The global transition to renewable energy is increasing pressure on Indigenous lands and risks repeating extractive abuses unless affected communities participate meaningfully in decisions and consent to projects, the United Nations human rights chief warned.
Volker Türk, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said growing demand for critical minerals, renewable energy infrastructure and large-scale development projects was placing Indigenous territories and resources under mounting pressure.
“The world’s transition to a greener economy is essential – and it cannot come at the expense of the rights of Indigenous Peoples,” Türk said July 15 during the 19th session of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Geneva.
“There must be a just transition, firmly grounded in human rights, meaningful participation, and consent to all projects affecting their territories and resources,” he said.
Türk said mining and extractive activities, deforestation and large-scale agriculture continued to exploit and destroy Indigenous lands and territories without the consent of their communities.
He also warned that Indigenous environmental defenders, including women and young people, faced widespread intimidation, criminalization, harassment and violence for protecting their lands and ecosystems.
At least 15% of human rights defenders killed or forcibly disappeared worldwide between 2023 and 2025 were Indigenous rights defenders, Türk said.
“I want to emphasise this disproportionate and unacceptable impact on Indigenous activists,” he said.
Türk said Indigenous Peoples were also targeted for prosecution and that their legitimate activities were criminalized under broadly and vaguely worded terrorism and extremism laws.
He cited the death of Nicaraguan Miskitu leader Brooklyn Rivera, who he said died six weeks earlier while arbitrarily detained, as reflecting wider patterns of repression.
The U.N. official said historical injustices, dispossession of lands and resources, denial of self-determination, discrimination, environmental degradation and the erosion of Indigenous governance systems continued to shape violence against Indigenous Peoples.
“Durable peace requires inclusion, justice, meaningful participation at every stage and recognition of rights,” Türk said.
“And this must involve recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ rights to self-determination and to control over their lands,” he added.
He said Indigenous Peoples had long played a central role in peacebuilding through customary law, governance systems and traditional practices that support accountability, restoration and social harmony.
Türk also highlighted the contributions of Indigenous knowledge systems to biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, sustainable resource management and social cohesion.
“Indigenous Peoples’ rights are not theoretical aspirations for the future; they are obligations for the present, now,” he said.
“And wherever those rights are respected, all of society becomes more just, more peaceful and more resilient,” he added.
Türk also raised concerns about artificial intelligence, digital systems and control over information involving Indigenous communities.
He said Indigenous Peoples must be able to control data relating to their communities and knowledge systems because such information could be used to deepen discrimination and dispossession.
“Data is a cultural, strategic and economic resource that can be misused to fuel discrimination and dispossession,” Türk said.
