments, ensuring that titled land remains protected from external threats.
Why Indigenous stewardship is a proven solution to protecting the Amazon

The incredible work of the communities shows that when local communities have control over their lands, they are the most effective guardians of the rainforest.

By renewing our commitment to our partner Peruvian Indigenous organisations, RFUK is not only supporting the protection of 821,000 hectares of Amazon rainforest, but we are also reinforcing a global model for climate action that prioritises Indigenous leadership. Stay tuned for updates on our work in Peru and join us in supporting these inspiring efforts to protect the Amazon!

Part of this work has been made possible thanks to the generous support of @Size of Wales.

We used data from the FAO on ourworldindata.org regarding global forest areas and updated geographic data from our partners in Peru to make the data visualisation.

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