Executive summary

The 2nd Southeast Asia Regional Forum on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights and Climate Change in the Digital Era was successfully held on August 9–11, 2025. The Forum opened with the joint celebration of Hari Internasional Masyarakat Adat Sedunia (HIMAS), or the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, hosted by Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara (AMAN) at Kasepuhan Guradog, in Lebak, Banten, Indonesia. It continued with two days of formal sessions in Bogor.

This colorful and diverse gathering brought together 173 participants, comprising Indigenous Peoples’ representatives from the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, and Indonesia, along with civil society and non-government organizations.

The sessions were structured around three main topics: Indigenous Peoples’ rights, climate change and resilience, and digitalization and artificial intelligence. In the first plenary session, speakers—community representatives and members of Indigenous Peoples’ organizations from the region, as well as from the Philippines, Myanmar, Singapore, and Indonesia—spoke on the current framing of the status of Indigenous Peoples, highlighting key gains and emerging challenges.

With numerous efforts by Indigenous communities and organizations to map customary territories, build networks, and strengthen Indigenous women and youth, there is hope that Indigenous Peoples’ customs, traditions, and knowledge will become politically significant in Asia. However, environmental degradation, lack of state recognition, and political unrest continue to worsen and deeply impact Indigenous communities. The ‘business-as-usual’ manner of energy transition efforts, along with the aggressive spread of digitalization and artificial intelligence, also pose significant threats to Indigenous Peoples.

Three parallel small group sessions followed, focusing on the respective topics of Indigenous Peoples’ roles in territory and biodiversity protection, energy transition, and Indigenous youth. The take-away points centered on the following: Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Practices (IKSPs) are key in Indigenous communities’ efforts to protect their forest, coastal, and agricultural territories. The lack of state recognition results in IPs’ conservation and environmental protection efforts being overlooked. The push for energy transition to renewables has had a downside impact on IPs, as it has driven up mining activities for transition minerals. Issues raised by speakers included mining waste, water pollution, displacement due to hydropower dam projects, and destruction of biodiversity and sacred spaces.

Indigenous Peoples need to define what a “just” transition means for them. Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC)must be upheld at all times. Accountability—including that of international financial institutions funding these projects—and transparency in approval and implementation are necessary to prevent environmental damage and rights violations. Community-led renewable energy, such as the example in Malaysia, presents opportunities for IPs to further their own sustainability.

Meanwhile, Indigenous youth had a lively and heartfelt discussion around their personal and collective struggles to step up and help lead their communities. Cultural erosion, lack of economic opportunities, and at times, the lack of support from their elders are obstacles to the youth movement. However, they are committed to reviving their cultures and saving the IKSPs that are at risk of being lost. They aim to build their capacity to harness available technologies for their benefit and bridge the intergenerational gap with their elders. Indigenous youth are not only the leaders of tomorrow—they are also active protectors and decision-makers today. Their role is to bridge ancestral heritage with contemporary innovations, safeguarding their cultural and environmental integrity in the face of rapid change.

The second main topic, climate change and resilience, was discussed in depth through another set of three parallel sessions in the afternoon. Indigenous Peoples are among the most vulnerable populations and are disproportionately affected by climate change. Many challenges negatively impact their capacity for resilience. Governments, international platforms, and other stakeholders do not adequately acknowledge the contributions of Indigenous Peoples to climate mitigation, leading to a lack of recognition for Indigenous wisdom, customary forest management, and food systems.

Participants called for the scaling up of documentation of local wisdom related to heritage seeds, forest management, traditional agriculture, and other practices. They also called upon themselves to strengthen customary governance and community institutions, so that they can effectively transfer IKSPs to the next generation and increase collaboration and network-building among Indigenous Peoples. This includes pursuing legal recognition and protection for their data and culture.

For the state and the international community, focus must be placed on securing land rights for IPs, supporting capacity development, and providing enabling policies that allow Indigenous Peoples to protect themselves and participate meaningfully in international climate platforms.

The session on climate financing was highly anticipated, as many participants had questions. Key points raised included the fact that less than 1% of climate financing reaches Indigenous Peoples. Access procedures are extremely complicated and must be simplified to ensure funds reach the right groups. Climate financing should be long-term, grounded in climate justice, and not structured as loans that deepen national debt.

