The project is designed and implemented to enhance Indigenous Peoples (IPs) and local communities (LCs) efforts to steward lands, waters, and natural resources. The project supports IPs, LCs leadership, and institutions to enhance their ability to engage in relevant policy areas, and build capacity to access resources required for biodiversity conservation and natural resource management. The overall objective of this project is to enhance Indigenous Peoples’ collective efforts to steward land, water, and natural resources to deliver global environmental benefits while the specific is to support Indigenous Peoples organizations (IPOs), customary institutions and communities of Indigenous Peoples for them to be able to continue their unique relationships with the nature, distinct ways of nature conservation and the overall wellbeing their communities.

The project works mostly with Indigenous Peoples, IPOs and local groups that already exist, in the communities to address the problems. The project intends to build capacities of Indigenous Peoples’ organizations, customary institutions such as Mukhiya Systems and potentially with local interest groups to address these environmental problems. It will identify/map, document (with consent of the knowledge holders and relevant communities build capacities, and strengthen governance structures to advocate for and promote traditional and cultural practices of Indigenous Peoples related with environment, biodiversity conservation, and nature. This project will also support in conservation and revitalization of culture-nature linkage sites, revive Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge and skills in promoting Indigenous knowledge-based income-generating initiatives, and promote sustainable and inclusive natural resources management and biodiversity conservation as a whole.