This post is also available in: Spanish
The Mesoamerican Alliance of People and Forests (Alianza Mesoamericana de Pueblos y Bosques), an umbrella organization of indigenous and community forest organizations, recently published an announcement highlighting the failure of the REDD-CCAD/GIZ Program to invite indigenous authorities to a regional conference on forest governance. The event, held in Panama on July 9, 2013, is the second Regional Conference on Forest Governance held in Central America.
The Alianza points out that indigenous authorities are key protagonists in forest governance and management, and should be included in dialogue. They cite Panama as evidence for the importance of indigenous forest management, noting that 54% of mature forests in Panama are located in indigenous territories.
To see the original announcement in Spanish: http://alianzamesoamericana.org/site/noticias/2013/07/pueblos-indigenas-de-centroamerica-excluidos-de-conversatorio-sobre-gobernanza-forestal/