From Colonial Legacies to the Climate Crisis: Why Indigenous Knowledges and Movements Matter

Summary

Indigenous people and their diverse knowledges play a crucial role in both resolving enduring injustices owed to colonialism and addressing the planet’s escalating climate crisis.

Despite this, they are frequently pushed to the margins if not entirely excluded from formal institutions and mainstream conversations related to scientific and solutions-oriented approaches to global challenges, poverty alleviation, and environmental sustainability.

While Indigenous communities, activists, and elders have fought to be heard and taken seriously for decades, state policymaking bodies, multilateral organisations, international funding agencies, and even world-leading research institutes have, regrettably, been slow on the uptake.

More recently, however, things have slowly started to change, albeit admittedly only in limited and incremental ways.

Nevertheless, and in turning to intensifying climate risk as an example, the latest IPCC (2022, 53) report explicitly states: ‘Supporting Indigenous self-determination, recognising Indigenous Peoples’ rights and supporting Indigenous knowledge-based adaptation are critical to reducing climate change risks and effective adaptation.’

Indeed, listening and paying heed to the perspectives, experiences, and communal land rights of Indigenous communities are all essential in shaping and implementing effective climate action—not to mention correcting the lasting legacies and historical wrongs wrought by empire.