Extractivists march for recognition in forest protection
Chanting the slogan “the death of the forest is the end of our lives,” hundreds of extractivist leaders from different Brazilian biomes marched through the streets of Belém on Thursday afternoon (Nov. 13) in defense of territorial rights and the role of sustainable use reserves in ecological balance and in environmental services crucial against climate change.
The event, dubbed Porongaço dos Povos da Floresta (“Lanterns of the Forest Peoples”), brought together mainly rubber tappers, chestnut gatherers, members of riverine communities, artisanal fishing workers, and coconut breakers.
The march lit up the streets of the Amazon city in the late afternoon with the burning flames of porongas – lanterns traditionally used by rubber tappers to navigate forest trails, which have become a symbol of the historic struggle of the National Council of Extractive Populations (CNS), founded in 1985.
Under the leadership of Chico Mendes in the rubber plantations of Acre state in the 1970s, the movement gave voice to forest extractivists in the face of violence, land grabbing, and environmental destruction.
The march was organized as a parallel activity to the negotiations of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), which is also taking place in Belém this week and the next.
“We, the extractivist populations, understand the territory as an extension of our bodies. So if the forest is not well, if the rivers are not well, if the coastal area is not well, we are not well,” said CNS vice-President Letícia Moraes.
“It has been scientifically proven that the only territories that have living forests are those under the responsibility and care of traditional communities. So our relationship of care is a relationship because we are born in that place. We don’t feel like owners, we feel like part of that place,” added the extractivist born on Marajó Island, where she lives off sustainable agroforestry activities in a unique settlement project known as PAE, the Agro-extractivist Settlement Project.
According to CNS data, agroextractive reserves and settlement initiatives protect more than 42 million hectares of forests and rivers through sustainable forest use, representing five percent of the national territory. These areas are estimated to store some 25.5 billion tons of CO₂ equivalent, which corresponds to about 11 years of Brazil’s total emissions. CO₂ is the main gas causing global warming, driven by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil.
At COP30, Brazilian extractivist communities are being represented by extractivist leader Joaquim Belo. In the negotiations, he seeks to ensure that the ecosystem services provided by these populations are included as climate change mitigation targets.
“We are the solution to a number of climate change problems because we take care of the forest, and it plays a role in climate balance,” he said.
At the end of the march, a document from the CNS was delivered to Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva.
In her speech to the extractivists, she recalled her career as a rubber tapper in Acre alongside Chico Mendes and highlighted the role of these communities as guardians of the forest.
“The technology of indigenous peoples, rubber tappers, riverine communities, babassu nut harvesters, geraizeiros [traditional inhabitants of the cerrado biome in northern Minas Gerais state], and coconut breakers is their own way of life, which protects the forest and biodiversity, sequesters carbon, and still functions as the heart of the planet, pulsing with culture, diversity, and beauty. But there is one thing – public policies need further expansion,” she noted.
