Last month, over 100 Amazonian river dolphins were found dead in a lake in the Brazilian Amazon. Their fate was due to a combination of heat and low water levels from what many consider to be the worst drought in the history of the Amazon.

Like other extreme weather events, the climate crisis is a direct cause. A key factor exacerbating the problem is deforestation. Stopping deforestation from industrial agriculture, mining, and “development” projects in the Amazon is essential for survival of not only the plant and animal species in the rainforest, but hundreds of thousands of Brazil’s Indigenous, riverine, and quilombola communities.

That is why the movement to secure legal recognition of Indigenous territories is absolutely critical at this moment in history. To stop catastrophic climate change, to protect Indigenous cultures, to prevent the next drought and keep the Amazon’s river dolphins and other species thriving, Indigenous rights are the key.