Andrew Miller, Amazon Watch’s Advocacy Director, made the following statement on the occasion of the U.S. re-joining the Paris Agreement:
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s decision that the United States will re-join the Paris Agreement is an encouraging first step toward the fulfillment of its commitment to address the climate crisis. Among many urgent domestic and international actions to rapidly confront climate change, a multi-pronged policy for protecting the Amazon rainforest should be a high priority.
“When the Paris Agreement was first initiated five years ago, Indigenous earth defenders warned that their rights to land and life are key to protecting the world’s forests, but the importance of their role in the fight against biodiversity loss and climate change was omitted in the final agreement. The voices of these environmental leaders should be central to policy formulation, as they know best how to preserve the rainforest as they have done for millennia.
“We strongly urge an approach that centers the involvement and protection of Indigenous forest guardians and local human rights defenders, who face deadly risks for advocating on behalf of their local environment and the global climate.”
Background
Read the Amazon Rainforest 100-Day Action Plan for the Biden-Harris Administration, drafted by Amazon Watch, Artists for Amazonía, and Amazon Aid.