{
  "id": 6314320,
  "title": "Indigenous territories maintain Amazon forest just as well as protected areas, study finds",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/indigenous-territories-maintain-amazon-forest-just-as-well-as",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-08T18:45:07.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mongabay",
    "slug": "mongabay",
    "url": "https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/09/indigenous-territories-maintain-amazon-forest-just-as-well-as-protected-areas-study-finds/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new study has revealed that Indigenous territories in Ecuador's Amazon, without formal conservation contracts, managed forest conditions as effectively as formal protected areas. The research, conducted by Fernando Troya during his doctoral studies at KU Leuven University in Belgium, examined three types of forest governance in Ecuador: government-protected forests, community-managed forests with formal agreements, and Indigenous territories without formal agreements. Using satellite data, scientists analyzed three forest metrics: vegetation greenness changes, abrupt forest condition disturbances, and forest productivity during the 2015-2016 El Niño drought. The study found that community-protected forests showed the best overall performance, especially in resilience after drought. However, Indigenous territories without formal agreements also exhibited comparable forest condition patterns, with the highest proportion of areas showing positive long-term trends in vegetation greenness. Troya emphasized that conservation efforts should focus on governance, local participation, and creating systems that support these communities.",
  "summary": "A new study has found that in Ecuador’s Amazon, Indigenous territories without formal conservation contracts maintained forest conditions just as well as formal protected areas. Ecuador has three different approaches to forest governance: Forests protected by government institutions, forests managed by local communities under formal conservation agreements and Indigenous territories without…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Conversation AU",
        "title": "How Indigenous Protected Areas became a vital way to protect nature in Australia",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/06/how-indigenous-protected-areas-became-a-vital-way-to-protect-nature",
        "published": "2026-09-06T20:09:58.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Phys.org",
        "title": "How Indigenous Protected Areas became a vital way to protect nature in Australia",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/07/how-indigenous-protected-areas-became-a-vital-way-to-protect-nature",
        "published": "2026-09-07T23:20:01.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}