Tenth International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

Scholarship on human rights and transnational advocacy suggests that organizations in the Global North frequently partner with indigenous groups in the Global South to achieve outcomes related to environmental protection and sustainability. The literature also suggests that indigenous organizations, which are included in these studies as Global South actors, represent groups that traditionally focus on issues of sovereignty, autonomy and the sacredness of land while grappling with unique problems related to assimilation, cultural preservation, and oppression. Though indigenous and non-indigenous organizations partner with one another over threats to the environment, recent indigenous-led protests built on long-held beliefs of a spiritual connection to the Earth and linked the protection of sacred land with broader environmental concerns. This study utilizes empirical data gathered from 334 NGOs affiliated with the Human Rights Council to explore whether indigenous and non-indigenous organizations, which share many aspects of their mission and message with one another at the transnational level, differ on issues related to the environment and collective identity rights. To what extent do indigenous and non-indigenous human rights organizations focus on environmental rights? To what extent are environmental rights and collective identity rights linked in each respective category? Do different perceptions of the sacredness of land alter the issues organizations link to the environment? Through the critical exploration of practice distinctions among such organizations in comparison to their shared missions, this paper illuminates the importance of transparency among NGOs who enter into partnership on the basis of shared interests correlated with indigenous rights and goals.