What is IPSSDD? 

Organizations doing work with indigenous peoples believe that now is the most opportune time to elaborate, put forward and implement a more holistic, equitable and far-sighted framework which can increase the possibilities of bringing about social justice, gender equality and women empowerment, inter-generational and intra-generational equity and sustainability.

Indigenous peoples’ sustainable, self-determined development (IPSSDD) is based on a balanced integration of socio-cultural, economic and environmental goals and objectives.

This is what sustainable development means to indigenous peoples.

Self-determined development means that indigenous peoples, themselves, will decide how economic, social and cultural development should happen in their territories.

This includes the need to respect their rights to their lands, territories and resources, respect for their cultures and their right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC).

This holistic framework integrates the Human Rights-Based Approach, the Ecosystems-Based Approach, a knowledge-based approach which respects indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge and integrates appropriate and relevant modern scientific knowledge, and an intercultural approach or interculturality.

IPSSDD puts indigenous peoples’ rights in the center of development while ensuring the protection and sustainable use and management of the environment, support for sustainable traditional livelihoods and the respect of cultural diversity.

This also gives importance to vital role of indigenous women and youth in advancing intergenerational and intercultural sustainable development. Continuing empowerment of women and the youth and responding to gender-based discrimination is integral in IPSSDD.

IPSSDD is a not a newly developed framework but is based on indigenous peoples’ perspective of the world.

Based on our long years of work in human rights promotion, sustainable development and support for empowerment of indigenous peoples, we have come to the conclusion that the further elaboration and operationalization of this integrated holistic framework is crucial to ensure the continuing survival of indigenous peoples as distinct peoples and cultures.

In a world that is modernizing and globalizing in a very fast pace and where economic growth is the main pre-occupation, there is crying need for such a holistic framework for development and sustainability. 

IPSSDD will help indigenous peoples prevail over the multiple crises and also contribute to the solutions to these crises.