BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) 鈥� With the first U.N. climate talks in the Amazon approaching, thousands of Indigenous people marched Tuesday in Brazil鈥檚 capital, demanding the state guarantee and expand their rights to traditional lands as part of the solution to the world鈥檚 climate crisis.
The protest is the high point of the annual Free Land Indigenous Camp, now in its 21st edition. Bearing messages such as 鈥淟and rights = Climate Action,鈥� they walked toward Three Powers Square, where Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace are located in Brasilia.
鈥淚ndigenous territories are the most preserved and contribute to slowing the climate crisis we鈥檙e facing. But they are also the first to be impacted,鈥� said Luene Karipuna, from the Amazonian state of Amap谩, while marching. 鈥淲e feel it directly in our lands, where we lost our entire cassava crop 鈥� our staple food in my community.鈥�
Thirteen percent of Brazil麓s territory consists of recognized Indigenous lands, most of it in the Amazon.
In the past two years, the Amazon basin has suffered its on record, leading to a surge in wildfires, isolation for river communities, crop losses and the death of wildlife, including the endangered pink dolphin. have linked the region麓s extreme weather to climate change.
Like several other Indigenous leaders, Karipuna plans to attend the climate talks 鈥� also known as COP30 鈥� in November in the city of Belem. They hope the event will be a chance to promote land demarcation and other Indigenous rights in all Amazon countries, and are pressing for a greater role during the event.
鈥淭his is a historic COP for the social movement. It鈥檚 a key moment for all Indigenous peoples to show that we are alive,鈥� said Juan Carlos Jintiach, an Indigenous leader from Ecuador and executive secretary of the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities, an international organization representing Indigenous peoples from Latin America, Africa and Asia.
Last year, the Indigenous movement had called for the nomination of a co-president for COP30. The proposal was rejected, but the conference鈥檚 president, Brazilian climate secretary Andr茅 Corr锚a do Lago, a so-called Circle of Indigenous Leadership 鈥渢o help integrate traditional knowledge and wisdom into global collective intelligence.鈥�
Dinamam Tux谩, coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, said they are frustrated by the rejection of the co-presidency proposal and are still analyzing Lago鈥檚 plan.
鈥淭he COP is a political moment when countries come together to negotiate the climate crisis, but unfortunately it does not engage directly with Indigenous peoples at the negotiation tables 鈥� even though we are the main defenders of these territories and are actively fighting climate change,鈥� Tux谩 told the AP.
Satellite data show that Indigenous territories in the Amazon 鈥� a region twice the size of India 鈥� have very low deforestation rates. The world鈥檚 largest tropical forest is a major carbon sink and climate regulator, and it holds 20% of the planet鈥檚 fresh water.
___
The Associated Press鈥� climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP鈥檚 for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Fabiano Maisonnave, The Associated Press
