Building entrepreneurship and expertise in rural and indigenous communities: the role of companies

April 5, 2023

Rural, indigenous and tribal peoples suffer more extreme impacts from climate change and often have the fewest resources for adaptation. As explained by the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, “while Indigenous peoples in all regions of the world live on lands and territories that contain a great wealth of natural resources, they remain some of the most vulnerable people on earth due to centuries of marginalization and discrimination... Indigenous peoples’ special relationship with their lands – a fundamental element of their spiritual, religious, cultural and physical survival – is often at odds with these interests.” For many indigenous and tribal peoples, land is not merely a possession and a means of production.

The history and identity of rural, indigenous and tribal peoples are tied to their territory through memories, stories and sacred and cultural sites. Environmental and climate impacts not only affect people’s means of sustenance; they also affect people’s relationship with their territory and their ability to continue to live as Indigenous people and maintain their own identity and customs. Many indigenous and tribal territories are collectively owned and managed, with complex networks of relationships, usage rights and diverse decision-making structures. 

Many indigenous and tribal peoples, especially forest peoples, do not live as settled agriculturalists on a small plot of land. For some, their farming systems are based on rotational agriculture that is spread across extensive areas. Hunter-gatherer peoples spend much of their time in the forest, at camps and farms, sometimes several days’ travel from their communities, where they hunt, fish and gather medicinal plants, building materials, clay for pottery, and countless other resources essential for their way of life.

Indigenous and tribal peoples enjoy a deeply intimate relationship with their environments, have unique ways of relating with both the land and people from other cultures, and live and subsist in ways that are often not understood, appreciated or respected by outside entities. These differences are of such significance that they have given rise to a body of international legal standards.  These standards are meant to protect the property and cultural rights of indigenous peoples, as well as their right to participate in decision-making processes that affect them.

Despite increasingly stringent international and customary legal standards, rural, indigenous and tribal peoples remain negatively impacted by activities such as oil drilling, mining, agribusiness, or other types of industrial activities or projects. This is primarily because such activities are often conducted without their consultation or approval. In such cases, there may be a fundamental misalignment between the development strategy that an indigenous community wishes to implement, and the ones that are ultimately agreed upon by regional and national governments and the private sector. Moreover, such projects often do not allow indigenous communities to participate, whether in terms of building skills and expertise or creating long-term economic value for the community.

Companies can help reverse some of these trends. The first way to do so is by undertaking meaningful community consultations in accordance with international and customary law, as well as best practices that have led to successful project precedents. Even if community consultation has never taken place before in a long-standing industrial project, companies can take the initiative to involve indigenous communities through creating programs to build expertise and local entrepreneurship. In this way, long-term project management can, over time, become a joint effort between international operators and the communities themselves.

Another way that companies can support indigenous communities is by providing resources for research, development and implementation of sustainable development initiatives and climate adaptation strategies. This can include strengthening access to food, water, education and other SDG-related goals. It can also include implementing projects to build climate-resilient infrastructure that would protect vulnerable communities from extreme weather events, or funding initiatives to develop renewable energy sources in areas heavily reliant on fossil fuels.

Companies can also support local culture and traditions. They can do so by recognizing indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, as well as providing resources to preserve and share traditional knowledge, or restoring and preserving cultural sites and artifacts in accordance with international standards. This means recognizing, respecting and upholding the right of indigenous peoples to cultural and spiritual integrity over their ancestral homelands. Companies can also implement training and knowledge-sharing programs between local communities and their own employees, building shared value relationships that are mutually reinforcing.

Rural, indigenous and tribal peoples have much wisdom to share, and companies can play an integral role in fostering those relationships. Collaborative efforts of companies, governments and indigenous communities can create opportunities to reduce the impact of climate change, while preserving and celebrating culture and tradition. By implementing meaningful policy changes, providing resources for research and implementation of sustainable development initiatives, and recognizing indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, companies can help reverse the negative impacts of globalization and climate change experienced by indigenous peoples.

CPM