Biodiversity credits were discussed as a new mechanism focused on biodiversity protection. Biodiversity offsets are similar to carbon credits, but with different units of measurement. Valuing biodiversity is particularly challenging because it includes everything from the smallest organisms to entire ecosystems. Again, there is a lack of clarity in benefit-sharing, and such mechanisms risk commodifying nature—contrary to Indigenous worldviews. Regulations and benefit distribution mechanisms for biodiversity credits need to be strengthened in favor of Indigenous communities.

So, what are the opportunities for IPs to access climate financing? The BUMMA or IP-owned enterprises model, being developed by the Mitra BUMMA organization together with tribes in Papua, presents a promising example. They operate on the principle that when Indigenous Peoples are organized and capacitated to lead their own corporations, they can protect and manage their territories, natural and cultural wealth, and contribute to the global well-being of nature, humanity, and the planet. This model draws inspiration from Menoken—a cultural pathway for community organizing, socio-cultural economic governance, and institutional capacity. A series of recommendations emerged from this session, with participants expressing a strong desire to deepen their understanding and engagement with climate financing mechanisms.

The session on Non-Economic Loss and Damage (NELD) was another vibrant gathering, where many participants openly shared their experiences. Many of the situations leading to loss and damage have been ongoing for years, particularly in coastal and sea-dependent communities and those affected by mining. Forms of NELD identified included: loss of land, culture, and collective memory; loss of traditions, livelihoods, and traditional values; damage to sacred places; negative socio-economic impacts across generations; shifts in social identity; difficult adaptation due to forced migration; further loss of cultural identity and heritage spaces; food insecurity; health issues; gender-related challenges; and post-disaster vulnerabilities. Participants expressed strong interest in establishing a network for ongoing discussions and collaboration on loss and damage.

The final set of sessions focused on Digitalization and AI: Rights, Resilience and Justice for Indigenous Peoples in a Changing Climate, providing much-needed information and awareness about how far digital technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) have advanced, the issues arising from them, and the serious implications for Indigenous Peoples.

Digitalization and AI hold great potential to empower IPs. However, without firm regulation and recognition of Indigenous rights and data sovereignty, there are serious threats of exploitation and data extraction. Indigenous digital rights must include full control over their data, meaningful participation in the development of regulations, and the use of technology for the benefit of their communities—not for the profit of external actors.

A positive case study was shared by Ranu Welum, which has conducted community documentation and data archiving to help preserve traditional knowledge related to climate resilience and Indigenous ways of life. The Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) also presented the Indigenous Knowledge Data Sovereignty Framework, which includes several key elements: traditional self-governance; authority, control, and decision-making; accountability and representation; Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC); guardianship; respect for the value and dignity of Indigenous knowledge and its sources; dispute resolution and reconciliation; collective assets and benefit-sharing; and inclusion.

The resulting “Bogor Call to Action” contains the recommendations and appeals of Indigenous Peoples to take effective action on core issues they continue to struggle with in asserting their rights. It is also a call to address newer challenges arising from digitalization and artificial intelligence. They urgently call on Governments to further protect and defend IP rights and resources, and respond to the need for shared prosperity based on the sustainability of Indigenous territories and identities. Their internally-directed call highlights the need to strengthen and promote Indigenous institutions and knowledge in relation to food sovereignty; Build strategies that strengthen youth leadership, ensure the transfer of Indigenous knowledge,  and capacitate them to navigate contemporary political and economic systems; and ensure meaningful opportunities for Indigenous Women. As a movement, they are challenged to build a common understanding and goal amongst Indigenous Peoples to realize climate justice, and work towards rights-based mechanisms that enable us to secure the necessary support and resources to address the climate crisis.

They also joined the demands that historical emitters rapidly and significantly reduce their GHG emissions, so as not to undermine ongoing adaptation initiatives and the sustainable way of life observed by IPs, and acknowledge non-economic losses and damages. Another important call is to Governments and other international platforms is to ensure Indigenous data sovereignty and digital rights by enacting policy measures that confer upon Indigenous Peoples the right to control and govern their data resources. Furthermore, they call to enact and implement policies that protect Indigenous Peoples’ rights in energy transition, ensuring Free, Prior and Informed Consent and full involvement of Indigenous leadership. Climate financing should be grounded on climate justice principles, and adopt mechanisms that are inclusive, accessible for Indigenous communities, direct, non-market based, predictable and transparent.

The 2nd Southeast Asia Regional Forum was organized and convened by: AMAN, Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), IT for Change, Adaptation Research Alliance – Stockholm Environment Institute, Tifa Foundation, and Samdhana Institute.