Indigenous People's Forced Climate Migration

After the recent COP29 meeting In Baku, Azerbaijan (29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), conversations surrounding representation, and which voices should be heard circulated. Recent statistics discovered 1,773 fossil fuel lobbyists attended COP29, versus a mere

170 Indigenous people, who had no real authority to make decisions at these official meetings. Their role includes advising those willing to hear them out for their expertise in matters related to climate change. However, it is evident that this expertise is often underestimated, and undervalued despite strong evidence that they hold the key to many climate change solutions

Eco-Tourism and Indigenous Erasure

Eco tourism is defined by environmentally responsible travel which appoints local people to have socio economic involvement, and values low visitor densities in areas desperately needing conservation.

However, there lacks specific guidelines and management deciding which vacations are classified as eco tourism, and many take advantage for profit, which inevitably leads to a fetishization of indigenous customs and culture. Stereotypical representations of indigenous people seep into organized tours, and many leave their world-widening vacation with the wrong impression of the true valuable role of indigenous people in the countries they inhabit worldwide. Often they must clear land in order to make room for tourists, which in turn destroys native housing and displaces native people from their resources. In India, the creation of tiger reserves to attract foreign tourist dollars has resulted in violent clashes and the eviction of scores of Adivasi Indigenous peoples from their homes. 

How Some Climate Change Solutions Cause More Harm Than Good

The investment and support for renewable energy is an essential way to mitigate climate change disasters, and bring a life saving network of power to those who do not have access to it. Yet, many do not realize the cost of this investment for those who have inhabited these lands for thousands of years. Mining for valuable minerals for batteries, solar panels, and electric vehicles is a large reason why many indigenous people are suffering. The mines are often close to tribal lands, more than 75% of lithium, copper, and nickel reserves in the U.S. are located within 25 miles of Indigenous lands. This has had a direct correlation with an increased risk in sexual violence for Native women, contaminated waterways, and leads to large amounts of air pollution that native people deal with every day. That has severe consequences for their livelihoods and maintenance of their practices and languages. The good news is Indigenous people have an International right to free, prior, and informed consent before decisions made about their territories are put into effect such as mining, solar, and hydroelectric projects. 

Indigenous Migration

Indigenous groups make up more than 4,000 of the 7,000 documented languages on Earth, even though they make up a small 6% of the entire population. While climate change is changing the landscape of lands they once loved and understood, vocabularies are are disappearing from dialects. An estimated 476 million Indigenous people dwell on lands that are home to 80 percent of the world’s biodiversity. They understand that they have a large responsibility to conserve and celebrate the beauties of nature in order to maintain their own cultural practices and keep their memories alive in the newer generations. Drought, an increase in nonedible grass for the livestock they raise, salty seawater mixed with the fresh water they rely on, and the quality of groundwater degrading are only some of the issues they face on a daily basis worldwide. We are not conserving land or biodiversity in a way that is equitable to Indigenous people whose culture, language, and way of life is at jeopardy when they leave ancestral lands. If they had access to the land they have owned for centuries, a lot of these issues would be manageable, and they wouldn't have to leave home. Equity is not considered enough when it comes to Indigenous rights, and many people refuse to look at the situation clearly. The forced migration taking place due to climate is not very different from the forced colonial migration Indigenous people have taken over the course of dark histories across the globe. It is essential that all policies take advantage of Indigenous knowledge and passion in order to change the narrative on climate change worldwide.

“There’s less rain, but if at least they had enough water from the rivers, if at least they had the access to the land, then they said they could have dealt with this,” García says. “Climate change itself is not the main worry of people, but its effects are: The changes in water systems, deforestation, increased mining activities, all these things are having a larger impact, which are very subjective to each community.” (2024)