Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI)

Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI)

News: A report has been released recently on the initial phase of ICI.

What is ICI?
• The Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI) is a project that supports indigenous peoples and local communities (IPs and LCs) in their efforts to protect and manage their lands, waters, and natural resources.
• It is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and implemented by Conservation International (CI) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
• The project has 4 components – i) Local Action to deliver Global Environmental Benefits, ii) Global IPLC Capacity Building, iii) Policy influence and iv) Knowledge management.

What are the key findings of report?
• The report highlights that even though funding commitments have risen for Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IP and LC) to improve conservation. But their overall funding situation hasn’t really improved.
• For instance, donors have given Indigenous Peoples and local communities less than 1% of the funds for addressing climate change impacts and adaptations.
• Indigenous Peoples and local communities make up just 5% of the world’s population. But they steward 25% of land and 40% of intact ecosystems on Earth. Yet, many have lacked financial support to improve and scale their sustainable management of these territories.