First published on 02/26/2018, and last updated on 02/28/2018
On February 6-9, 2018, the CBD Secretariat organised in Montreal (Canada) a technical expert workshop on “other effective area-based conservation measures” (OECMs) for achieving Aichi Biodiversity Target 11. The Global Coordinator (Grazia BF) and Marine and Coastal Strategy Advisor (Kim Wright) participated in the meeting in representation of the ICCA Consortium, while several Honorary members were also in attendance with a variety of hats and sponsors. Among others, two points were stressed:
- Many indigenous peoples (IPs) and local communities (LCs) are potentially interested in their conserved territories to be included among the “OECMs” of a given country as they hope this may offer a layer of protection against destructive developments condoned or even spearheaded by that country’s government. If the relevant governments will “count” OECMs as part of its CBD obligations, they would have to give them appropriate recognition and respect, i.e., security of being able to continue… or it will become clear that their obligations are being dis-attended.
- The social and cultural values embedded in the territories and land conserved by IPs and LCs (in one word, ICCAs) should be strengthened by respecting their own unique values, knowledge and practices, as well as the institutions that sustain them. In other words, OECMs should distinguish themselves from protected areas as “territories and areas recognised as achieving conservation in their own ways”, not fitting a mould provided by others.
The crucial main achievement of the Consortium’s presence in the meeting is that current CBD guidance now clearly states that the OECMs of IPs and LCs are to be self-identified, besides and beyond offering their FPIC (free, prior and informed consent). There is also reference to the UNEP WCMC Manual about ICCAs, which stresses that self-identification should be peer-supported and peer-reviewed/ validated (the ICCA Consortium has actively participated in the production of the UNEP WCMC Manual).
We are not sure that all these points will remain in the language of final CBD decisions, as this meeting was only preparatory to SBSTTA and COP 14… but we have good hope that OECMs could become an interesting avenue to secure ICCAs. For that, we encourage all the concerned IPs and LCs to make sure that their country CBD Focal Points are aware of the OECM self-identification and peer-support/ review requirements. This only adds to the many reasons why the Members of the ICCA Consortium should play a role in developing national CBD reporting. As you may recall, the guidance and template adopted in Decision XIII/27 specify that CBD Parties should facilitate the “full and effective participation of indigenous peoples and local communities” in the preparation of their CBD reports (there is even an “optional section” on their specific contributions). The next report, due by the end of 2018, is an excellent occasion to contact your CBD Focal Point and initiate the conversation.
