SIRA (West Papua, Indonesia): Nearly 100 Indigenous youth leaders from the Amazon, the Congo Basin, Borneo and West Papua have issued a unified declaration calling for legal recognition of their rights, greater inclusion in decision-making and stronger protections for tropical forests. The Sira Declaration emerged from the Forest Defender Camp held from late last year in Sira Village on Tehit Knasaimos Indigenous territory in West Papua, where delegates met to consolidate demands ahead of key international climate and biodiversity talks.
Organized by the Knasaimos Indigenous Youth Community, Bentara Papua and Greenpeace Indonesia, the four-day camp brought together young representatives from the world’s three largest tropical forest regions. Participants shared experiences of land use conflicts, threats from extractive industries and strategies for grassroots mobilization. The gathering also included workshops on storytelling for movements, grassroots organizing and traditional knowledge such as medicine. Interpreters facilitated communication across a range of Indigenous and global languages.
The Sira Declaration, named after the host village, outlines shared grievances and priorities. It calls for the recognition and enforcement of Indigenous rights, the inclusion of women and youth in policymaking, direct access to climate finance and security for communities defending their homelands. Delegates highlighted ongoing threats including mining, logging, agribusiness expansion, land grabbing and the marginalization of Indigenous voices in national and international forums. The declaration frames Indigenous stewardship of forests as central to addressing climate change and biodiversity loss, arguing that traditional ecological knowledge offers viable solutions to global environmental crises.
West Papua’s tropical forests represent some of the most bio-diverse in Indonesia and form part of the broader network of equatorial rainforests that are vital carbon sinks. Indigenous communities in these regions have long resisted incursions by developers and state settlement schemes, working to chase out illegal loggers and block proposed industrial oil palm plantations. In recent years, local efforts have also focused on achieving formal recognition of customary territories, a process that can take decades and is seen as crucial for legal protection against deforestation pressures.
The Forest Defender Camp built on earlier efforts to unite Indigenous voices globally. In May, Indigenous leaders from forest basins in Africa, Asia, Mesoamerica and South America adopted the Brazzaville Declaration, calling for collective forest protection. Youth delegates at Sira referenced this continuity, emphasizing the interconnected nature of their struggles and the need for solidarity. Participants expressed hope that their unified message would reach national governments and international bodies, enhancing the visibility of Indigenous perspectives in negotiations on climate and environmental policy.
Speakers at the camp underscored the importance of passing laws that guarantee land rights and safeguard customary forests. Indonesia has been under pressure to expedite the recognition of Indigenous forests and to strengthen enforcement against illegal logging and land clearing for plantations and mining. Indigenous advocates argue that such policies are essential for effective forest management and climate mitigation, aligning national environmental goals with the interests of local communities who are front-line defenders of their ecosystems.
The youth leaders’ call to action reflects a broader movement of Indigenous activism that seeks to transform global approaches to conservation and development. By asserting their role as custodians of tropical forests, the participants at Sira Village aim to influence upcoming international negotiations and ensure that Indigenous voices shape solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.
Read the Sira Declaration here: Sira Declaration
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