LE DROIT À S’ORGANISER ET LES DROITS CULTURELS ESSENTIELS À LA GESTION COMMUNAUTAIRE DES FORÊTS

This internal briefing by Friends of the Earth International (ATI) examines the fundamental rights to community organization and cultural/spiritual expression as essential pillars for Community Forest Management (CFM). It argues that legal frameworks, while important, must be part of a broader struggle for rights and that the protection of cultural identity is inextricably linked to the protection of the territories where these practices occur.

• Community organization is a prerequisite for the existence and success of Community Forest Management (CFM), as forests are collective spaces and the essential rights associated with CFM are both collective and historical.
• The right to organize is a fundamental human right supported by international instruments, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants, and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
• While legal status for community organizations can facilitate funding and administrative procedures, it may also impose requirements that conflict with traditional organizational forms or are imposed by the dominant society.
• Cultural and spiritual rights are among the least defined and protected in international agreements, yet they are critical to CFM as they encompass collective knowledge, traditional languages, and spiritual links to the land.
• The protection of traditional knowledge and cultural practices is impossible without the simultaneous protection of the territories where these practices are expressed.
• International frameworks such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and UNESCO's World Heritage Convention recognize the link between biological diversity and cultural heritage, specifically through concepts like 'cultural landscapes'.
• Legal strategies for defending rights should not be the sole approach but should be integrated into broader mobilization and communication strategies to avoid the risk of demobilization or reliance on judges who may lack contextual knowledge.

APA

Rojas, I. (2020). LE DROIT À S’ORGANISER ET LES DROITS CULTURELS ESSENTIELS À LA GESTION COMMUNAUTAIRE DES FORÊTS. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Le-droit-a-s-organiser-et-les-droits-culturels-essentiels-a-la-gestion-communautaire-des-forets_Amis-de-la-terre-international.pdf

Chicago

Rojas, Isaac. LE DROIT À S’ORGANISER ET LES DROITS CULTURELS ESSENTIELS À LA GESTION COMMUNAUTAIRE DES FORÊTS. Friends of the Earth International, 2020. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Le-droit-a-s-organiser-et-les-droits-culturels-essentiels-a-la-gestion-communautaire-des-forets_Amis-de-la-terre-international.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Rojas |first1=Isaac |title=LE DROIT À S’ORGANISER ET LES DROITS CULTURELS ESSENTIELS À LA GESTION COMMUNAUTAIRE DES FORÊTS |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=December 2020 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Le-droit-a-s-organiser-et-les-droits-culturels-essentiels-a-la-gestion-communautaire-des-forets_Amis-de-la-terre-international.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rojas2020droit, author = {Rojas, Isaac}, title = {{LE DROIT À S’ORGANISER ET LES DROITS CULTURELS ESSENTIELS À LA GESTION COMMUNAUTAIRE DES FORÊTS}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2020}, month = dec, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Le-droit-a-s-organiser-et-les-droits-culturels-essentiels-a-la-gestion-communautaire-des-forets_Amis-de-la-terre-international.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }