Indigenous Communities & the Climate Crisis: An Introduction
Written by Everest Koester, C3 Teen Intern
Overview:
“For all of us, becoming indigenous to a place means living as if your children’s future mattered, to take care of the land as if our lives, both material and spiritual, depended on it.”
― Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
Indigenous people are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis, like many other historically marginalized groups. This is due to economic disadvantages, displacement from historical homelands, and lack of proper political power, among many other factors. Despite this, Indigenous people and practices are and have been at the forefront of the climate revolution.
This image is one creative interpretation on the current climate crisis and native viewpoints on the idea of “Mother Earth.” “Isabella Armas-Leon, Through the Cracks, 2020, crayon, colored pencil, and marker on paper.”
Past:
Indigenous people have a long history of land stewardship and environmental protection. Indigenous communities have long held beliefs and practices that respect and maintain the natural world. Examples of this include controlled burning, sustainable farming, and protection of biodiversity. These practices not only kept the environment at equilibrium, but actively restored the ecosystem. For example, controlled burning improves soil quality and manages plant species, along with preventing more devastating fires, such as the recent fires across California and Canada.
After European colonizers forced Indigenous nations off their homelands, many, if not all, of these practices were ended across large parts of the country. Indigenous people were forced onto reservations, and experienced political and economic marginalization, which continues to affect them to this day. This marginalization also severely limited tribal nations’ ability to respond to environmental threats, implement traditional ecological knowledge, and care for the land and animals in their traditional ways. The near extinction of bison is a prime example of how Indigenous persecution led to massive environmental damage.
This famous historical image represents the sheer volume of Bison hunted by colonial settlers. At the time of this image being taken, only 456 Bison remined in the US, as compared to the 30 to 60 million Bison present during the 18th Century. “Men standing with pile of buffalo skulls, Michigan Carbon Works, Rougeville Mich., 1892. (Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library),” image and info sourced from National Environmental Treasure.
Present:
Currently, Indigenous American communities are impacted by environmental damages like toxic waste, pollution, and resource extraction. They are also disproportionately affected by the climate crisis: temperature shifts, large-scale migration, and access to important cultural plants and foods are all threatening traditional Indigenous ways of life.
Nuclear test sites, uranium mines, powerplants, and toxic waste dump sites are often close to or on Native lands. These harmful environmental practices not only hurt the ecosystem, but restrict traditional Native hunting and farming practices, and negatively impact the health and safety of the communities involved. Resource extraction is another environmental problem that highly affects Indigenous communities. One well known example is the Dakota Access Pipeline, which sought to run a major oil pipeline through Native owned lands, and the Standing Rock Protests against it. Ultimately, the pipeline was constructed despite the long battle against it, which highlights how Indigenous voices are still not properly recognized and Indigenous nations continue to be politically marginalized. Despite their activism, many communities are left with the difficult decision of approving these extraction projects, due to their economic vulnerability.
This image shows a group of protesters during the Dakota Access Pipeline Debate. “Protesters gathering near Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota to protest the building of the Dakota Access pipeline on October 5, 2016. © Terray Sylvester/Reuters,” sourced from Encylopedia Britannica.
Many Indigenous nations continue to practice traditional hunting, fishing, and harvesting methods that make their communities highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Climate change causes dramatic temperature changes which impact many important aspects of Indigenous life. One of these impacts is the changing migration patterns of animals that are significant to Native diets and cultures, such as Alaskan salmon and Caribou. Shifting temperatures also affect the growing season of plants, and change their availability, further challenging traditional Indigenous systems of knowledge and sustenance. One example of this is sweetgrass—a plant that is culturally significant to many Indigenous peoples. These changing patterns threaten access to traditional foods, and thus the ability to live off the land, a key part of Indigenous life.
Even though Indigenous nations and communities are not responsible for climate change, and are so vulnerable, they are leading the fight against it. Indigenous communities around the world are speaking out against harmful projects from industry and using traditional knowledge to implement restorative farming practices, ecological restoration, and biodiversity protection, which increase ecological health and combat climate change.
“Elder woman from the Mam Indigenous community in Cajolá, Quetzaltenango. As members of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral El Quetzal, their work supports reforestation efforts and helps local families sustain themselves economically.” Photo taken by Sergio Izquierdo, sourced from Rainforest Alliance (2023)
Future:
To further fight climate change, not only must we restore our ecosystems to their proper balance, but we must find new ways of managing our effect on the earth. Already, the most successful restoration initiatives draw from Indigenous knowledge and traditions. In order to meaningfully change the way we impact the climate, it is imperative that Indigenous communities and people are directly involved in the process.
More research and investment is severely needed to address the deep inequities indigenous populations have endured for generations. Creating a healthier future for Indigenous communities begins with appropriately recognizing and representing their voice. From meaningful legal and political representation and recognition to increased economic security, there is much work to be done to improve the systematic oppression of our Indigenous neighbors—and environmental justice is right at the crux of many of these issues. Honoring Indigenous communities and their culture and prioritizing their voice through meaningful engagement can create a long lasting positive impact on our ecosystems, climate, and people.
Indigenous Climate Organizations:
The Monacan Indian Nation is working to reduce pollution in its community, as well as combat environmental injustice. They are using the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant, provided by the EPA, to address environmental concerns within their nation.
Indigenous Conservation Council of the Chesapeake Bay.
Indigenous Environmental Network supports Indigenous protection from environmental contamination and exploitation. They spread information about climate change and Indigenous people, as well as speak at climate conventions and support grassroots climate movements.
Indigenous Climate Action is a Canadian organization that hosts many programs focusing on Indigenous climate leadership and training.
Sources:
“Indigenous Peoples’ Struggle: Climate Change Challenges for 5000+ Communities.” ClimateChange.Academy, 7 December 2024. https://climatechange.academy/climate-change-society/indigenous-peoples-struggle-climate-change/
“Environmental Justice & Native American Communities · History · Our Land, Our Stories.” Our-Land-Our-Stories.libraries.rutgers.edu, our-land-our-stories.libraries.rutgers.edu/exhibits/show/olos-history/na-ej.
Vickery, Jamie, and Lori M. Hunter. “Native Americans: Where in Environmental Justice Research?” Society & Natural Resources, vol. 29, no. 1, July 2015, pp. 36–52, https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2015.1045644.
National Park Service. “Indigenous Fire Practices Shape Our Land.” National Park Service, 4 Feb. 2022, www.nps.gov/subjects/fire/indigenous-fire-practices-shape-our-land.htm.
“Indigenous Worldviews Strengthening Climate Resilience.” United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 8 Aug. 2025, unfccc.int/news/indigenous-worldviews-strengthening-climate-resilience.