What do activists and NGOs need to know to be allies to communities on the frontlines of climate change?

23 June 2022

23 June

By: Kera Sherwood-O’Regan

Relationships are the foundation of meaningful climate action. We know that climate justice requires us to work within and across communities, tackling the systemic causes of climate change which are also the root causes of systemic oppression like racism or ableism. Upholding standards of Free, Prior, Informed Consent can help our relationships to flourish, and align our actions with our ethics. This can apply when we are thinking about relationships between individuals, but is also particularly important when we think about the relationship between communities and corporations or governments.

Consent is important for all human relationships, but understanding the concept of Free, Prior, Informed Consent (also known as FPIC) is especially essential when engaging with Indigenous Peoples. It’s a standard that protects Indigenous Peoples’ rights to self-determination; decision making; and full and meaningful participation on issues that affect them. Since we’ve already learnt how climate change disproportionately affects Indigenous Peoples, that includes any issues related to climate change!

FPIC should be front of mind when…

• Considering how to engage with Indigenous organisations, activists, and communities
• Developing policies for climate action on Indigenous lands and territories (including anywhere on lands that have been colonised, even if the state does not recognise this as Indigenous land)
• Promoting, or discussing climate policies and action in media, social media, or at other events
• Developing any campaign that aims for “climate justice”
• Working with Indigenous people and activists within or outside your organisation

So what is FPIC all about?

You might find it helpful to think of FPIC as a standard that helps ensure that the right to self determination is upheld.

According to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, FPIC is a right of Indigenous Peoples that enables us to give or decline consent to any projects that may affect our people or our territories.

Since we know that climate change disproportionately affects Indigenous Peoples, and will undoubtedly have an impact on Indigenous territories, any issue that pertains to climate change is relevant to Indigenous Peoples. Therefore any decisions related to climate change should take Free, Prior, and Informed Consent into consideration. 

A common example is to think about a proposal for a hydroelectric or other “green energy” project being established on Indigenous Peoples’ lands. We should recognise that Indigenous Peoples have the right to give or withhold consent on such projects occurring on their lands, and such projects that will inevitably affect their people. When such projects go ahead without the consent of Indigenous Peoples, even so-called “green energy” projects, or other initiatives slated as “climate solutions” violate the rights of Indigenous Peoples to determine our own futures and make decisions on issues that affect our communities, and therefore these initiatives cannot be considered actions or solutions for climate justice.

While an example as large and physical as a hydroelectric plant might seem quite obvious, the same applies across other levels of climate decision making. This can include the ways in which Indigenous Peoples are engaged in processes for climate policy making; urban development; community initiatives; research; climate campaigns; political messaging; and media production. The consenting process might look different for a climate campaign video versus a hydroelectric dam, but there are a few underlying principles that are important no matter the size or scope of decision being made. 

Along with ensuring that Indigenous Peoples have the opportunity to give or decline consent in the first place, we should recognise that the process of consent must also meet certain standards to be considered appropriate.

Let’s break down what that looks like.

Free

“Free” means that consent is given (or not) freely, without any coercion, intimidation, or manipulation. The process of giving or denying consent is just as important as the outcome, and must happen in accordance with Indigenous Peoples’ own self-directed  processes, and on our own timelines.

It’s not free if people fear retaliation or gatekeeping as a result of their decision; or if the other party is dictating the process. 

Some examples where we see this principle being regularly ignored are when governments and their agencies, corporations, and climate organisations and movements dictate a process for engaging with Indigenous Peoples when Indigenous Peoples should be free to determine our own processes. Many organisations will only engage with an Indigenous Advisory Board that they have appointed themselves, rather than building relationships with Indigenous Peoples’ own representative organisations or leaders. They may also require written submissions or attendance at particular meetings as the only pathway to express our concerns or agreement with a project or decision.

We can see that there is a lot of room for improvement across government, the private sector, and across civil society to ensure that engagement with Indigenous Peoples meets the standard of free consent.

Prior

“Prior” means that consent is sought in advance, with enough time for Indigenous Peoples to undertake their own free processes. No action should commence before consent is given. This means that the common idea of “asking for forgiveness, not permission” is not consent, and violates Indigenous Rights. 

