OVERVIEW

The IPBSAP is a collective commitment by the Indigenous Peoples in the Philippines about their roles, traditional knowledge, values, rights, and interrelationships with their territories and biodiversity.

It contains an overview of the status of biodiversity in Indigenous peoples’ territories in the Philippines, their worldview on nature and culture, a summary of the relevant policy, governance, and financing landscape, an Action Plan in line with the 23 Targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework, case stories of Indigenous peoples’ contributions to biodiversity, and guidance for biodiversity actions and implementation in the Philippines.

This plan will continue to be enriched by ongoing and sustained efforts to localize the plan and move toward community-led implementation and monitoring.

CONTEXT

Indigenous peoples play a vital role in conserving and managing the Philippines’ biological and cultural diversity. Their Indigenous values, knowledge systems, customary governance, and management of biodiversity have guided the stewardship of their ancestral lands and waters since time immemorial.

In the Philippines, approximately 96 out of 128 identified key biodiversity areas are known to be part of the ancestral domain of Indigenous peoples (Tebebba, 2008). About 75% of the country’s remaining forests are also found in Indigenous territories (PAFID).

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), adopted by the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2022, makes significant mention of Indigenous peoples’ rights, contributions, and participation – Indigenous peoples are part of the plan. Indigenous peoples and support organizations in the Philippines view this as a key opportunity to collectively contribute to effective and inclusive biodiversity policies and actions, alongside advocating for the genuine recognition of Indigenous peoples' rights and roles in biodiversity conservation, sustainable use, and fair and equitable benefit sharing.

AN INDIGENOUS-LED PROCESS

The Indigenous Peoples’ Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan is the result of an Indigenous-led consultation process initiated by Indigenous peoples’ organizations and support NGOs, now called the Indigenous Peoples Biodiversity Coalition Philippines (IPBC). The process aimed to cascade the gains made in the KMGBF global goals and targets for the recognition of Indigenous peoples’ rights, down to national and local levels.

The year-long consultative process saw the conduct of two National Roundtable Discussions, one Northern Luzon inter-regional Roundtable Discussion on Indigenous Peoples and Biodiversity, and a writeshop to put together the ideas coming from these activities. Participating were representatives of 30 Indigenous peoples’ organizations and communities, 11 Indigenous NGOs and their networks, and 14 support agencies and/or funders. At the same time, the IPBC took proactive steps to engage in the updating process of the Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (PBSAP) facilitated by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Thus, the first iteration of the IPBSAP was formulated and officially turned over to the DENR Biodiversity Management Bureau for inclusion in the updated PBSAP on August 6, 2024, in Tagaytay, Philippines.

The IPBSAP was launched at several events to widen the dissemination of vital inputs on biodiversity conservation from Indigenous peoples’ perspectives and experiences. It was launched globally in Cali, Columbia at a side event of the 16^thConference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. 

OBJECTIVES

The IPBSAP is seen as a means:

• To provide an overview of the status and context of biodiversity in Indigenous peoples’ lands and territories in the Philippines;
• To communicate to the Philippine government and to the public the key contributions and commitments by Indigenous peoples to biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in the Philippines;
• To put forward key issues and recommendations on biodiversity from the perspectives of Indigenous peoples;
• To serve as a guiding document for Indigenous peoples in carrying out biodiversity actions; and
• To highlight examples of key contributions and good practices by Indigenous peoples on conservation, sustainable use, and benefit-sharing.