In October 2021, the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) plans to push for the formal adoption of the 30 x 30 agenda to preserve 30 percent of the Earth’s land and sea by 2030. But Survival International recently launched a campaign to stop the agenda, arguing that it may threaten Indigenous populations’ land rights and food security.

The HAC-led 30 x 30 agenda seeks to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and keep the earth within the planetary boundaries. According to a Protected Planet Report, more than 16 percent of land and 7 percent of coastal waters are recognized as protected areas. To achieve the 2030 goal, HAC promotes the management and increased financing of protected areas, as well as nature-based solutions. They intend to push for the agenda’s adoption at the United Nations Biodiversity Conference of Parties 15 (COP 15).

But Survival International, and several other human rights organizations, argue that such a plan threatens Indigenous populations, who lack formal land rights. Without them, governments can revoke Indigenous rights to land, food, and natural resources. Fiore Longo, Director of the French Chapter of Survival International, tells Food Tank, “Creating more protected areas means that Indigenous peoples relying on this land aren’t going to be able to access their land anymore, so the entire food system for Indigenous people is destroyed.”

Read the full article about Indigenous food insecurity by Morgane Batkai at Food Tank.