TreeSisters are deeply concerned and stand in solidarity with Indigenous leaders and environmentalists in Brazil against the approval of bill number 490 (re-numbered Bill 2903), which could devastate Indigenous communities and isolated tribes.
The legislation poses many profound threats, including further deforestation, mining, road and dam construction and agricultural projects on protected Indigenous lands. The bill would also allow the government to reclaim land from Indigenous communities and invalidate Indigenous claims to lands they could not prove they physically occupied on the day Brazil’s constitution was enacted in October 1988.
As the legislation moves to the Senate, we must take action to protect both the global climate and the fundamental human rights of indigenous peoples. Please share this message widely. You can read the open letter and sign the petition through the link below:
"We see, today, that the Chamber of Deputies is putting everything at risk. Their ideologies, thoughts and dreams are leading to the great destruction of planet Earth. This is an URGENT call. This change in legislation will jeopardise humanity on this planet.”
- Benki Piyãko, an Ashaninka spiritual leader and designer of the TreeSisters-supported agroforestry project in Brazil.
TreeSisters TreePartnerships Manager Madeleine said: “TreeSisters' have been supporting the Yorenka Tasorentsi Forest Garden Project led by the Ashaninka people since 2019, and they are a shining example of what we believe in - a community-led, nature-connected project that aims to protect and perpetuate their indigenous heritage. It is deeply troubling to see politicians attempt to put all these profound efforts for the Earth at risk.”