Financing Climate Justice: New Case Studies Share Practical Lessons on How Climate Finance Can Reach Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Examples from Guyana, Peru, Mesoamerica, and a global Indigenous alliance demonstrate practical solutions to overcome systemic funding barriers. New York, 18 September 2025 — Indigenous peoples and local communities protect more than a third of the planet’s most vital forests, yet receive less than one percent of international climate funding. Without adequate […]

How Climate Finance Can Reach Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities: Practical Lessons from Four Regional Case Studies

Indigenous peoples and local communities protect 36% of the world’s intact tropical forests, yet receive less than 1% of international climate funding. If you are familiar with this work, you know this contradiction intimately. But closing the gap requires more than good intentions—it demands practical strategies that navigate entrenched systems while building genuine autonomy. Four […]

10 Compelling Books by Indigenous Authors to Read on International Day of Indigenous Peoples and Beyond

Every year on August 9 we celebrate International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. On this day in 1982, the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations held its first meeting in Geneva where they drafted the UN Declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples, asserting their rights to self determination. Across the globe, many Indigenous […]

How New Laws in the US, Brazil, and Ecuador Are Driving Forest Loss and Rights Violations

Right now, across the United States, Brazil and Ecuador, hard-won environmental protections are being dismantled at an alarming pace, putting the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest and ancestral home to over a million Indigenous peoples, at great risk. Yet, in the face of this growing crisis, Rainforest Foundation US’s (RFUS) Indigenous partners continue to lead […]

Top tools to protect rainforests (A video series by Mongabay)

Paving the Way Towards COP30: “The answer is us—all of us”

Last month in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, Indigenous peoples and local communities gathered to send a powerful message to the world: the future of Earth’s forests, and the survival of all life they sustain, hinge on Indigenous peoples and local communities.

Marchés du Carbone et Nos Droits : Un Guide pour les Peuples Autochtones et les Communautés Locales

Le marché volontaire du carbone évolue rapidement et s’étend à de nouveaux territoires, ce qui rend difficile de distinguer qui fait quoi et quelles sont les implications pour les communautés concernées. Afin d’aider les peuples autochtones et les communautés locales à mieux comprendre les marchés du carbone, Rainforest Foundation US a lancé une série animée en six parties pour démystifier ce marché et fournir aux communautés des informations essentielles pour protéger leurs droits.

What if We Acted for Our Planet Before It’s Too Late?

Rainforest Foundation US (RFUS), alongside Indigenous partners, has long advocated for a proven solution to mitigate the impacts of climate change—securing Indigenous peoples’ rights to their ancestral lands in Latin America’s rainforests.

New Report Confirms Climate Impact of Rainforest Foundation US & Indigenous Peoples Collaboration

Indigenous peoples’ territories across four countries sequester more than 9.8 Million Metric Tons of CO2e—equivalent to the annual emission of more than 2 million gas vehicles or 1.3 million homes.

Leaders of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities Weigh in on Carbon Market Standard Revision

The jurisdictional REDD+ voluntary carbon market standard TREES 2.0 is up for review, creating a pivotal opportunity to strengthen the rights of Indigenous Peoples as well as those of Local Communities and social integrity throughout the forest carbon market. To that end, a group of significant representative organizations of Indigenous Peoples as well as Local Communities from across Latin America came together to submit their recommendations.