Indigenous Self-Determination And The Reduction Of Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A New Approach For International Climate Law?

Abstract

Indigenous peoples face disproportionate burdens caused by climate change. Making up less than 5 per cent of our population, they care for 80 per cent of its biodiversity. As their environment degrades, so too does the indigenous way of life, and indigenous identity, to which it is so closely connected. So, what legal mechanisms are there to guarantee the survival of indigenous populations and their ways of life? This paper focuses on the indigenous right to self-determination as outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It seeks to ask whether an argument can be made placing a duty on states to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to observe and uphold this right. This paper argues that, as the climate degrades, so too does the ability for indigenous groups to freely determine their economic, social and cultural goals as enshrined in their right to self-determination. This is due to the loss of choice that results from climate degradation, which, in turn, affects the cultural identity that is so integral to indigenous populations and their survival. Beginning by examining the origins of the right to self-determination, this paper then moves on to examining its ‘internal’ and ‘external’ elements. It is determined that both are guaranteed by UNDRIP and also supported by the position of the right in customary international law as an ergo omnes obligation. Finally, this paper analyses the efficacy of this argument, asking whether it is correct to say that states must reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to uphold the indigenous right to self-determination. Ultimately, although it is concluded that such an argument can be made, it is noted that the argument is not without issue and requires more development before becoming completely watertight.