by 2055 putting the traditional indigenous communities living in the Andes at risk of hunger. The Stern report further highlights the vulnerability of about one million people of 400
different indigenous groups living in the Amazon to potentially dramatic impacts with some models predicting a widespread die-back or even collapse of the Amazon rain forest. Stern
also forecasts that sea level rise could cause major displacement of people from coastal areas or, in some cases, even abandonment of entire atolls and small islands - places of high cultural
diversity. In the Arctic, the review anticipates challenging times for indigenous peoples:
“warmer summers and smaller ice packs will make life difficult for the polar bear, seal and other Arctic mammals and fish on which indigenous people depend” Stern Ed., 2006: 128.
In Part III on Economics of Stabilization, Stern calls for an ending of deforestation to benefit, among others, indigenous groups, especially those living in the Amazon. He further advises
caution with climate change mitigation measures as these might be accompanied by social problems. If, for example, in certain areas biomass for the production of biofuels will be
grown at very large scales, increased amounts of pesticides might be used, which may result in a depletion of ecosystems linked to a loss of biodiversity and natural habitats as well as
displacement of indigenous communities. In Part VI on International Collective Action, Stern urges the international community to
support developing nations in adapting to climate change in order to increase their resilience. However, whereas the review mainly stresses the importance of monetary funds and the
provision of global public goods for adaptation, it largely omits already existing indigenous or traditional coping strategies.
1.5 Conclusion
All the documents mentioned above consent that the costs of climate change are going to be inequitably born by developing countries and specifically poor, natural resource dependent
communities, and therefore stress the importance of monetary, knowledge and technology transfer from developed to developing countries for adaptation to and mitigation of climate
change. However, only a few of these policy documents acknowledge or even mention the potential of local communities’ own coping strategies and adaptive capacity latent in their
traditional knowledge. So far, the discourse on indigenous and traditional peoples and climate change has been predominantly limited to climate change mitigation efforts such as those
associated with the Clean Development Mechanism. It is striking that in the IPCC reports 2001 and 2007 the main emphasis has predominantly
been laid on indigenous communities living in developed countries, i.e. in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand and the Polar Regions where they can count on at least
some support from their governments, whereas the majority of traditional and indigenous peoples who are living in developing countries did get very little or no such consideration.
1.6 References
International Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of Tropical Forests, 2005
. Tiohtiá:ke Declaration.
International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change Statement to the State Parties of the COP 11MOP 1 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNFCCC. URL: http:www.international-alliance.orgunfccc.htm
IPCC
, 2007. Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. The Working Group II Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment
Report. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
13
Klimabuendnis, 2003
. Milan Declaration. URL: http:www.klimabuendnis.orgdownloadip_milan_declaration.pdf
Stern N. Ed.. 2006.
Stern Review. URL: http:www.hmtreasury.gov.ukindependent_reviewsstern_review_economics_climate_chang
estern_review_report.cfm
UNFCCC, 2004.
The first ten years. Climate Change Secretariat. Bonn, Germany.
UNFCCC , 2006. The Nairobi Work Programme on impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to
climate change. URL: http:unfccc.intfilesadaptationsbsta_agenda_item_adaptationapplicationpdfbackground_o
n_nwp_v.2.pdf
UNFCCC, 2007
. Database on local coping strategies. URL: http:maindb.unfccc.intpublicadaptation
United Nations, 1992
. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. URL: http:unfccc.intresourcedocsconvkpconveng.pdf
United Nations, 1998
. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. URL:
http:unfccc.intresourcedocsconvkpkpeng.pdf
14
2 Vulnerability of traditional and indigenous peoples to global climate change
2.1 The conceptual framework of vulnerability
