Paiter-Surui Tribe Amazon Rainforest, Brazil

LAPETANHA, BRAZIL-OCTOBER 25:Chief Almir Narayamoga Surui of the indegenous indian tribe of Paiter-Surui stands amidst the Amazonian Rainforest in the "7th September Indian Reserve" Rondônia, Brazil on October 25th, 2010. The tribe under Almir's leadership had a 50 year plan to halt illegal logging on their land and plant a million trees in order to return their part of the Amazon rainforest back to its pristine condition through the financing earned from carbon offsetting.Indigenous people have contributed less to climate change than has any other section of the population, yet they are among those most in jeopardy from its impacts. REDD+ stands for "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation" and it is enshrined in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. The "Forest Carbon Project", was initiated by the Patier-Surui in 2009 and was the first indigenous-led conservation project financed through the sale of carbon offsets. It dramatically reduced deforestation within the territory of the Paiter-Surui during the first five years of operation (2009-2014), but was suspended in 2018 after the discovery of large gold deposits in the territory that sparked a surge in deforestation and a fracture in the indigenous tribe's unity on how to proceed. (Photo by Craig