Strategic Plan 2026
From Promises to Implementation
Turning Commitments Into Action
Co-Created in Panama, February 2026
Last year, we called on the world to move from recognition to resourcing. Together, we helped secure historic commitments for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, elevating our voices, our rights, and our solutions on the global stage.
Now, the challenge before us is clear.
Promises alone do not protect forests, oceans, mangroves or other ecosystems. Commitments alone do not secure rights. Announcements alone do not reach territories.
2026 must be the year of implementation.
The commitments announced at COP30 and beyond represent important progress, but their true value will be measured by what happens next: whether resources reach communities, whether land rights are strengthened, whether defenders are protected, and whether we as Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities are able to exercise self-determination over the future of their territories.
At GATC, we enter this year with a clear mission: ensuring that global commitments translate into tangible change on the ground.
At GATC, we enter this year with a clear mission: ensuring that global commitments translate into tangible change on the ground.
As political uncertainty grows and funding landscapes continue to shift, we remain committed to advancing our five demands, strengthening territorial governance, scaling direct financing through Shandia, and supporting the Indigenous Peoples and local economies that sustain life, culture, and biodiversity.
The world increasingly recognizes what we have always known: we are not beneficiaries of climate action, we are leaders, innovators, and guardians of the planet’s most vital ecosystems.
But that recognition is not enough.
This 2026 Strategic Plan reflects our collective commitment to ensure that the momentum generated in recent years becomes lasting transformation. Built together by our member organizations across Asia, Africa, and Latin America, it is both a roadmap and a call to action.
The answer is still us, all of us. Including you!
And now is the time to make it real.
Implementation is the test. Accountability is the challenge. Action is the priority.
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Rainforest Foundations US is our fiscal sponsor. For any letters and parcels, please direct to:
Rainforest Foundation US
P.O. Box 26908
Brooklyn, NY 11202