The Intricacy of Rainforest, Indigenous People and Workers Rights: Protect Its Legacy Now!

The "RAINFORESTS THRIVE WITH THEIR PEOPLE!" campaign addresses the urgent crisis of rainforest destruction and the exploitation of forestry workers. Driven by destructive extractivism, illegal logging, and criminally provoked fires, tropical primary forest loss is escalating, contributing significantly to global carbon emissions. This destruction is intrinsically linked to the exploitation of the 33.3 million individuals employed in the forestry sector, many facing hazardous conditions, informal employment, and forced labor, particularly in developing nations.  

The campaign highlights the need for integrated solutions that address both environmental and labor rights. It emphasizes that without protecting the people who live in and depend on rainforests, climate justice is unattainable. The Trade Union Rainforest Alliance, spearheaded by the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), seeks to unite workers from key rainforest regions in South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. This alliance aims to counter the exclusion of forestry workers from crucial policy discussions, such as the "Alliance of Forests" agreement between Brazil, Indonesia, and Congo.  The campaign's core demands are to promote decent work, preserve communities, and protect the environment. It advocates for Decent Work Programs, and the sustainable use of forest resources. With FSC General Assembly, the campaign urges key stakehoulders to translate commitments into action, ensuring that resources are allocated based on worker-led sustainable models. In 2023, certification schemes remain heavily concentrated in areas containing boreal and temperate forests, with only 15 percent of FSC-certified forests in tropical regions, considering that forest certification is designed to promote sustainable forest management and decent work, yet it severely lacks presence in the regions that would benefit from it the most. Ultimately, it emphasizes that the future of rainforests is intertwined with the well-being of its people.  

There is no environmental justice without workers’ rights. Exploitation, in any form, can never be “sustainable.” Without protecting rainforests and its peoples, we cannot have climate justice.