Afro-Descendant Communities Offer a Living Blueprint for Amazon Conservation
From The Observatory
Source: Earth Food Life Project
Lands managed by Afro-descendant peoples in the Amazon experience dramatically lower deforestation and house some of the planet’s richest ecosystems—showing how centuries-old stewardship can guide global conservation.
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Spanning nine nations and covering more than 5.5 million square kilometers—roughly the size of the continental United States—the Amazon is the world’s largest rainforest. Often called the “lungs of the Earth,” it regulates the global climate, maintains freshwater cycles, and sustains life on a planetary scale. Yet the Amazon is not a single uniform forest. It is a vast mosaic of interconnected ecosystems, each with its own character and species. Dense tropical rainforests form the iconic canopy, towering over extraordinary biodiversity. Seasonally or permanently flooded forests—known locally as várzea and igapó—support plants and animals adapted to the rising and falling waters. The Amazon River and its extensive network of tributaries form the largest freshwater system on Earth, dotted with wetlands, swamps, and oxbow lakes. Beyond the forest, savannas, mangroves, and cloud forests along the Andes’ foothills provide additional habitats, collectively harboring at least 10 percent of all known species—from jaguars and macaws to pink river dolphins and black-headed uakari monkeys.
The Amazon is home to more than 30 million people. Indigenous populations settled the region as far back as 39,000 years ago, while Afro-descendant communities arrived more than 300 years ago. Afro-descendant communities—descendants of enslaved Africans, as well as those who escaped bondage to establish settlements in remote forests, mangroves, and marshlands—have cultivated a unique and enduring relationship with the land. Over generations, they developed “escape agriculture,” a subsistence strategy that kept communities hidden from colonial powers while sustaining them. These systems integrated traditional African knowledge with local ecosystems, incorporating food forests and agroforestry techniques that provided food security while maintaining ecological balance. Over centuries, these practices evolved into landscapes that are both productive and resilient, preserving biodiversity and storing carbon.
Cultural and spiritual ties to the land remain central to environmental stewardship. “For centuries, Afro-descendant communities have managed landscapes in ways that sustain both people and nature, yet their contributions remain largely invisible in mainstream conservation,” said Sushma Shrestha, director of Indigenous Science, Research, and Knowledge at Conservation International and lead author of a landmark 2025 study. Hugo Jabini, a Maroon leader from Suriname’s Saamaka Afro-descendant Tribe, adds: “Our land management practices combine traditional African knowledge with the Amazon Rainforest. The areas where we have lived have become healthier and sustained entire communities.”
Afro-descendant territories are among the most biodiverse in the Amazon and contain exceptionally high concentrations of “irrecoverable carbon”—carbon that, once released, cannot be reabsorbed for decades. Most of the world’s irrecoverable carbon—nearly 140 billion metric tons—is stored in peatlands, mangroves, marshes, and old-growth forests, ecosystems that often overlap with Indigenous and Afro-descendant lands. By maintaining traditional practices that conserve forests, wetlands, and mangroves, these communities help lock away carbon that would otherwise accelerate global warming.
Governments and funders are beginning to acknowledge this. In 2025, more than 35 countries and philanthropic organizations renewed a $1.8 billion global pledge to strengthen land rights for Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and—for the first time—Afro-descendant peoples. The effort reflects growing recognition that securing community tenure is one of the most effective, evidence-based strategies for protecting forests and stabilizing the climate.
Recent research underscores these findings. A landmark 2025 study published in Communications Earth & Environment found that deforestation rates on Afro-descendant lands are dramatically lower than in surrounding areas, and that more than half of these territories rank among the most biodiverse regions on Earth. The Forest and Land Tenure Pledge, renewed in 2025, builds on earlier commitments and directs more funding toward Afro-descendant territories across forests, savannas, and mangroves—ecosystems that support high biodiversity and climate benefits. Leaders caution that funding must flow directly to communities and be paired with strengthened land titling processes to translate global promises into on-the-ground protection.
Legal recognition of Afro-descendant lands remains scarce. Many territories are unrecognized or only partially protected, leaving communities vulnerable to land grabs, industrial agriculture, logging, and extractive projects such as mining and oil development. Jasmine Hardy, associate editor at Atmos, notes: “Approximately 77 percent of Afro-descendant peoples’ territories in Latin America and the Caribbean are located within biodiversity hotspots… Only 5 percent, however, are officially recognized as owned by these communities, leaving their homes open to exploitation.” Political marginalization compounds these challenges. Afro-descendant voices are often excluded from national decision-making and global climate forums, meaning policies are developed without their input, threatening both human rights and ecological integrity. Jabini observes: “Through our deep cultural and spiritual connection to the land, we have sustained vital forest areas. We hope this raises awareness, so that political leaders no longer see us as mere claimants of land.”
“Indigenous Peoples from all over the world are here to confront the global climate emergency,” said Kleber Karipuna, executive coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, in a November 2025 press statement in advance of COP30. “What we are demanding is that governments finally secure Indigenous territories, because it has already been proven to be an effective measure to protect the forests, the rivers, and life.”
Across the Amazon, Afro-descendant communities implement stewardship tailored to local conditions. In Brazil, agroforestry systems blend native trees, crops, and livestock, reducing soil erosion, maintaining forest cover, and ensuring food security. In Colombia, communities in Buenaventura restore mangrove ecosystems that protect coastlines, sequester carbon, and sustain fisheries. In Ecuador, nearly all Afro-descendant lands are located within biodiversity hotspots and are managed through rotational farming, forest gardens, and community reserves. In Suriname, Maroon peoples—including the Saamaka—combine spiritual practices with environmental stewardship, preserving some of the region’s most intact forests. Women play a leading role in restoration projects, seed-saving networks, and local advocacy. Many communities also engage in sustainable livelihoods, from small-scale fisheries to carbon-credit cooperatives, demonstrating that ecological protection and economic well-being can advance hand in hand.
Despite these successes, Afro-descendant communities face ongoing threats: lack of formal land tenure, encroachment from agriculture, mining, and infrastructure development, socioeconomic pressures, and political marginalization. Conservation works best when rooted in local knowledge and reinforced by secure land tenure. Secure rights empower communities to defend their territories, ensuring forests, wetlands, and mangroves remain intact. Cultural values and spiritual practices reinforce stewardship, intertwining conservation with tradition, identity, and deep connection to the land. Equitable policy that includes marginalized voices produces solutions that are both fairer and more effective.
As the world confronts climate change and biodiversity loss, Afro-descendant communities offer a living blueprint for sustainable development. Protecting their lands, supporting their leadership, and amplifying their voices in international forums is both a moral imperative and a pragmatic strategy. When these communities thrive, the Amazon—and the planet—thrives with them.
