Leaders and Organizations from the Cerrado Region Launch Working Group to Strengthen International Advocacy for Human Rights and Socio-environmental Justice

Press Release
April 20 2026

Leaders of Traditional Peoples and Communities (PCTs), regional networks, and civil society organizations participated in the meeting that marked the beginning of the Working Group of the project for the International Defense of the Brazilian Cerrado (savannah). This activity is part of the project "Internationalization of the Defense and Preservation of the Brazilian Cerrado," executed by the Vladimir Herzog Institute in partnership with the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Agriculture (MDA), with technical support from the Aliança Brazil Office.

The meeting brought together representatives from different regions, including communities of descendants of escaped enslaved people (quilombolas), inhabitants of remote communities; (retireiras), fruit extractivists, traditional communities from northern Minas Gerais (geraizeiros), traditional riverside communities (vazanteiros), inhabitants of scattered settlements in northern Minas Gerais (veredeiros), and Indigenous peoples, among others, with the objective of building a common agenda for international advocacy on human rights and the environment, based on the realities of their lands or territories.

"I think it's very important that we have these conversations to exchange ideas and experiences. Our territory is in the Cerrado and Varjão. We are losing territory due to land grabbing," stated Inês Sales from Luciára, Mato Grosso and a representative from the Araguaia Association of People Living in Remote Areas (retireiros). 

The Working Group seeks to strengthen the protagonism of leaders and representative organizations of the Cerrado in international spaces through training in the use of international human rights mechanisms, political articulation, and the production of content based on the voices of from these areas of Brazil.

This initiative is part of a broader effort to internationalize the defense of the Cerrado, which is still underrepresented on global agendas, despite its importance for climate balance and biodiversity.

In this context, this group intends to expand the direct participation of traditional peoples and communities, whose territories face increasing pressures related to the expansion of agribusiness, environmental management, and the violation of rights.

“Consolidating and participating in this working group means being able to act in response to the struggles of our territories and strengthen the global recognition of the role of these peoples in environmental conservation and the preservation of traditional knowledge,” highlighted Maria de Fátima, from the organization Fonsanpotma.

During the meeting, challenges such as the importance of the presence of peoples from the Cerrado lowlands in international spaces and the need to strengthen collective advocacy strategies were also pointed out.

For Santino Lopes de Araújo, from the Central Association of Veredeiros (ACEVER), “it is essential to strengthen the movements of traditional communities, especially in the face of the current scenario of environmental imbalance.”

As next steps, the group will continue defining priorities, detailing the joint work plan, and preparing training activities.