Whether we’re looking at a big development project, or a small decision in our work programmes, ensuring that consent is provided (or declined) in advance of any action is critical.

This is an important part of the process to consider for those working in the climate movement where we are often working to tight timelines, and there can be a pressure to make decisions quickly. Sometimes political opportunities present themselves and we fear that there is only a small window available to get our initiatives across the line, or there is only a short time to make the most of a “media moment”. 

When we are in these rushed situations, we often abandon our usual processes for engagement, and prioritise quick decision-making over deeper deliberation. This often takes place within smaller groups of decision makers because wider consensus seeking or community engagement is assumed to be too time consuming. This can result in decision-making power being concentrated in a very exclusive group, usually those who are already overrepresented and have the privilege of engaging at short notice; and it can exclude the very communities whose experience and perspective most need to be considered before jumping to action. 

Prioritising quick and unilateral decisions effectively cuts Indigenous Peoples out of decision making by not allowing us the time to discuss issues in community and undertake our own free processes; and likewise can exclude disabled and neurodivergent people, and people who are speakers of other languages who may need more time to process information before coming to a decision.

In the climate movement we will often see such urgent decisions being made without the prior engagement and consent of Indigenous and other frontline communities; and those communities are also routinely expected to “co-sign” or retroactively “consent” to a decision made without them.

We shouldn’t let our feelings of urgency compromise other people’s rights, and we can all play a part in ensuring that decision-making timelines and processes allow for prior engagement and consent of Indigenous Peoples and other affected communities.

Informed

Indigenous Peoples should also have the appropriate information to make a decision; should understand what they’re agreeing to; and should be kept informed through the whole decision-making process. This means that information should be accessible – including being available in local languages and accessible formats; or presented in a way that is easily understood. Equally important is that the information should be thorough – while it’s helpful to provide summaries and plain language explanations to make information more accessible, it should also not be assumed that Indigenous Peoples are uninterested in technical details or do not have the expertise to understand technical information.

The flow of information should also be continuous throughout the consenting process, meaning that if the scope, timeframe, or other details of a project or decision change, Indigenous Peoples should also be informed of those changes.

An example of this common to climate campaigning is when Indigenous Peoples agree to share knowledge or stories under certain circumstances, with particular people or organisations, or for a specific campaign. The consent is given based on certain information and a certain context. 

If that context changes, then consent needs to be sought again with updated information. 

This means that if someone agrees to be filmed for a certain campaign, quoted for a particular presentation, or share knowledge with a particular organisation, that consent must be sought again if you want to use the footage or quote elsewhere, or share the knowledge with others outside of the originally agreed organisation.

Consent

In this context, consent is a collective decision made by Indigenous Peoples, and reached by our own processes.

“Consent” is not making a decision, policy point, advocacy message, or campaign plan without Indigenous Peoples’ involvement, and then getting select Indigenous activists to agree to promote it, or “lead” it after the fact.

Takeaways for climate activists and organisations

1. Indigenous Peoples  have the right to determine their own processes, and these can take time. Engage with us at the earliest stages of your campaign or policy planning – even if there’s no initial action required.
2. Commit to deeper relationships and make time for them – not only reaching out when you need an “Indigenous perspective” or soundbite.
3. Consider the subtle ways you might be coercing consent – like if people think they’ll be excluded in future if they decline your request or give you critical feedback.
4. Always ask before sharing our stories or knowledge, even if we’ve agreed before.
5. Engage with us collectively and let us choose our own representatives, don’t only engage with the one Indigenous person who agrees with you, or who you feel comfortable with.
6. Policies, actions, or campaigns that seem to have the same outcome can be liberating or oppressive, depending on the process.
7. When striving for climate justice, prioritise the relationship and the process – not the outcome.

Find out more

You can find out more about Free Prior Informed Consent, and how it can be incorporated into your projects by downloading the easy to read guide from FAO (The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation) here. <https://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/faoweb/2018-New/Our_Pillars/FPIC_package_.zip>. In the next blog we will also tackle storytelling, with some tips on incorporating these principles of consent when it comes to climate campaigning and media making.