The baseless stat that could be harming Indigenous conservation efforts

• NATURE PODCAST
• 06 September 2024

Researchers have identified that a commonly repeated claim about levels of biodiversity on Indigenous lands is not only wrong, it is also counterproductive in conservation efforts.

By
• Nick Petrić Howe

1. Lucy Odling-Smee

   1. Lucy Odling-Smee is a Senior Comment Editor for Nature in San Francisco, California.

2. Nick Petrić Howe

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The often repeated claim that "80% of the world's biodiversity is found in the territories of Indigenous Peoples" appears widely in policy documents and reports, yet appears to have sprung out of nowhere. According to a group of researchers, including those from Indigenous groups, this baseless statistic could be undermining the conservation efforts of the Indigenous People it's meant to support and prevent further work to really understand how best to conserve biodiversity.

Two of the authors joined us to discuss how this statistic gained traction, the harm it could cause, and how better to support the work of Indigenous Peoples.

Read more in a Comment article from the authors: No basis for claim that 80% of biodiversity is found in Indigenous territories

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