Newly published - "Indigenous and Traditional Peoples and Protected Areas: Principles, Guidelines and Case Studies"

Amman, Jordan, October 4, 2000 (IUCN) - The earliest written record of the Saami people, inhabiting the Lapponia region of Norway and Sweden dates back to Tacitus's account in 98 AD, but the archaeological evidence reveals the Saami arrived in the area 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. The Saami are an example of how traditional and indigenous people have an historical attachment to their traditional lands going back far longer than our modern lifestyles can imagine.

Traditional/indigenous peoples often inhabit remote and sometimes inhospitable areas which they have sustainable managed over thousands of years. However, when modern states take the decision to create a protected area on their traditional lands they are often not consulted. As a result, protected area authorities have often been making decisions about species or ecosystems contained in these areas without the full involvement of the key stakeholders.

In this book, IUCN's World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) investigates the assumption that protected areas must be in conflict with the rights and traditions of indigenous and other traditional peoples and finds that, in reality, conflicts need not arise between their interests, and protected area objectives.

The book describes principles and guidelines as a basis upon which to develop partnerships between indigenous and other traditional peoples and protected area planners and managers. It also has 11 case studies. It is expected that this publication will greatly facilitate the creation and management of protected areas which overlap with ancestral indigenous and other traditional peoples areas.

This book is No. 4 of the Best Practice Protected Areas Guidelines series, supported by Cardiff University.