TUTORIAL VIDEO
How to use the Database

More than 60,000 Maya people have been living in the Sierra del Lacandón National Park (SDLNP) and Laguna del Tigre National Park (LDTNP) since before these areas were declared protected, and they are now in a situation of insecurity, constantly facing threats of eviction from their homes.^[1] 

In 2011, park rangers working in the region were implicated in a series of incidents resulting in the tragic death of 10-year-old Christine Mayi.^[1]

In 2017, a Congolese group voiced worries that conservation efforts had played a role in the passing of numerous Bayaka children during a 2016 epidemic. A medical specialist linked the deaths to malaria, pneumonia, and dysentery, worsened by profound malnutrition.^[2]

The Batwa are an Indigenous people with an approximate population of about 6,000. Since the 1930s, successive governments have forcibly displaced and excluded the Batwa from their ancestral lands. The government has failed to recognize the Batwa as Indigenous Peoples, instead categorizing them as a minority and marginalized group. It erroneously views the Batwa as migrants from the Ituri Forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Limited public information is available regarding the impact of Virachey National Park’s creation on Indigenous communities and traditional custodians of the land now included in this conservation area. Restrictions on hunting have significantly affected these tribes' ability to provide for their families, both through direct access to food sources and by selling surplus game for income. The tribes rely on the park’s forests for collecting nuts, roots, berries, and herbs, and on its waterways for fishing.

African Parks Network employs over 1,400 rangers tasked with patrolling 22 parks under its management.

Historical changes in conservation status to the lands now known as Mt. Elgon National Park have never been done with the Benet’s consultation, Free and Prior Informed Consent, or with adequate provision of compensation. Despite the substantial efforts of Benet communities to resist the encroachment of Park Management on their lands, access to the Mount Elgon region has become increasingly constricted.

The Kaeng Krachan National Park is located in Thailand. It was declared a National Park in 1981 and listed as a World Heritage Site in July 2021 without consultation and consent of Karen Indigenous peoples who have been traditionally occupying these lands. In 2010 and 2011, Karen Indigenous people from settlements near Bang Kloi Bon and Pu Ra Kam were evicted from their lands while their houses, rice granaries, and other possessions were destroyed.

The violations against the Bunong can be traced back to the Cambodian government’s granting of Economic Land Concessions (ELC), which are grants given to private companies allowing them to develop agricultural and other operations through mass deforestation. ELC began in 1996 and ended in 2012, but the practice has continued through various legal loopholes.^[1] 

Starting in 1996, Cambodia initiated economic land concessions (ELCs) permitting land clearance for agriculture and logging, even in protected regions. Although the policy ceased in 2012, widespread corruption has led officials to turn a blind eye to the illegal harvesting and smuggling of timber, primarily to China and Vietnam.^[1]

The situation involves multiple human rights violations, including the forced displacement of indigenous communities, destruction of their homes and livelihoods, lack of consultation and consent, and potential exploitation of natural resources for personal gain.^[1] Abdul Taib Mahmud, Chief Minister and Minister of Resource Planning and Environment, has spearheaded the plan to create the national park and potentially benefit from past logging activities through familial ties