Francisca Kelly

Brazil's Indigenous rights leader championing Amazon conservation

Francisca Kelly (b. 1975) is a Kayapó leader and founder of Amazon Guardians Consortium, an indigenous-led network protecting 12 million hectares of Amazon rainforest. As a young activist in the 1990s, Kelly organized the historic 1992 protest at Altamira that halted the Belo Monte Dam project, saving 400km² of Kayapó territory. Her 2003 creation of the Biological Corridors initiative reconnected fragmented habitats, restoring critical biodiversity corridors.

Kelly's 2019 TED Talk exposed illegal logging networks, leading to Brazil's 2020 anti-deforestation task force. She pioneered the Indigenous Carbon Credits program, enabling tribes to earn $2.5 million annually through verified emissions reductions. Her 2022 book 《Guardians of the Canopy》 became a bestseller in Portuguese-speaking countries. Despite death threats from loggers, Kelly continues her advocacy through partnerships with Rainforest Foundation, training 1,200 young indigenous leaders annually.