Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities-Led Financing Mechanisms: Mapping of Existing Funds in Tropical Forest Countries
Across tropical forest countries, Indigenous peoples and local communities have established funds rooted in their own organizations and governance systems. These mechanisms offer pathways for directing resources toward territorial stewardship and self-determined development. Yet limited documentation of how these funds operate and the challenges they face has made it harder for donors and policymakers to […]
Forest communities are changing the rules of forest finance. Will they see the results?
The TFFF Global Steering Committee of Indigenous peoples and local communities meet with the TFFF Board Co-chairs, including key GATC leaders and RFUS Policy Director Josh Lichtenstein and Senior Policy Manager Maryka Paquette, in London, UK, in June 2026.
The Role of Intermediaries in Enabling Direct Funding for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (Published by the ICCA Consortium)
The Living Infrastructure We Can No Longer Afford to Underfund
Indigenous-led forest protection is ready to scale. Are we ready to invest?
Summer 2026 Newsletter
A Message From Our Executive Director Dear Friends and Supporters, Summertime is well underway, and this year, it has brought a sobering reminder of the accelerating climate crisis. In June, Europe saw record high temperatures, with parts of France reaching 112°F, while a massive heat dome and smoke from Canadian wildfires engulfed much of the […]
2025 Annual Impact Report
After Years of Caring for Their Forests, Recognition Arrives for the Communities of Petén, Guatemala
The experience of Guatecarbon shows how organized communities can defend their rights, influence national policy, and ensure that payments for protecting forests reach those doing the work.
Making Forest Carbon Markets Work for Communities: A Case Study on Benefit Sharing in the REDD+ Guatecarbon Project
Benefit sharing is a critical component of REDD+ forest carbon projects, particularly where Indigenous peoples and local communities are central to forest stewardship. As REDD+ evolves into market-based mechanisms, with carbon credits generating revenue in international carbon markets, ensuring that benefits are distributed fairly is essential for the long term success of the initiative. However, […]
No Forests = No Future: A Call to Support Indigenous Defenders on the Frontlines
As we near the end of 2025, an urgent truth continues to drive our work: Without tropical forests, we have no future. Rainforest Foundation US (RFUS) has long supported Indigenous partners across the Amazon basin and Central America’s rainforests. It has been proven time again that Indigenous peoples are the most impactful defenders of rainforests […]
The Amazon Spoke. Did World Leaders at COP30 Listen?
More than 50,000 people marched in the “Great People’s March” during COP30, calling for an end to violence against land defenders, a halt to environmental destruction, and a global phaseout of fossil-fuels.
