Amplifying Indigenous Voices
We are excited to be sharing our first ‘thought piece’ article written by Mibu Fischer on Indigenous Peoples, climate change, and inclusion.
Mibu Fischer is a marine scientist with CSIROs Environment sitting in the Sustainable Marine Futures Program. The majority of her work focuses on exploring inclusion and respect for Indigenous Science and Knowledge within academia.
She has collaborated with Indigenous and Traditional People internationally to discuss the importance of the inclusion of worldviews to address many global challenges such as climate change. And worked to include Indigenous voices in national reporting frameworks like the Australian State of the Environment Report.
From a UN perspective, international parties have been meeting to discuss the necessary actions to combat the most horrific climate change impacts since 1995. During this time there has been a growing number of Traditional and Indigenous Peoples who are connecting on their shared experiences as voiceless parties or small nations who are increasingly impacted by climate change. Traditional and Indigenous People are among the first to be impacted by climate change, owing to their close relationship with Country. Whilst they are greatly impacted by changes to the environment Indigenous Peoples are often not listened to when raising their concerns about climate inaction, environmental degradation, and increased industrialisation amongst others.
Despite recent commitments at COP27 in Sharm El Sheik, Egypt to create a ‘Loss and Damage’ fund for vulnerable countries, how this will assist Traditional and Indigenous Peoples globally is yet to be seen.
Who is adapting?
Indigenous Peoples have had to be adaptive to changes in the climate over thousands of years, and genuine inclusion and empowerment will enable their knowledge and science to appropriately contribute to the climate challenges we face globally. But how can Indigenous Peoples be included in systems that were designed against them, using a completely different worldview and values?
Inclusion requires a change in mindset and cultural workplace values, to acknowledge that answers can be found in systems and in ways that may challenge the structure or processes that have been taught through a western worldview. Inclusion also requires companies, organisations and governments to shift decision-making abilities to Indigenous Peoples when it comes to decisions that impact Country and cultural rights and interests.
Whilst Indigenous Peoples have adapted to a changing climate over thousands of years, adaptation needs to be seen from the western world in both contexts, adaptation to climate change and adaptation to management and decision-making processes to include Indigenous worldviews and knowledge systems. There have been some advances in this when a human rights based approach has been utilised as a pathway for inclusion in spaces that Indigenous and Traditional Peoples have previously been excluded from. The focus of these rights has been on the right to maintain cultural and traditional activities despite changes to their territories by colonial powers.
The blue economy as an avenue of inclusion
With increasing interest and investment in the emerging blue economy space, there is potential for the interests of Indigenous Peoples to be incorporated. One hurdle is understanding the connections to marine spaces for many Indigenous communities globally and empowering communities to participate and partner in activities. Many Indigenous communities cannot escape the need to work within the economy and enabling a pathway for inclusion will additionally empower communities.
Blue carbon is increasingly being explored as an avenue to reduce atmospheric carbon or as an offset. With the numerous companies that are exploring this space, there is an opportunity to partner and collaborate with the Traditional and Indigenous Peoples. Many Traditional and Indigenous People are looking for opportunities to work and care for Country, generate economic stability and contribute to actions to reduce the impacts of climate change. This emerging industry is an opportunity for this to occur.
What you can do?
How can you and your organisation help move the narrative in a positive direction in partnership with Indigenous and Traditional Peoples, here are some points to consider:
Engage from the beginning with your local Traditional and Indigenous communities
Be prepared to provide resources (e.g., time and funds)
Understand the history and connections to marine and coastal environments for Indigenous and Traditional communities, and that they extend further than commonly thought
Realise communities have their own goals, assertions, and aspirations, and that when developing a relationship your goals may change
Respect that many community members will be giving up paid employment to spend time with your engagement activities, so include remuneration for their time and knowledge
Each community will have different protocols, and expectations and be at varying levels of readiness for participating
Indigenous communities have been underfunded due to historic disadvantage, and despite the acknowledgment of many nations of the atrocities that were inflicted on all colonised people, the reparations to create equity are not yet sufficient.
Above all, for Indigenous Peoples to adequately be included in climate solutions governments, companies and organisations need to shift the priority to align with the priority of many communities, where environmental and social priorities come before economic outcomes. This shift will not only benefit Indigenous Peoples but all people globally.