Innovations for Indigenous Management: Experience and Impact in the Xingu

Innovations for Indigenous Management: Experience and Impact in the Xingu

In May 2024, Conservation Strategy Fund (CSF) Brazil participated in the 3rd Assembly of Rede Xingu+, a gathering focused on discussions and decisions related to the preservation of protected areas and the challenges faced by indigenous and riverside communities in the region. The event brought together over 400 participants, including indigenous leaders, partner institutions, and local community representatives.

Held in the Iriri Extractive Reserve (Resex), the event required meticulous logistical planning over two years. The entire structure for meals and accommodations was designed to integrate and value local resources, employing community members and sourcing products like fish, manioc, açaí, and babassu. The CSF team, including Julia Queiroz, director of CSF Brazil, experienced this unique environment firsthand, sleeping in hammocks in the homes of riverside residents and enduring long hours of travel by boat to reach the venue.
 

Photo: Aerial view of the Xingu River Basin. Credit: CSF team.
Photo: Aerial view of the Xingu River Basin. Credit: CSF team.

During the assembly, CSF presented two of its key initiatives: the Indigenous Land Management Costs Calculator, a tool developed to support financial planning for communities, and the Xingu Fund, whose proposal was up for validation at the event. The presentations were well-received and easily understood by the audience, thanks to their clear and accessible delivery. The fund was approved by the participants and is now in the hands of Rede Xingu+ to move forward with the next steps for its effective implementation.

 

Photo: Julia Queiroz, Director of CSF Brazil, presenting the structure of the Xingu Fund. Credit: CSF team.
Photo: Julia Queiroz, Director of CSF Brazil, presenting the structure of the Xingu Fund. Credit: CSF team.

 

The meeting reinforced the importance of CSF’s work in providing economic and financial solutions that strengthen the territorial and environmental management of indigenous communities.

According to André Villas Bôas (ISA/Rede Xingu +):
Xingu's protected areas are a valuable socio-environmental heritage and are increasingly under threat. Managing these areas is complex, and the Indigenous Management Costs Calculator is the first tool to present the real minimum costs for their protection.


Despite the significant progress and achievements, there is still much to be done. Working with Indigenous communities requires continuous commitment, whether through new projects or by expanding existing initiatives. CSF remains dedicated to strengthening these partnerships and broadening their positive impact, ensuring that Indigenous communities can manage and protect their lands with autonomy and sustainability.

Watch this video of Julia Queiroz talking about her trip to the Assembly and the response to the new Fund!

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*The Xingu+ Network is a political alliance between 32 organizations of indigenous peoples, traditional Xingu communities and civil society organizations that operate in Indigenous Lands and Conservation Units in the Xingu River basin, in the so-called Xingu Corridor of Socio-Environmental Diversity.