A place at the table is not enough: Multistakeholder platforms from the perspective of IPLCs
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There is nothing particularly new about the idea of supporting participatory processes to address key challenges in forest-based initiatives for conservation, sustainable development and climate change mitigation. But there is a new risk, as the need for “transformational change” pulls in two directions. On the one hand, addressing land use change in light of the climate crisis is recognized as a complex and wicked problem that requires policy and practice at all levels to be aligned toward a common vision. Hence, the call for participation, collaboration and coordination is heard virtually everywhere in these arenas. On the other, there is an overriding sense of urgency – it we do not act soon, we will lose the climate battle. Urgency has always overridden the slow and messy processes of participation and democracy, and of assuring the rights and livelihoods of forest-dependent indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs). How do we address the climate crisis hand in hand with the crisis of growing inequality? How do assure that certain “trade-offs” are not on the table? This paper draws on a comparative study of 11 subnational multistakeholder forums (MSFs) in four countries. Semi-structured open-ended interviews were conducted with 236 forum participants and organizers, including 50 IPLC actors. This article looks specifically at the interests and perspectives of indigenous peoples in these forums, who are overall optimistic but are less likely than others to see the forum as a place for finding allies, and more likely to think collective action is a better option. The results also suggest important differences between forums that suggest how to get from a place at the table to a voice at the table – and the importance of addressing power and inequality as an integral part of any serious strategy for change.
Keywords: Sustainability; participation; Indigenous Peoples and local communities; tropical forests; inequality; climate change
ID: 3624017