Across the African continent, local communities are working together to protect their forests, savannas, deserts and coastlines from external threats and extractive industries.  On July 21st, Natural Justice, Oxfam and Digital Democracy are co-convening the Africa Forum for Earth Defenders, a two-hour virtual event to bring together frontline defenders from across the continent to share […]

Across the planet, Indigenous peoples and local communities are on the frontlines of protecting critical forests, grasslands and other ecosystems from environmental threats. They often do so at extreme risk to their personal safety, and in isolation from external support. Join us on July 14 the celebrate the launch of Earth Defenders Toolkit,  a newly […]

Today is the full launch of Earth Defenders Toolkit, a collaborative space for earth defenders and their allies. The Toolkit provides a growing collection of resources and training materials for communities on the frontlines of the struggle to defend critical ecosystems around the world, and community networks for users to connect and share their experiences. […]

To remedy the high learning curve that comes with understanding information technology, trainings focused on using a digital tool should be accompanied by training in basic tech literacy focused on components of this broader ecosystem in which the tool lives.

A common theme that has come out of conversations with partners about earth defender needs is figuring out where and how to get started. Many earth defender communities are aware of the emerging threats or problems within their community or their lands, but are less sure about what kind of actions to take, and rarely start directly from the point of view of wanting to make a map or conducting monitoring. Instead, it may be necessary to start thinking more broadly and to ground the conversation in something central to the lifeworld of the community: the territory.

In our research and years of accompanying partner communities in using digital technologies, we have found that mapping can be one of the most effective ways of building skills in using technology, because mapping already involves something that community members already have quite a lot of knowledge about: the territory, lands, and waters.

Because mapping projects invariably involve conversations about the land or water, they can help restart processes of knowledge transmission that have become stilted due to these influences of modernity or colonialism, and allow communities to record and archive local knowledge.

Maps made by earth defender communities are a representation of their lands from their point of view, and frequently present a much different picture than the maps made by the outside world. 🗺️

Like any powerful tool, technology can be immensely positive, but can also have unintended outcomes that go far beyond the scope of the project. In earth defender work, awareness and transparency around technology introduction is key.

Technologies can only be successful if they are integrated into a broader process, with human relationships and practices at the center.