Indigenous Peoples Climate Action Fund (IPCAF)
IPCAF Goal
Strengthen social capital of Indigenous communities to adapt and thrive under climate change conditions.
IPCAF Objectives
- Strengthen Indigenous Peoples' capacity for mitigation and adaptation
Indigenous communities improve their capacity to use traditional knowledge to implement projects that mitigate their impact and to adapt to changed conditions.
- Strengthen Indigenous Peoples' capacity to engage in climate change dialogue
Indigenous groups participate in local, regional and global dialogue to promote a shared vision
- Strengthen Indigenous Peoples' capacity to access and manage climate change funding mechanisms
Indigenous groups improve their capacity to access and manage climate change funding mechanisms directly.
- Facilitate Indigenous Peoples' technology exchange
Explore uses of traditional Indigenous knowledge for wider use in climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Traditional knowledge to address the most pressing global issue of our times
In recognizing that Indigenous Peoples carry a "disproportionate share of the burden of climate change effects," World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick also recognized the importance of traditional knowledge in mitigation and adaptation strategies as he called on the world to recognize the importance of "including those most affected by climate change in climate change debates."
The cultural identity of over 300 million IP is closely linked to the fragile ecosystems where they live: mountains, forests, deserts, coasts and islands, arctic and sub-artic areas. Under changed climate conditions, Indigenous communities will not only be the most affected, but also may be among the most resourceful in designing practical, action-oriented solutions for improved human resilience.
The Indigenous Peoples Climate Action Fund (IPCAF) was presented November 18, 2009 at the World Bank in Washington, DC, in a roundtable with participation of Indigenous practitioners from around the world, climate change and development experts, and representatives from potential donors.
IPCAF is a small-grant fund that will enable IP to use their traditional knowledge to not only improve the resilience of their own communities facing global climate change, but also to contribute to the global search for solutions. IPCAF helps bring the ten thousand years of human experience stored in traditional Indigenous knowledge, to bear on the most pressing global issue of our times.
Why a climate change fund with an Indigenous focus?
- Climate change affects current strategies for Indigenous Peoples' poverty alleviation
- Climate change has a broad impact on Indigenous Peoples
- Limited inclusion of Indigenous Peoples in the global climate change dialogue
- Indigenous Peoples have limited access to direct funding mechanisms
IPCAF award-winning design responds to the needs of practitioners and funding partners
IPCAF was designed as a joint effort between First Peoples Worldwide and the Social Development Department of the World Bank, and the IPCAF model was recently recognized in an essay competition sponsored by the Environmental Funders Network and Alliance Magazine (Nov/Dec 2009).
The design allows for funding from different sources, such as private companies, foundations, bilateral and multilateral aid agencies, and development banks to reach directly and rapidly to practitioners in the field, reducing transaction cost and promoting quick learning and turnaround.
Its basic framework incorporated the principles of 28 international Indigenous Peoples’ declarations on climate change, as well as numerous other local and regional Indigenous Peoples’ declarations.
Inputs on the barriers to funding faced by Indigenous Peoples came from regional practitioner roundtables held by First Peoples in the South Pacific, Africa, Central and South America. A roundtable in Asia is programmed for early 2010. A total of 50 in-depth case studies, along with 27 climate change grant applications in video format and 134 written funding applications all provided qualitative data points for designing the delivery mechanism and IPCAF program. In addition, quantitative data was solicited from over 878 contacts – 600 to Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous NGOs and 278 non-Indigenous NGOs working with Indigenous Peoples.
The data called for a design that would support traditional knowledge directly at the community level and to provide strategic linkages between grassroots practitioners across the globe and with strategic regional, national and international forums.
Contact us and participate in IPCAF
IPCAF will be managed directly by First Peoples Worldwide, with technical advice from the World Bank. It has already raised the interest of private foundations, multilateral and bilateral agencies and private companies, as well as local and regional IP organizations.
We are targeting the operational launch of IPCAF by mid-2010, and are seeking potential funding and technical partnerships. IPCAF’s commitment to open design means your feedback is welcome to facilitate the participation of your organization.
More Information
A Message from Rebecca Adamson, President and Founder of First Peoples Worldwide (Nov 2009)
Indigenous Peoples Climate Action Fund by Rebecca Adamson and Scott Klinger (Nov 2009)
Indigenous groups key in climate change debate: Zoellick (Nov 2009)
Press Release: World Bank Affirms Support to Indigenous Peoples in Designing Climate Change Responses (Nov 2009)
Traditional Indigenous Fire Management Techniques Deployed Against Climate Change (Dec 2009)
IPCAF Roundtable at the World Bank (Jan 2010)
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First Peoples Worldwide
857 Leeland Road • Fredericksburg, VA 22405 • USA
info@firstpeoplesworldwide.org • (540) 899-6545
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